Redfin is a technology-powered real estate company based in Seattle, Washington whose mission is to make the process of buying and selling a home better for consumers. The company started in 2004 as a map-based search product for prospective homebuyers to discover real estate listings online. Since then, the company has expanded its offerings to include not only a full-service real estate brokerage, but also iBuying, title & escrow, and lending services.

Redfin’s title & escrow operation, Title Forward, uses Qualia Core as its title & escrow production and workflow software. Redfin also invested in Qualia API to connect its in-house lending, brokerage, and iBuying services to Core. By leveraging Qualia API, Redfin is able to connect its in-house services for greater operational efficiency and an optimized closing experience.

The Challenge: Discovering a Title & Escrow Software that Met the Redfin Standard

Technology runs in Redfin’s DNA, and naturally, the company has a strong bias toward building versus buying technology solutions. Because title & escrow operations are so complex and vary on a state by state and even county by county basis, Redfin decided to outsource its title & escrow software rather than investing millions in R&D to build an effective solution. Redfin needed to find a comprehensive title & escrow software platform that could meet its lofty standards and ambitious goals.

A best-in-class software solution

Redfin’s team of product developers and engineers are experts in their domain and they expect their title & escrow software provider to be experts in their respective field as well. Redfin would only consider a best-in-class software provider that understood title & escrow operations inside and out.

A software provider that could integrate with the Redfin ecosystem

Redfin’s primary value proposition to consumers is a seamless and simple homebuying experience. This is possible through Redfin’s connected ecosystem of services from home search to close. Redfin needed a software provider that could integrate with its other in-house systems, similar to how businesses leverage Salesforce for a CRM or Stripe for online payments. Redfin’s Principal Product Manager, Mary Pappas explained, “Redfin is able to offer better service to consumers at a lower cost because we bank on efficiencies we can get through integrated technology.”

A continually-evolving technology provider

Redfin needed a partner that was aligned with its ethos for constantly making its product “better.” Pappas explained that “better” in Redfin’s eyes means being open and flexible to what the consumer needs and meeting that with technology.

The Solution: Qualia’s Award-Winning Title & Escrow Software and Qualia API

Making the decision to work with Qualia and outsource its title & escrow technology ultimately came down to Qualia’s expertise in title & escrow software as well as Qualia’s ability to amplify Redfin’s consumer experience through the Qualia API.

A more efficient & integrated closing process

For Redfin, one of the key advantages of housing the entire real estate transaction under one roof is the ability to reduce data duplication. The Qualia API acts as the “mesh” that holds together Redfin’s internal lender and brokerage systems with Title Forward’s title & escrow system (Qualia Core). This enables Redfin to reduce redundant data entry and streamline the closing process.

Because Redfin agents and lenders are integrated with Title Forward through the Qualia API, they can do things like swiftly place orders without leaving their own systems. Redfin’s agents and lenders are able to place an order with Title Forward in seconds with the certainty that all deal and loan data are automatically and perfectly transferred to Title Forward business for seamless order opening.

We’re already much more efficient with Qualia than our previous vendor and we’re excited to take advantage of new automations that we believe will improve employee productivity so that they can focus on their highest-value work rather than checking boxes.

Mary Pappas, Principal Product Manager, Redfin

A consistent, digital, and on-brand closing experience

With Qualia API, Redfin can programmatically transact with its title & escrow service provider, Title Forward. This allows Redfin real estate agents and mortgage lenders to send and receive data and documents that then flow directly into their workflows. While Redfin agents and lenders can use any title company, Pappas notes that Title Forward is the go-to choice for many of them because it’s the easiest and best experience on the open market thanks to the integrated workflow capabilities that ensure a consistent closing experience each time.

We think about Qualia as an extension of the Redfin ecosystem and that’s not possible without the Qualia API. With the Qualia API, Qualia is the best-in-class, outsourced portion of our workflow…we don’t have to spend tens of millions of dollars in R&D to build out and benefit from Qualia’s title & escrow expertise.

Mary Pappas, Principal Product Manager, Redfin

A like-minded approach to innovation

Redfin benefits from Qualia’s flexible infrastructure that allows Redfin to create and orchestrate a seamless and connected transaction experience that fits into their overarching operating model. Pappas noted that her team is impressed by Qualia’s ambitious product roadmap and is excited about the fact that her team has “barely scratched the surface” with what’s possible on Qualia’s platform.

The result: a seamless closing experience that amplifies the Redfin mission

With Qualia Core and the Qualia API, Redfin can offer a best-in-class closing process that seamlessly connects with the rest of the Redfin homebuying experience. Through Qualia’s flexible solutions, Redfin eliminated any R&D costs required to build out proprietary software and fast-tracked its way to delivering a closing experience that met the Redfin standard. This saved Redfin tens of millions of dollars that could then be deployed into other investments to advance Redfin’s mission to redefine real estate. With Qualia’s Qualia API, Redfin offers its consumers a digital, consistent, and on-brand closing experience.