Roam introduces 2nd mortgage program to reduce down payments and enable 50% of Americans to access a home with a 2% mortgage rate + secures $3mm in additional financing from Founders Fund and expands to 35% of the U.S.
New York, NY, 05/09/24 - Roam, the platform for making homeownership 2x more affordable through assumable mortgages, has introduced Roam Boost to make mortgage assumptions accessible to millions of more Americans.
With the typical Roam buyer saving $12,000 per year compared to buying a home with a conventional mortgage, and closing in only 45 days, purchasing a home with an assumption has never been easier. But, one issue has been holding hopeful homebuyers back – finding the cash for the down payment.
Now, millions of hopeful homebuyers can get a mortgage as low as 2% while lowering the down payment requirement to just 10%. This gives buyers the option to add a second mortgage, helping them achieve a blended rate typically between 4-5%. According to the NAR, which tracks median homebuyer down payments, Roam Boost now puts the assumable mortgage opportunity within reach of 50% of homebuyers.
Assumable mortgages are a type of home loan that allows a homebuyer to take over, or assume, the existing mortgage terms from the seller. All government-backed loans (e.g., FHA and VA loans) are eligible for assumption by law, comprising about one-third of mortgages in the U.S.
When assuming a mortgage, the seller is completely released from the mortgage, with all liability for the mortgage transferring to the buyer, and the buyer must also cover the seller’s equity in the home. That means the buyer must pay for the difference between the purchase price and the outstanding balance on the seller’s mortgage at closing. For homes with significant appreciation or a lower mortgage balance, this can mean a sizable down payment.
With today’s launch of Roam Boost, buyers who need support with the down payment can browse listings on the Roam website and use the Roam Boost calculator to determine the blended rate and monthly payments based on their desired down payment amount. For example, buyers interested in purchasing a $400k home could use Roam Boost to put 20% down and receive a Roam Rate of 4.3%, where they would save more than $500 per month compared to a new traditional mortgage at 7.5%.
“We’re thrilled to help more buyers take advantage of the assumable mortgage opportunity by addressing a key pain point of mortgage assumptions – the down payment. Our mission is to make homeownership 2x more affordable for 1 million Americans in this decade. As we continue to expand to new markets, Roam Boost is a key part of bringing that mission to a broader base of potential buyers," said Raunaq Singh, Founder & CEO of Roam.
Today Roam also announced it has expanded to additional markets including Tucson, AZ, Jacksonville, FL, and Chicago, IL. This adds to over a dozen existing markets where buyers, sellers, and agents can benefit from Roam’s full-service platform. Roam now services 35% of homes with FHA and VA loans in the U.S.
Roam has achieved a typical closing timeline of 45 days, a testament to the company’s reliable service, deep expertise, and relationships with servicers to ensure assumptions are processed on time. The company also recently introduced the Roam Seller Closing Guarantee to give sellers peace of mind when accepting an offer that includes a mortgage assumption. If the assumption doesn’t close in 45 days, Roam will pay for the seller’s mortgage until it does.
Keith Rabois who led Roam’s pre-seed financing round as a partner at Founders Fund, also led the latest seed round along with new investors Tony Xu (DoorDash CEO), Dylan Field (Figma CEO), Paul Gu (Upstart co-founder), and Gokul Rajaram (Pinterest and Coinbase Board Member).
“Roam has seen significant traction since launching last year and has proven that sellers, buyers, and agents need the product. They have just unlocked an even larger buyer pool by addressing the down payment challenge through their second lien partnership,” said Keith Rabois, now a partner at Khosla Ventures. “We’re excited to double down on our investment in Roam to help more Americans take advantage of the most affordable opportunity to purchase a home today.”
To find out when Roam will be available in additional locations, buyers, sellers, and agents can visit withroam.com, enter their location, and sign up to receive a notification when the service becomes available.
About Roam
Roam helps homebuyers wind back the clock and purchase their next home with a low-rate mortgage included. The company allows sellers to find more buyers in their home sale while enabling buyers to save up to 50% on monthly payments compared to buying the same house with a traditional mortgage. For more information on how we help buyers, sellers, and agents, please visit withroam.com.
About Founders Fund
Founders Fund invests in the world’s most important and valuable companies across all geographies, sectors and stages. The firm’s partners have been founders and early funders of companies including PayPal, SpaceX, Palantir, Airbnb, Stripe and Facebook. Founders Fund pursues a founder-friendly investment strategy, providing maximum support with minimum interference. More information is available at www.foundersfund.com.
