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6 | TH E M R EP O RT MTECH Altisource Makes Big SFR Portfolio Purchase ADDING MORE THAN 4,000 SINGLE-FAMILY RENTAL HOMES, ONE COMPANY EXEC CALLS IT A "TRANSFORMATIVE TRANSACTION." S ingle-family rental REIT Altisource Residential Corporation (Residential, or RESI) has acquired a portfolio containing 4,262 single-family rental properties, according to an announcement from Residential. Residential purchased the portfolio at an aggregate purchase price of $652.3 million in a seller-financed transaction, and the assets were purchased from investment funds sponsored by Amherst Holdings, LLC, accord - ing to Residential. The acquisition more than doubles Residential's single-family rental portfolio. The newly-ac- quired portfolio is consistent in quality with Residential's existing portfolio of affordable single-family homes and is on target with the company's objectives for return on equity. The properties in the new portfolio will greatly enhance Residential's presence in new and existing strategic target markets, which include Florida, Texas, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and South Carolina. "Residential continues to successfully execute its strategy to transition the company into a 100-percent single-family rental REIT and to capitalize on attractive single-family rental economics," said George Ellison, CEO of Residential. "These high-yielding properties are an excellent fit for the Residential brand and expand our geographic reach in strategic markets. The acquisition of these properties is a crucial milestone for Residential and keeps the company on track to achieve its stated goal of 10,000 rental homes by the end of 2016." David Reiner, Chairman of the Residential Board of Directors, stated, "This is a transformative transaction for Residential. By continuing to execute on our strategy, Residential is well-positioned to reward investors with long-term growth and attractive returns." As a condition of obtaining seller financing, Residential was required to return the current property manager of the portfo - lio. In support of the Residential acquisition, Altisource Portfolio Solutions agreed to provide a limited waiver of its exclusive right to provide property management and other services to Residential with regard to the newly-acquired portfolio, according to Altisource. Residential agrees (along with other considerations) to pay $60 million if the company sells, liquidates, or disposes in any form 50 percent or more of its single- family rental portfolio managed by Altisource, in exchange for the limited waiver. "We are very supportive of RESI's portfolio acquisition as it accelerates RESI's transition to a 100-percent single family rental company," an Altisource Portfolio Solutions spokesperson said in a statement. "We believe this acquisition strengthens RESI's position in the industry and positions them well for growth, which are positive for Altisource. We believe the terms we agreed to with RESI further underscore RESI's long-term commitment to the rental home business and our strong ongoing relationship with RESI." Elm Street Technology Launches New Platform for Agents and Brokers "ELEVATE" STREAMLINES DISPARATE MARKETING SERVICES INTO ONE EASY SOLUTION. E lm Street Technology has announced the launch of Elevate, a new digital marketing system that utilizes the company's two best-in-class acquisitions, Listingbook and RLS2000, to help Elm Street deliver "everything real estate agents and brokers need for new leads and client-for-life retention, all in one place." The company is headed by a team of well-known entrepreneurs in the real estate industry, Prem Luthra and Randall Kaplan. Luthra founded Elm Street Technology in February 2016 with a group of investors. The company's first acquisition was Listingbook, a client servicing platform for the real estate industry used by millions of consumers. Through the acquisi - tion of Listingbook, Elm Street Technology added Randall Kaplan as its chairman. Elm Street's second acquisition was New England-based agent website provider and marketing services firm RLS2000 in September 2016. "Elevate offers brokers and agents a single digital marketing platform with all of the outstand - ing features that millions of consumers who've used Listingbook love," said Luthra, who serves as president of Elm Street Technology. "Elevate includes Listingbook's powerful client servicing platform with best-in-class MLS-powered listing search for home shoppers, access to public records, recent and past sales information, community and school details, taxes, loan calculator, shopping and recre - ation, and much more." The advanced automation introduced by the Elevate system delivers custom blogs, automated listing postings to social media, automated YouTube videos of property tours, and mobile responsive agent and property IDX websites embedded with best-in-class lead generation technology. Elevate is powered by Listingbook and it fully integrates all of its features with RLS2000's powerful automated marketing services and best-in-class websites to deliver new leads, client management, and client-for-life retention all from a single source. "With Elevate, Elm Street Technology begins to solve one of the biggest challenges for real estate brokers and agents: The marketing technologies they use to promote listings and their businesses don't talk to each other," Luthra said. "Elevate moves brokers and agents onto Residential purchased the portfolio at an aggregate purchase price of $652.3 million in a seller- financed transaction, and the assets were purchased from investment funds sponsored by Amherst Holdings.