Leading real estate investment platform Roofstock announced its first property sale via Ethereum’s blockchain.
The transaction was enabled by Roofstock onChain (ROC), its web3 subsidiary and real estate brokerage alternative powered by a non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace built by Origin Protocol.
While crypto sales of physical real estate have been sold before, this sale is the most crypto-native real estate sale to date. It’s also the first property sale that was instantly settled on an NFT marketplace.
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The sale used Circle’s USDC stablecoin instead of volatile crypto assets — eliminating a key barrier for web3 adoption.
“Cutting out intermediary fees is one of the pillars of web3, and this is just the beginning," Origin Protocol co-founder Matthew Liu says. "As more and more real estate is brought on chain through NFTs, we will see more efficient and liquid markets for these traditionally illiquid assets."
'Buying A House With A Simple Click'
When most people hear the term NFT, they think of crypto-rich 20-something year-olds with an ape picture on their Twitter profile. Roofstock and Origin Protocol extend the use case of non-fungible tokens beyond what’s commonly seen, eliminating the most prevalent pain points in real estate brokerage.
Located in Columbia, South Carolina, the property sold last Friday, Oct. 10, for $175,000. Unlike traditional real estate brokerages, ROC transactions are instantaneous, and there is no escrow involved.
During the sale, the homebuyer, Adam Slipakoff, saved weeks of closing time. The seller saved over $5,000 in closing costs.
“I never imagined I could buy and finance a house with a simple click, rather than going through the time-consuming and cumbersome traditional settlement and mortgage process. I’m grateful Roofstock paved the way for the rest of the market,” Slipakoff says.
Instead of waiting months for underwriting, appraisals, title searches and preparing deeds, Slipakoff was able to buy a fully title-insured, rent-ready property with one click, he added.
Home ownership was transferred entirely through smart contracts, utilizing the NFT marketplace built by Origin Protocol. NFTs on the marketplace are associated with a limited liability company that holds the title to each respective home. Moreover, Roofstock onChain utilizes Ethereum’s blockchain past home brokerage. In partnership with Teller Protocol, Slipakoff was able to get financing for the property via a bespoke DeFi lending pool.
"For Roofstock it is a major milestone to provide a radically simple way for single-family rental (SFR) properties to be purchased and sold with one-click using web3 technology,” said Geoff Thompson, Chief Blockchain Officer at Roofstock onChain.
“We’re excited to enable home buyers to have access to various web3 financing options, ushering a new era of real-world asset ownership through our partnership with Teller," added Sanjay Raghavan, head of web3 Initiatives at Roofstock onChain.
Origin Protocol, founded in 2017, has powered notable NFT sales like 3LAU's $11.7 million record-breaking music sale, the Charlie Bit My Finger viral video sale, as well as Paris Hilton’s “Past Lives, New Beginnings” series.
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