On the same day Zillow reported a 25% year-over-year increase in Q4 rental revenue, the company announced a major partnership with Redfin. Zillow is now the exclusive provider of multifamily rental listings (properties with 25 or more units) on Redfin, Rent.com, and ApartmentGuide.com—a move that expands the Zillow Rentals Network and strengthens Zillow’s share in the rental sector.
“Zillow Rentals had a remarkable 2024, gaining more property listings, more traffic, and more revenue than ever,” the company stated in its Q4 2024 Shareholder Letter.
By integrating Redfin into its network, Zillow is positioning itself to capitalize on what it estimates is a $25 billion total addressable market in rentals. This follows a similar move in 2024, when Zillow partnered with Realtor.com to distribute multifamily rental listings.
Zillow’s Q4 2024 Results
Zillow’s Q4 2024 earnings report underscores the strength of its Rentals segment, which continues to outperform the overall real estate market.
Key Highlights from Zillow’s Q4 Earnings Report:
- Total Q4 revenue rose 17% year over year to $554 million, exceeding company expectations.
- Rentals revenue increased 25% year over year to $116 million, with multifamily revenue increasing 41%.
- Full-year 2024 revenue reached $2.2 billion, reflecting 15% annual growth, despite a challenging housing market.
- Zillow’s mortgages segment grew 86% year over year, with purchase loan origination volume up 90%.
“We achieved our stated goals for 2024: We met our target of double-digit revenue growth for the full year 2024 — up 15% year over year to $2.2 billion, against a housing market that saw 6% total transaction value growth,” Zillow executives shared with investors.
The Zillow-Redfin Partnership
With Zillow now syndicating listings directly to Redfin, renters will have a more comprehensive apartment search experience in one place.
“Renters want choices, and this partnership will deliver just that — more apartments available across more platforms. What’s good for renters is good for our multifamily partners, too. This agreement will give them additional opportunities to connect with ready-to-move renters, helping them grow their businesses. Adding the Redfin sites to the Zillow Rentals Network helps us scale our impact and drive continued growth for our multifamily partners and our business.”
For multifamily property owners and managers, listings will now automatically syndicate to Redfin, Rent.com, and ApartmentGuide.com, greatly expanding their reach.
“This Zillow partnership will give Redfin visitors access to one of the largest and fastest-growing databases of rental listings. We believe it will increase our overall traffic and the profits from our rental business, letting us focus on what we do best: dazzling online listing search, paired with dazzling brokerage, lending and title service.”
Multifamily properties currently advertising on Redfin will also have the opportunity to transition to Zillow’s platform, gaining access to advanced marketing tools and a larger audience.
Zillow now has 50,000 multifamily properties on its platform, up from 37,000 at the end of 2023, but the company sees even greater opportunity ahead. With “an estimated 140,000 total multifamily properties across the country,” Zillow stated it is “now focused on scaling Rentals revenue, and we expect multifamily properties to be the main driver of growth.”
Zillow’s Long-Term Vision
Zillow’s leadership team laid out an ambitious long-term vision: $5 billion in revenue and 45% Adjusted EBITDA margin in a normalized housing market.
“We have the leading brand in residential real estate with the largest and most engaged audience, a significant addressable market, and we are executing well on our differentiated housing super app strategy,” Zillow executives said.
Zillow seems confident in its current trajectory, even with the latest Homes.com Super Bowl commercials. Despite Home.com’s claim that it is “the best home shopping website,” Zillow’s leadership appears focused on its growth strategies and partnerships.
