US-based real estate technology company Opendoor has announced that it is shutting down its operations in India, a move that will affect nearly 250 employees.

The decision was shared by Opendoor CEO Kaz Nejatian, who said the company believes the operational work carried out for its customers is best done closer to where those customers are located, in the United States. 

In a post on X, Nejatian revealed that the company had started saying goodbye to its India-based workforce.

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“I shared this note earlier today with the entire team at Opendoor. Today we began to say goodbye to our colleagues in India as we wind down our India operations,” he wrote. “Our customers are in America, and that’s where our operational work belongs,” he added. 

Opendoor shuts India operations: Nearly 250 employees impacted 

In an internal note shared with employees, Opendoor said that when it launched what it called “Opendoor 2.0” a few months ago, the company had nearly 250 employees working in India. 

However, according to the company, the move did not happen overnight. Some India-based positions had already been relocated to the United States over the past several months. Opendoor said it is now completing that transition, which will eventually lead to the full closure of its India operations.

“This affects all of our colleagues in India who have done meaningful work for Opendoor,” the company said in the note. 

Nejatian made it clear that the decision was not related to the performance of the India team.

“I am grateful for their dedication, and this decision is not a reflection of the quality of their work. Our colleagues in India are great people, and we recommend them to anyone hiring,” he said.

Opendoor said employees impacted by the shutdown will receive transition support. The company is offering severance packages, outplacement services and other resources to help workers move on to new opportunities.

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A small group of employees in India will remain temporarily to help transfer important workstreams and ensure a smooth handover before operations are fully shut down. 

Why is Opendoor leaving India?

According to the company, the move is driven by changes in how it operates rather than any issues with its India workforce. For years, Opendoor relied on a large team in India to manage operational tasks and manual workflows spread across several systems and software tools. 

However, the company says those systems have changed now and that It has streamlined many of its processes, connected different systems together, and built smaller customer-facing teams in the United States, focused on using artificial intelligence.

“As we’ve unified these systems and have hired small AI-native customer-facing teams throughout the US, we need all this operational work to be done in person and close to our customers,” the company said in its note.

Jobs moving back to the United States

Opendoor said the restructuring will make it a smaller company in terms of headcount, but one that can have a bigger impact. The company expects employees to take on bigger responsibilities while using better tools and more advanced technology. While the India closure marks a significant shift, Nejatian told employees that Opendoor’s overall strategy remains the same.

He said the company continues to focus on improving the experience for homeowners and believes it is becoming stronger as it simplifies operations and embraces new technologies.

“Our colleagues in India helped get Opendoor to where it is today, and we’re grateful for it. Our job now is to keep tilting the world in favor of homeowners. Let’s fix America’s housing problem,” he wrote.