Can You Use AI Stock To Buy A Home? Some NorCal Sellers Put Question To The Test

The seller of a nearly $3 million San Francisco home is open to accepting Anthropic or OpenAI stock as payment for the property, according to the listing.

The 1907 residence at 160 Noe St. in Duboce Triangle is just under 2,500 square feet and fresh off a two-year, multimillion-dollar renovation, according to a property listing from The Swann Group.

The seller is not the only one to make such a move, as owners of high-value properties in Marin and Sonoma counties have also expressed interest in exchanging real estate for Anthropic stock, according to reports.

The debate over stock-for-property transactions is happening as OpenAI and Anthropic move toward an initial public offering.

Both companies would need to approve a transaction involving stock transfers, Fortune reported.

“The seller, he loves those two companies, he thinks they’re a big part of the future of San Francisco,” listing agent Rachel Swann, who is working with the owner of 160 Noe St., told Fortune. “He’s like, ‘I’d be happy to hold stock with them and see if that opens up a pathway for people to be able to buy in San Francisco,’ and I think it’s really, you know, resonated with people.”

Some, however, were skeptical, with myStockOptions.com Editor-In-Chief Bruce Brumberg describing such a move as “a good publicity stunt,” according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

“Anything is possible, but I have not seen it done,” Citizens Private Bank Senior Managing Director Garret Spiecker told the newspaper.

There is some precedent of stock-for-real estate sales, according to the Chronicle, which reported that in 2007, Ken DeLeon of DeLeon Realty represented a seller in Palo Alto who accepted $1 million in shares of a venture-backed startup as part of a purchase.

“We made a nice profit so it worked out well for all of us,” DeLeon, who took shares as his commission, told the newspaper.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.