Opendoor Hype Won’t Make Its Business Any More Viable

Core Insights - Opendoor Technologies has seen its stock price rise significantly, now valued at around $8, a 15-fold increase from mid-2025, despite reporting annual losses since its inception in 2014 [2] - The company has a market capitalization of $6 billion and has become a meme stock, attracting attention from individual investors known as the "Open Army" [2][3] - Recent leadership changes include the departure of CEO Carrie Wheeler and the return of co-founders Keith Rabois and Eric Wu to the board, along with the hiring of Kaz Nejatian from Shopify as the new CEO [3] Business Challenges - The fundamental economics of the home-flipping business are not scalable, making it difficult for Opendoor to achieve sustainable profitability [4] - Home buying and selling is labor- and capital-intensive, with varying local market conditions complicating operations across the 50 markets where Opendoor operates [5] - The experience of Zillow, a well-known iBuyer, serves as a cautionary tale, as it faced significant losses and operational challenges in its home-flipping business, ultimately leading to its exit from the market [6][7]