Knock, also known as a power buyer — companies that offer alternative financing programs, such as cash offers, bridge financing, and trade-in programs, recently introduced a new product to help homeowners tap into the equity of their home to lower their mortgage payments on a new home.
“With mortgage rates doubling since the start of the year and home prices continuing to grow, buying a home has gotten a lot more expensive. At the same time, homeowners have more of their wealth tied up in their home than any other time in history,” said Knock Co-Founder and CEO Sean Black, in a press release.
Homeowners who use the Knock Home Swap product, which includes a mortgage and 100% of the financing necessary to buy before you sell, are eligible to use the Home Swap’s interest-free home equity advance in two ways to lower the interest and monthly payments on their new home. They can use it to buy down their mortgage rate by as much as 0.75% and make up to a 30% down payment on their new home.
In a previous interview with RealTrends, Black noted that in a fast-moving market, giving consumers options when financing, buying and selling a home is vital. Now that the market is shifting, he said, “Ultimately, the value prop we have gets even stronger in different ways. So, we just want to fan out as quickly as possible and give agents and their consumers the solution.” The solution, he notes, is products that make people’s lives easier.
In March, the New York City-based company announced a lay off of 46% of its workforce, estimated to be about 250 employees. In a open letter, Black explained that, “While substantial, the capital we raised is much less than what we set out to raise in our IPO, requiring us to rightsize the business, including the difficult decision to part ways with many of our beloved Knockstars.”