‍Last Updated: September 11, 2024

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Homeward, Inc, its affiliates, and subsidiaries (“Homeward,” “we,” “our,” or “us”) values your privacy. This Privacy Policy (“Policy”) describes how Homeward collects, uses, discloses, and otherwise processes personal information described in this Policy.

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By using our Services (as defined below), you agree that your personal information will be handled as described in this Policy. Your use of our Services and any dispute over privacy, is subject to this Policy and our Terms and Conditions of Use, available at https://www.homeward.com/legalese/terms-conditions-of-use, including their applicable terms governing limitations on damages and the resolution of disputes.

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Scope of this Policy

Personal Information We Collect

How We Use Personal Information

How We May Disclose Personal Information

Cookies and Other Tracking Mechanisms

Your Privacy Rights and Choices

Consent to Call Recording

Children’s Information

External Links and Features

Security

Changes to this Policy

Contact Us

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Scope of this Policy

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Except as otherwise noted below, this Policy applies to the personal information Homeward collects and processes related to visitors of our websites where this Policy is posted, including www.homeward.com, www.homewardmortgage.com, and www.homewardtitle.com (the “Sites”), and the Services available through the Sites (the “Services”).

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Depending on how you interact or engage with us, we may provide you with other privacy notices with additional or separate details about our privacy practices. For example, this Policy does not apply to employees in the context of our working relationship with them.

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Personal Information We Collect

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As further described below, we collect personal information directly from you, automatically through your use of the Services, and from other, third-party sources. The type of information that we collect from you depends on your interaction with our Site and Services.

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Personal Information We Collect Directly From You

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You can use certain features of our Services without registering with us. However, some features require you to create an account or provide us with certain personal information. While the personal information we collect varies depending upon your use of our Services and our interactions with you, in general, we may collect the following personal information:

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• Contact Information. When you contact us, including if you sign up to learn more about our Services, we collect your name, email address, phone number, the nature of your inquiry, and any other information you so choose to provide. When you email, call, or otherwise communicate with us and with members of our team, we collect and maintain a record of your contact details, communications, and our responses. If you request a quote we will collect personal information from you and information related to your property, including the address, purchase price and any loan amount.
• Application and Profile Information. When you apply for one of our products or services, we collect your first and last name, email address, phone number, password, information about the property that you are buying or selling, and information about your buying agent if you have one. To verify your eligibility for our products and services, we and our service providers or other third parties (such as financing sources) will collect additional information such as date of birth, social security number, driver’s license number, passport number, financial information, bank information, credit or debit card information, employment and other professional related information, and potentially sensitive information such as medical and health information, citizenship status, and racial or ethnic origin. We also may collect other personal information you post to your profile or account or information that you otherwise submit to us through your account.  
• Agent Registration. If you are an agent, when you create an account, we collect your information, including your first and last name, email address, phone number, password, and your multiple listing service – or MLS – name, and identification number.
• Transaction Details. We collect information about your transactions with us, such as records of personal property, products or services purchased, obtained, or considered, or other purchasing or consuming histories or tendencies.
• Surveys and Feedback. If you participate in our surveys or questionnaires, we collect your responses and feedback, such as user satisfaction or other information related to your use of our Services, and any other information you so choose to provide.
• News, Marketing and Promotions. We collect your email address, name, phone number, preferences, and if relevant, information about your account and the Services and features you use. In some cases, we use this information to send you newsletters and other marketing and promotional materials about products and services in which you may be interested. We also may use this information to place advertising and transactional telephone calls and text messages to you.
• User Generated Content. If you provide us with a review of our Services, with your permission, we may post your review, along with your name and picture on our Site.
• Events and Other Requests. We also collect personal information related to your participation in our events as well as other requests that you submit to us related to our Services. For example, if you register for or attend an event or webinar that we host or sponsor, we may collect information related to your registration for and participation in such event.  
• Preferences. We also may collect information about your preferences, including communications preferences, preferences related to where individuals want to buy or sell homes, which may include your zip code, city, and state, and other preferences you provide when interacting with us.

