Nexa And Amerifund Ceos Lead Group Acquisition Of Fsbo.com

FSBO.com, one of the longest-running for-sale-by-owner platforms in the country, announced Thursday that it has been acquired by a new ownership group led by Mike Kortas, founder and CEO of NEXA Lending. The group’s strategic partners also include Brad Rice, CEO of real estate marketplace Homepie and CEO of Amerifund Home Loans.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Kortas told HousingWire in an interview that the new ownership group will be called FSBO Holdings LLC, with Rice serving as president and Kortas as CEO. Kortas also disclosed that he owns the majority of the business but declined to disclose the percentage.

Founded more than 20 years ago, FSBO.com has provided a path for homeowners who want to sell their properties without hiring a real estate agent.

Under the ownership of FSBO Holdings, the platform will undergo a full overhaul to improve usability and transparency while maintaining its focus on independent home sales. Kortas said that while NEXA does not own FSBO.com, the platform will benefit NEXA due to lead discounts and lead aggregation.

Kortas said no layoffs are planned, and FSBO.com employees will continue to work there since it is a separate company.

Kortas also said that he used FSBO.com when he was a loan officer back in the early 2000s. Now he’s using what he learned to train NEXA loan officers on using the platform.

“I will personally go in and teach my NEXA loan officers how to do for-sale-by-owner marketing because I know how to do it as well as anybody, and this is my wheelhouse. So I’m going to become a coach to some loan officers,” he said.

“This is going to be built into our AI platforms as well. I have my developers coming in to develop this new site, but it’s going to have full integration with the AI platforms. And we’re also putting out AI for Realtors inside those platforms. … It will make the process easy for somebody who wants to sell their house without a Realtor.”

As a result, Kortas said, the platform will benefit AXEN Realty, a national real estate brokerage built in partnership with NEXA.

Planned updates to the platform include the simplification of purchase contracts into plain-language steps; guiding buyers and sellers through negotiations collaboratively; clarifying timelines and responsibilities; and reducing friction in the transaction process while maintaining user autonomy.

The changes are intended to allow buyers and sellers to transact directly, often saving thousands of dollars in commissions while still feeling supported throughout the process, according to the company.

“This isn’t about replacing people,” Kortas said. “It’s about removing unnecessary complexity so consumers can focus on making good decisions.”

Rice said many homeowners avoid selling their homes on their own, not because they lack the ability, but because the process feels overwhelming.

“Most people don’t avoid selling their home themselves because they’re incapable. … What I learned with Homepie customers is that they avoid it because the process feels overwhelming,” Rice said. “When you simplify the contract, the communication and the steps, you give people confidence. That’s what this platform is about.”

Kortas described the acquisition as a long-term investment in consumer-driven real estate transactions.

“This is a long-term play,” he added. “Brad and I are excited to combine forces. We’re building something that respects where FSBO.com came from while preparing it for where consumers are going.”

Additional enhancements and features are expected to be announced as the platform modernization progresses.