National real estate broker Redfin enters Fairfield County market

National real estate brokerage Redfin is debuting its home-buying and -selling services in several Connecticut markets, including Fairfield County.

The Seattle company, which provides web-based real estate database and brokerage services, said it serves more than 80 major metro areas across the U.S. and has closed more than $50 billion in home sales since being founded in 2004.

Homebuyers in Fairfield County, as well as in New Haven, Hartford, Middlesex, and southern Litchfield counties, can use Redfin’s website and iOS and Android app to search all agent-listed homes for sale, receive instant updates on their smartphone when a new home hits the market and book home tours with their agents with the click of a button. The brokerage gives part of its commission to buyers who buy with its agents.

Connecticut residents can sell their homes with a Redfin agent for a 1 percent listing fee, subject to a minimum of $3,000. The agents provide a home-selling service that includes pricing and staging advice, free professional photography, a 3-D virtual tour and digital marketing. A Connecticut homeowner selling a $500,000 home would save $10,000 working with a Redfin agent compared with the typical 3 percent fee, according to the company.

Real estate veteran Richard Thomas will lead the brokerage’s operations in the state. Most recently, Thomas was a regional manager overseeing three Century 21 real estate offices serving Hartford, New Haven, Middlesex and Litchfield counties.

Redfin plans to expand to other parts of the state over time.

“Given Connecticut’s population, healthy real estate market and adjacency to other thriving Redfin markets in New York and New England, we see expansive opportunities to grow the business here,” said Taylor Connolly, the company’s district manager for the Northeast. “Entering Connecticut was a natural next step and one we would have taken far sooner, if not for state laws that prevented us from opening in Connecticut until Redfin was a publicly traded company.”