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Personal Information We Collect Automatically

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We and our service providers automatically collect personal information related to your use of our Services, including through the use of cookies, pixel tags, and other similar technologies. The personal information we may automatically collect includes:

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• Device and Browsing Information. When you visit our Site or use our Services, we may collect IP address, general location information, browser type, domain names, access times, date/time stamps, operating system, language, device type, unique ID, MAC address, Internet service provider, referring and exiting URLs, location information, and similar device and browsing information.
• Activities and Usage. We also collect activity information related to your use of the Services, such as information about the links clicked, searches, features used, items viewed, content uploaded, time spent within the Services, your interactions with us within the Services, and other activity and usage information.

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We may combine this information with other personal information we collect from you (and our service providers may do so on our behalf). For more information about our use of cookies and other similar technologies, please see the “Cookies and Other Tracking Mechanisms” section below.

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Personal Information We Collect From Other Sources

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We may collect and receive certain personal information from business partners and agents, advertising networks, data analytics providers, providers of marketing and lead generation services, government entities, public databases, and vendors and service providers who provide services or functions on our behalf. For example, we may collect your name, contact information, and certain transaction details from our business partners and agents. We also may receive information from consumer reporting agencies, such as information about your credit or creditworthiness for purposes of evaluating you for buying or selling homes.

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How We Use Personal Information

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We collect, use, disclose and otherwise process the personal information we collect about you for the following purposes:

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• Services and Support. To allow you to maintain your account with us, provide and operate our Services, evaluate your applications for our Services, communicate with you about your use of the Services, provide troubleshooting and technical support, respond to your inquiries, communicate with you about the Services, and to otherwise run our day-to-day operations.
• Analytics and Improvement. To better understand how users access and use the Services and our product and service offerings, and for other research and analytical purposes, such as to evaluate and improve our Services and business operations, to develop our Services and its features, and for internal quality control and training purposes.
• Communicate With You. To respond to you and send you requested materials and newsletters, as well as information and materials regarding our service offerings. We also use this information to send administrative information to you, for example, information regarding the Services and changes to our terms, conditions, and policies.
• Marketing and Promotions. For marketing and promotional purposes. For example, to send you information about our Services, such as newsletters and other marketing content, including information about Homeward events and new offerings, as well as any other information that you sign up to receive.
• Research and Surveys. To administer surveys and questionnaires, such as for market research or user satisfaction purposes.
• Planning and Managing Events. For event and webinar planning, and other management-related purposes, such as registration, attendance, connecting you with other event attendees, and contacting you about relevant events and Services.
• Security and Protection of Rights. To protect the Services and our business operations, and to protect our rights or those of our stakeholders; to prevent and detect fraud, unauthorized activities and access, and other misuse; where we believe necessary to investigate, prevent or take action regarding illegal activities, suspected fraud, situations involving potential threats to the safety or legal rights of any person or third party, or violations of our Terms of Use.
• Compliance and Legal Process. To comply with applicable legal or regulatory obligations, including as part of a judicial proceeding; to respond to a subpoena, warrant, court order, or other legal process; or as part of an investigation or request, whether formal or informal, from law enforcement or a governmental authority.
• Auditing, Reporting, and Other Internal Operations. To conduct audits and assessments of our operations, privacy, security and financial controls, risk, and compliance with legal obligations; our general business, accounting, record keeping and legal functions, and to maintain appropriate business records and enforce company policies and procedures.
• General Business and Operational Support. To assess and implement mergers, acquisitions, reorganizations, bankruptcies, and other business transactions such as financings, and to administer our business, accounting, auditing, compliance, recordkeeping, and legal functions.

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No mobile information will be shared with or sold to third parties/affiliates for marketing/promotional purposes. All the above categories exclude text messaging originator opt-in data and consent; user consent will not be shared with any third parties.

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How We May Disclose Personal Information

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We may disclose the personal information we collect for the purposes described above and as follows:

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• Affiliates and Subsidiaries. We may disclose the personal information we collect from you to our corporate affiliates and subsidiaries.
• Vendors and Services Providers. We may disclose the personal information we collect to vendors and service providers who perform functions on our behalf, such as IT and website hosting, marketing and marketing research providers, customer support, data storage, analysis and processing providers, auditors, consultants and legal counsel.
• Business Partners and Agents. We share personal information that you provide with Homeward partners and agents to offer our Services. For example, if you are looking to sell your home, we may disclose personal information to our business partners and agents who will assist you and us in processing and completing your application for one of our Services.
• Financial and Brokerage Services Providers. We may also share your information with other providers of real estate-related services, such as lenders or agents, that may contact you regarding your real estate needs.
• Marketing and Analytics Providers. We may also disclose your personal information, such as device and browsing, and activities and usage information, to marketing and advertising networks, data analytics providers, and other companies who provide marketing or analytics services on our behalf. For more information see the “Cookies and Other Tracking Mechanisms” section below.

