Local Home Buyers USA Becomes First Cash Home Buyer to Open-Source Valuation Algorithm, Challenges Industry to Follow
Real estate investment company publishes proprietary pricing methodology as open-source code, calls on Opendoor, Offerpad, HomeVestors and others to disclose how they calculate offers to home sellers
UNITED STATES — Local Home Buyers USA, a nationwide real estate investment company specializing in partnership-based home acquisitions, today announced it has published its complete property valuation methodology as an open-source software package, becoming the first cash home buying company in the United States to make its pricing algorithm publicly available.
The valuation engine, now available for free download on npm (Node Package Manager), allows anyone — including home sellers, competitors, journalists, and regulators — to see exactly how the company calculates cash offers on residential properties.
Alongside the code release, the company has issued a public challenge to every major cash home buyer in America — including Opendoor, Offerpad, HomeVestors ("We Buy Ugly Houses"), and the thousands of independent investors operating nationwide — to publish their own pricing methodologies or publicly explain why they will not.
Every cash home buyer in America uses some formula to calculate what they'll offer you. Not one of them will show you that formula. We think that's insane. So we published ours — every input, every assumption, every calculation. If you're asking someone to trust you with the biggest financial decision of their life, show your work.
— Justin Erickson, Founder & CEO, Local Home Buyers USA
The company has established an "Industry Transparency Tracker" on its website that monitors which companies have published their valuation methodologies. As of today, Local Home Buyers USA is the only company listed with a "Published" status.
Local Home Buyers USA is calling on all cash home buying companies to take four specific actions:
- Publish valuation methodology in a format anyone can read and verify
- Show sellers the actual math behind their specific offer — not just a final number
- Disclose target profit margins and fee structures
- Or explain publicly why they choose not to
The challenge comes amid increased scrutiny of the cash home buying industry. ProPublica's 2023 investigation into HomeVestors revealed predatory practices at some franchises, leading to the CEO's resignation and calls from U.S. Senators for greater regulatory oversight. Zillow shut down its iBuying operation in 2021 after losing $1.4 billion, while Opendoor has accumulated $3.7 billion in losses since inception.
The industry has operated in the dark for decades. Sellers have no way to know if an offer is fair, aggressive, or predatory because no one will show them how the numbers are calculated. We're not waiting for regulation to force transparency — we're demonstrating what's possible and daring others to match it.
— Justin Erickson
The open-source valuation engine, developed by PropTechUSA.ai (the company's technology division), calculates cash offers based on documented inputs including after-repair value estimates, itemized repair costs, local market days-on-market averages, carrying costs, and closing expenses. Every variable is documented, and the complete calculation logic is visible in the source code.
The package is published under an open-source license, allowing developers, researchers, and competitors to inspect, audit, and build upon the methodology.
- Valuation Engine npm Package: npmjs.com/package/valuation-engine
- Full Challenge Details: localhomebuyersusa.com/open-source-challenge
- Company Transparency Pledge: localhomebuyersusa.com/transparency
- Research Hub: proptechusa.ai/research
Local Home Buyers USA is a nationwide real estate investment company founded in November 2024. Unlike traditional cash buyers who purchase homes at a discount for resale, the company specializes in partnership-based transactions that allow sellers to capture more value from their home sale. The company operates on a foundation of radical transparency, publishing its methodology, research, and valuation algorithms publicly.
The company's technology platform, PropTechUSA.ai, develops open-source tools for real estate analysis and valuation. Local Home Buyers USA operates in all 50 states and can be reached at 1-800-858-0588.