Douglas Elliman launches in-house mortgage platform

Luxury real estate brokerage Douglas Elliman Real Estate has partnered with Associated Mortgage Bankers to launch an in-house mortgage platform, Elliman Capital, designed to streamline the financing process for homebuyers.

Initially rolling out in Florida, the platform will expand nationwide. The move comes amid growing competition in the brokerage space, highlighted by Rocket Companies’ recent acquisition of Redfin.

Michael Liebowitz, president and CEO of Douglas Elliman Inc., said bringing the mortgage process in-house creates “convenience and oversight” to the real estate process. Clients will have access to “competitive rates and diverse loan products” in a “seamless integration,” he added.

Elliman Capital will provide agents with direct access to mortgage professionals, enabling them to refer clients, track loan progress and receive real-time updates from property search to closing. Agents will have access to products from multiple national and regional lenders. 

Products include conventional and jumbo loans, as well as construction, bridge, investment property, commercial, and second home financing. FHA, VA, and USDA loans will also be added.

The platform is designed to support a wide range of borrowers, including self-employed individuals, investors, and foreign nationals.

“We’ve engineered Elliman Capital to be truly inclusive, offering loan products that meet the diverse needs of today’s homebuyers and investors, from all over the globe,” said Jim Bender, director of Elliman Capital and a mortgage services veteran.

Management will have to show Elliman’s agents that the in-house mortgage company can provide a top-quality experience for clients. Established Elliman agents already have existing relationships with mortgage professionals at financial institutions (particularly for jumbo mortgages) and at large independent mortgage banks (IMBs).

This venture into mortgage by Douglas Elliman comes as many real estate brokerages are looking to improve tight margins by venturing into ancillary services. Brokerages often try to boost revenue by launching mortgage and title companies either as an in-house operation or through a joint venture.

“Brokerages will have to make that money somewhere else,” James Dwiggins, the co-CEO of NextHome, said during a panel on brokerage extinction at HousingWire’s The Gathering in June. “I don’t think this will happen tomorrow, but sometime over the next three to five years you are going to see consolidation, not just among brokerages, but also among services.” 

Douglas Elliman already has some ancillary services (notably, it is one of the largest property managers out there and has a title insurance arm as well), but is just getting started in mortgage. Other firms like HomeServices of America, Anywhere, Hanna Holdings, and Samson Properties have long relied on ancillary services from mortgage and title for a meaningful part of their revenue.