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We also disclose your personal information in the following circumstances:

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• In Support of Business Transfers. If we or our affiliates are or may be acquired by, merged with, or invested in by another company, or if any of our assets are or may be transferred to another company, whether as part of a bankruptcy or insolvency proceeding or otherwise, we may disclose or transfer the personal information we have collected from you with or to the other company. We may also disclose certain personal information as necessary prior to the completion of such a transaction or other corporate transaction such as a financing or restructuring, to lenders, auditors, and third-party advisors, including attorneys and consultants.
• Compliance and Legal Obligations. We may disclose personal information to comply with our legal and compliance obligations and to respond to the legal process. For example, we may disclose information in response to subpoenas, court orders, and other lawful requests by regulators and law enforcement, including responding to national security or law enforcement disclosure requirements.
• Security and Protection of Rights. We may disclose personal information where we believe doing so is necessary to protect the Services, our rights and property, or the rights, property, and safety of others. For example, we may disclose personal information to (i) prevent, detect, investigate, and respond to fraud, unauthorized activities and access, illegal activities, and misuse of the Services, (ii) situations involving potential threats to the health, safety, or legal rights of any person or third party, or (iii) enforce, detect, investigate, and take action in response to violations of our Terms of Use. We may also disclose personal information related to litigation and other legal claims or proceedings in which we are involved, as well as for our internal accounting, auditing, compliance, recordkeeping, and legal functions.
• Aggregate and Non-Identifiable Information. Notwithstanding anything else in this Policy, we may use, disclose, and otherwise process aggregate and de-identified information related to our business and the Services with third parties for quality control, analytics, research, development, and other purposes.

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Cookies and Other Tracking Mechanisms

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We and our providers use cookies, pixel tags, and other similar tracking mechanisms to automatically collect information about browsing activity, type of device, and similar information within our Services. We use this information to, for example, analyze and understand how you access, use, and interact with us through our Services, to identify and resolve bugs and errors in our Services, to assess, secure, protect, optimize and improve the performance of our Services, as well as for marketing and advertising purposes, analytics purposes, and to personalize content in our Services. We may also aggregate such information to analyze trends, administer our Sites, and gather broad demographic information for aggregate uses.

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Cookies. “Cookies” are alphanumeric identifiers we transfer to your device’s hard drive through your web browser for tracking purposes. Some cookies allow us to make it easier for you to navigate our Services, while others are used to enable a faster log-in process, support the security and performance of the Services, or allow us to track activity and usage data within the Services.

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Session Replay Trackers. We use third party services that employ software code to record users’ interactions with the Services in a manner that allows us to view replays of those user sessions. The replays include users’ clicks, mouse movements, scrolls, and keystrokes/key touches during those sessions. These replays help us diagnose usability problems, optimize functionality, and identify areas for improvement.

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Pixel Tags. Pixel tags (sometimes called web beacons or clear GIFs) are tiny graphics with a unique identifier, similar in function to cookies. While cookies are stored locally on your device, pixel tags are embedded invisibly within web pages and online content. We may use these, in connection with our Services to, among other things, track the activities of users, and help us manage content and compile usage statistics. We may also use these in our emails to let us know when they have been opened or forwarded, so we can track response rates and gauge the effectiveness of our communications.

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Third Party Analytics. We use third party tools, such as Google Analytics, which are operated by third party companies, to evaluate usage of our Site and Services. These third-party analytics companies use cookies, pixels, and other tracking technologies to collect data about our Services to provide us with reports and metrics that help us evaluate usage of our Services, improve our Site, and enhance performance and user experiences. To learn more about Google’s privacy practices, please review the Google Privacy Policy at https://www.google.com/policies/privacy/partners/. You can also download the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on to prevent your data from being used by Google Analytics at https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.  

