The DotLoop team. (Photo courtesy DotLoop.)
The DotLoop team. (Photo courtesy DotLoop.)

Five months after acquiring rival Trulia in a blockbuster $2.5 billion deal, Zillow is back in the acquisition game.

The Seattle online real estate company today said it has agreed to acquire DotLoop, a 6-year-old Cincinnati, Ohio-based startup that helps real estate brokerages share, edit, sign and store documents digitally. The deal, terms of which were not disclosed, is expected to close in the third quarter. The DotLoop online tool is used by nearly 500,000 real estate clients per month — reducing paperwork and making real estate transactions easier.

The company says that more than 300,000 so-called “loops” — or online collaborative workspaces — are created by real estate agents each month. DotLoop charges from $29 per month to $540 per month for its service, which includes e-signatures in addition to other services.

DocuSign, the heavily-funded electronic signature powerhouse with operations in Seattle and San Francisco, also is used frequently in real estate circles, and counts the National Association of Realtors as an investor. DocuSign also purchased Cartavi in 2013, picking up an online tool that makes it easier for real estate agents and clients to share documents. DocuSign also is the official and exclusive e-signature provider for the National Association of Realtors, which counts more than one million members.

“Real estate transactions are already moving online — it’s what home buyers, sellers and real estate professionals want,” said Zillow CEO Spencer Rascoff in a press release. “We’re incredibly excited by DotLoop’s innovation and leadership in making digital transactions a reality. Now we will be able to make their technology more readily available to Zillow Group’s 10,000 broker partners and the agents they represent, as well as our approximately 100,000 real estate agent advertisers, resulting in a smoother and more efficient transaction process for everyone.”

It marks the first acquisition since Zillow took over Trulia, a deal that took longer than executives had hoped as it slowly moved through a prolonged regulatory process. In total, Zillow has acquired ten companies over its ten year history.

DotLoop, which previously raised $14 million from Trinity Ventures and others, employs 124 people in Cincinnati and San Francisco.  All staffers will remain, though DotLoop employees in San Francisco will move to Zillow’s offices there.

Zillow, valued at $4.8 billion, will employ 2,100 people after the close of the deal.

DotLoop founder Austin Allison, named the Inman News 2012 Innovator of the Year, will remain at Zillow and report to Chief Industry Development Officer Errol Samuelson.

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