# FirstClose

Startup profile on Capital Atlas: https://capitalatlas.ai/startups/firstclose

- Industry: Software
- Headquarters: Austin, US
- Website: www.firstclose.com/
- Total disclosed funding: $23M
- Latest round: Series A (Sep 25, 2025)
- Investors on record: 1

## About

In 2000, the company was co-founded by two brothers -- Tedd Smith, who's also the former CEO of Home Equity Loan Corporation, and Tim Smith, the Vice President of an automated flood zone determination platform. In October 2025, FirstClose, Inc. raised an undisclosed amount of venture funding led by returning investor Lateral Investment Management. In 2023, the company reached integration with Flueid, a US-based Fintech solution provider focusing on home equity lenders. The company also launched its new product Vendor Gateway, a solution that enables home equity lenders to select and integrate settlement service vendors into FirstClose Equity.

The company's main product is FirstClose Equity, a platform that can generate home valuation, available home equity, loan options and a pre-approval decision based on the customers' requests. The company also provides FirstClose Insight, a consultancy service that offers home mortgage specialist's opinions. The newest product is FirstClose Gateway, a third party-services integration gateway that enables vendors to offer their products and services to lenders on FirstClose Equity.

The company will use the October 2025 funding to support product development and strategic initiatives that strengthen its position in home equity and mortgage lending markets.

## Funding rounds

- Series A, Sep 25, 2025, $4.7M — Lateral Investment Management
- Series A, May 6, 2022, $18M — Lateral Investment Management

## Investors

- Lateral Investment Management (https://capitalatlas.ai/funds/lateral-investment-management) — Series A