Redfin coming to Jacksonville, looking to build on Downtown renaissance

The Seattle-based online real estate brokerage service Redfin is looking to capitalize on Jacksonville's growing real estate market.

"Downtown Jacksonville is experiencing a redevelopment renaissance that is creating a lot of economic growth for the city. The Beaches provide a very desirable waterfront lifestyle and active entertainment district that's an attraction for many buyers," James Marks, Redfin's Southeast District Manager, said.

Jacksonville is the company's 45th location in the U.S. and fifth location in Florida, following Miami, Orlando, West Palm Beach and Tampa.

Redfin combines a real estate search site with salaried real estate agents, to whom it also offers bonuses for customer satisfaction, Davidson said.

Its pitch to customers: Going through the site is cheaper for sellers, who are only charged a 1.5 percent commission, and for buyers, who get money back at closing.

Since its inception in 2004, the company has been compared to online real estate databases such as Zillow and Trulia -- something Davidson said is not the case. One key difference: Its listings are updated every 15 minutes or so.

"We have a similar concept because we're so technologically driven, but as buyers you're never looking at a home that sold a week ago. You're able to see homes as they hit the market," Davidson said.

The company has nearly expanded its presence by 50 percent since earlier this year, from 23 to 45 markets.

"We have several brick and mortar offices in more mature markets like Seattle, San Francisco, Atlanta, and South Florida. It takes six to nine months to build up market space where it makes sense to have a brick and mortar office," Davidson said.

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