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Sale-leaseback platform EasyKnock, which faced consumer lawsuits and enforcement actions by attorneys general in several states, has closed its doors, the company announced Thursday.
“After many years of serving consumers, EasyKnock has closed its doors,” an announcement posted on the company’s website informs visitors. “We are deeply grateful for the trust placed in us to be part of the financial journey of so many. While EasyKnock may no longer be around, arrangements have been made to ensure continued services for our customers.”
The news was first reported by NPR, which published a lengthy investigative piece on the New York-based sale-leaseback platform’s business practices in June.
NPR documented consumer lawsuits against EasyKnock in Texas, Maryland, South Carolina, Pennsylvania and Ohio, and enforcement actions by attorneys general in Michigan and Massachusetts.
In September, EasyKnock scored a victory in Texas when an arbitrator ruled against a Texas couple who claimed that their transaction was actually a loan in disguise, awarding the company $153,000.
But last month, the Connecticut Attorney General’s Office filed suit against EasyKnock, alleging the company “targets cash-strapped homeowners in need of financing who, for reasons of poor credit or excessive debt, may not qualify for financing.”
The Nov. 27 complaint, which detailed three instances in which cash proceeds allegedly equaled “just a fraction of the consumer’s total home equity,” and accused EasyKnock of engaging in illegal practices as a landlord, sought to stop the company from doing business in Connecticut, as well as restitution and civil penalties.
Inman has requested comment from EasyKnock.
Launched in 2016 and based in New York City, EasyKnock closed a $3.5 million seed funding round in 2018 that included $100 million in new debt funding from investors including Montage Ventures, Crestar Partners and Blumberg Capital.
That was followed by a $12 million Series A in 2019 that also provided $203 million in debt funding, a $20 million Series B in the summer of 2020 and a $57.2 million Series C funding round in 2022 from new and existing investors, including Blumberg Capital, Gaingels, Moderne Ventures, QED Investors, Viola FinTech and Zillow co-founder Spencer Rascoff.
Last year EasyKnock announced a deal to acquire power buyer Ribbon and launch a national marketplace, followed by a $28 million Series D funding round in February with Northwestern Mutual Future Ventures joining existing investors.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to note EasyKnock’s acquisition of Ribbon, and to correct that the company’s most recent funding round was in February. Inman’s Taylor Anderson contributed to this story.