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Cross-Device Tracking. We and our providers may use the information we collect about you within our Services and on other third-party websites and services to help us and these third parties identify other devices that you use (e.g., a mobile phone, tablet, other computer, etc.) to interact or engage with us or the Services. We, and our third party service providers, also may use the cross-device and browser tracking and other information we learn about you to serve targeted advertising on your devices and to send you emails. To opt-out of cross-device and browser advertising, you may follow the instructions set forth in the Your Privacy Rights and Choices section below. Please note:  if you opt out of these targeted advertising cookies, your opt-out will be specific to the web browser or mobile device from which you accessed the opt-out. If you use multiple devices or browsers, you will need to opt out of each browser or device that you use.

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Custom Lists and Matching. Subject to applicable law, we may disclose certain customer list information (such as your name, email address and other contact information, which in most cases is hashed when it is disclosed) with third parties so that we can better target ads and content to you and others with similar interests, within their services and other third-party platforms and services. In some cases, these third parties may help us to enhance our customer lists with additional demographic or other information, so we can better target our advertising and marketing campaigns.

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Do Not Track. Currently, our Sites and Services do not recognize “Do-Not-Track” requests. You may, however, disable certain tracking as discussed below (e.g., by disabling cookies).

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Your Privacy Rights and Choices

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We make available several ways for you to manage choices about your personal information, including preferences regarding cookies, whether you want to receive marketing and promotional emails from us, and choices regarding your account and profile information.

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• Cookie Settings. If you wish to prevent cookies from tracking your activity on our website or visits across multiple websites, you can set your browser to block certain cookies or notify you when a cookie is set; you can also delete cookies. The “Help” portion of the toolbar on most browsers will tell you how to prevent your device from accepting new cookies, how to have the browser notify you when you receive a new cookie, or how to delete cookies. Visitors to our website who disable cookies will be able to browse the website, but some features may not function.
• Marketing Communications. You can opt out of receiving marketing emails from us by using the unsubscribe feature in any such email we send you. You can also opt out of receiving marketing and other texts from us by replying “OPT OUT” to any text we send to you. You can also opt out, by logging in to your account and changing your marketing/communications preferences.
• Account and Profile Information. If you have an account with us, you may access, review, and update your account and profile information, such as your name, email address, contact information, communications preferences, and other profile information by logging in to our dashboard and accessing the information directly within your account.
• By emailing or calling your Homeward outreach contact/advisor.  You can find that contact information in the emails you receive from Homeward.

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California residents may request a list of certain third parties to which we have disclosed personally identifiable information about you for their own direct marketing purposes. You may make one request per calendar year. In your request, please attest to the fact that you are a California resident and provide a current California address for your response. You may request this information in writing by contacting us at: hello@homeward.com.  Please allow up to thirty (30) days for a response.

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Consent to Call Recording

Should we speak with you by telephone, we may record calls with you for quality assurance and training purposes.  By consenting to the terms of this Privacy Policy, you consent to such recordings by Homeward, Inc. and any of its affiliates.

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Children’s Information

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Our Services are not designed for children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of thirteen (13). If we learn that we have received information directly from a child who is under the age of thirteen (13), we will delete such information from our systems. If you are a parent or legal guardian and you believe we have collected your child’s information in violation of applicable law, please contact us using the contact information below.

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External Links and Features

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Our Services may contain links to third-party websites or features. Any access to and use of such linked websites or features is not governed by this Policy, but instead is governed by the privacy policies of those third parties. We are not responsible for the information practices of such third parties, including their collection of your personal information. You should review the privacy policies and terms on all such third parties before proceeding to those websites or using those features.

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Security

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We have implemented safeguards that are intended to protect the personal information that we collect from loss, misuse, and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction. Please be aware that despite our efforts, no data security measures can guarantee security.

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Changes to this Policy

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This Policy is current as of the date set forth above. We may change, update, or modify this Policy from time to time. We will post any updates to this Policy on our Sites, so we suggest that you check here periodically for the most up-to-date version of our Policy. If we make material changes to how we collect, use, and disclose the personal information we have previously collected about you, we will endeavor to provide you with notice, such as by posting prominent notice on our Sites or within the Services.

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Contact Us

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If you have questions about this Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us using the contact information provided below.

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hello@homeward.com

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(512) 956-5087

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Homeward, Inc.

1001 S Capital of Tx Hwy

Building I, Suite 100

Austin, TX 78746

USA

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