Houlihan Lokey Advises Movoto

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that Movoto, LLC, a top-five U.S. real estate portal, has been acquired by Lower, LLC, a leading digital mortgage lender. The transaction was announced and closed on May 12, 2025.

Headquartered in Austin, Texas, Movoto is a real estate technology company that empowers people to make smarter decisions throughout the home journey. Through its proprietary platform and the Movoto portal, Movoto connects homebuyers with personalized guidance, trusted agent partnerships, and data-driven insights. Movoto attracted more than 150 million visits in 2024, establishing itself as an end-to-end platform that provides consumers with solutions at every stage of the homeownership journey.

Founded in 2014 and headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Lower is one of the fastest-growing mortgage lenders in the country, with more than 30,000 five-star online reviews and a commitment to world-class customer service. Lower operates a digital platform to meet customers online through its website, and a network of distributed retail branches to meet customers in their local neighborhoods across the country. Lower is one of Accel Partners’ flagship investments and is also backed by SoFi and Veritex Bank.

This acquisition combines Movoto’s significant reach with Lower’s lending platform and retail network, creating an end-to-end homeownership platform while offering an unmatched growth engine for real estate agents and loan officers. By connecting loan officers with buyers, homeowners, and top agents in their market, Lower will offer a distinct advantage by digitizing the most expensive part of the process: meeting new customers.

Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive financial advisor to Movoto, assisting the company in structuring and negotiating the transaction on its behalf. This transaction solidifies Houlihan Lokey’s continued position as a leading advisor at the intersection of PropTech and residential mortgage. The transaction also further highlights Houlihan Lokey’s extensive track record in cross-team advisory and its ability to deliver comprehensive solutions for clients.

RELATED: Mortgage and Related Services, PropTech, Mergers & Acquisitions