Single-family landlord Home Partners of America is laying off a chunk of its workforce only a week after its iBuying joint venture bit the dust.
The round of layoffs impacted 10 percent of the company, a person familiar with the situation told Inman. The company didn’t confirm any figures or percentages in regards to the cut, but did acknowledge it reduced certain positions, while claiming it would “increase headcount in other areas.”
The outlet reported the cuts affected the company’s property management division, Pathlight Property Management.
The layoffs come one week after Anywhere Real Estate followed in the footsteps of Zillow and Redfin to shutter RealSure, its iBuying business that was formed as a joint venture with Home Partners.
Anywhere also enacted cuts and has reduced its staff by roughly 11 percent since the end of June, according to an SEC filing.
Signs of distress emerged for Home Partners over the summer, when the company paused purchasing activity in 38 markets at the start of September. The company cited home price appreciation, market demand and regulations as reasons for the halt and expressed a hope to resume purchases in those markets down the road.
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Anywhere announces more layoffs, shutters iBuying
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Blackstone’s single-family rental arm pauses purchases in half of markets
Blackstone, which acquired Home Partners in 2021, said at the time the subsidiary’s purchasing remained active in more than 20 of the highest-growth markets and claimed the pause affected markets representing less than 5 percent of recent activity.
The markets affected by the pause included Cincinnati, Detroit, Louisville, Memphis, Milwaukee and New Orleans.
Blackstone’s $6 billion purchase of the single-family rental firm was seen as a bet on rent-to-own programs being a strong path for customers to achieve future ownership. But investors started cooling on home purchases in the sector last year in response to high prices and rising financing costs.
KKR & Co.’s My Community Homes, American Homes 4 Rent and Amherst Holdings were among investors to slow purchases.
— Holden Walter-Warner