United Buying Service

What United Buying Service does

United Buying Service, operating as The UBSI Group, LLC, is a privately held American affinity-based buying and finance referral service. The company was founded in 1985 (with website copyright indicating predecessor operations dating to 1970) and is headquartered in Longwood, Florida, with a Chicago correspondence office. It serves over 500,000 members aggregated through more than 1,500 partner organizations, including labor unions, associations, banks, credit unions, and insurance providers. The core offering consists of five referral verticals: Mortgage Finance, Real Estate, Insurance, Car Buying, and Consumer Products, supplemented by a wholly-owned brokerage subsidiary, Members Realty, LLC. Members access the service free of charge, typically through their affiliation with a partner organization, and complete transactions through a network of pre-screened dealers, lenders, realtors, and retailers.

The underlying platform is a web-based referral engine that captures member intake through online forms and toll-free phone lines and routes introductions to participating network providers via email. Beyond the consumer-facing core, UBSI operates a financial institution services suite for banks and credit unions that includes co-branded car-buying web pages, an Auto Advisor Program that embeds UBSI personnel inside branches and call centers, affinity lending and indirect lending support, near-prime/sub-prime pass-through financing aggregation, back-end product distribution (Extended Warranty, Gap, Credit Life), and field representation across major U.S. metros. The company lists eight active markets: Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Orlando, Miami, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, and Tampa. No mobile-first product, API, SDK, or AI capabilities are disclosed.

Revenue is generated through two streams: transaction-based referral fees paid by participating dealers, lenders, realtors, and retailers when members complete purchases or financing; and professional services fees from banks and credit unions for the financial institution suite. Members pay nothing for access. There are no funding rounds, no disclosed investors, no acquisitions, and no public revenue figures in the available data.

Name

United Buying Service

Legal name

United Buying Service, Inc.

Website

https://www.ubsi.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1962

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

United Buying Service provides buying and finance referral services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Consumer Buying & Finance Referral Services

NAICS

Insurance Agencies and Brokerages (524210), Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters (455211)

SIC

Services-Consumer Credit Reporting, Collection Agencies (7320)

akta.pro primary industry

Buyer Representation Services (BPAJAAAJ)

Keywords

• Buying referral services
• Affinity group discounts
• Mortgage finance referrals
• Auto buying service
• Consumer savings network

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Referral Fees from Dealers and Service Providers: UBSI generates revenue by referring members to participating dealers, lenders, realtors, insurance providers, and retailers. The company receives referral fees or commissions from these network partners when members complete purchases or financing transactions. This creates a transaction-based revenue model where the company benefits from member activity across multiple product categories including real estate, automobiles, insurance, and consumer products.
2. Financial Institution Services: UBSI provides services to financial institutions including co-branded car buying web pages, affinity lending programs, indirect lending field support, and near prime/sub prime pass-through financing aggregation. These services generate fees from banks and credit unions by improving their loan penetration rates and facilitating indirect lending relationships with dealers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

United Buying Service operates a buying and finance referral network that connects its 500,000+ members with pre-negotiated discounts from approved dealers, lenders, realtors, and insurance providers. Core categories include mortgage finance, real estate, insurance, car buying, and consumer products (electronics, vacations, apparel). The service is free to members; the company earns referral fees from network providers, and offers ancillary B2B programs to credit unions, banks, and other financial institutions.

Product overview

The UBSI Group operates as a multi-category affinity-based buying and finance referral service organized into a core platform with specialized product verticals. The core offering consists of five main services: Mortgage Finance, Real Estate, Insurance, Car Buying Service, and Consumer Products, all providing member referrals to pre-screened participating providers with negotiated discounts. These core services are complemented by an add-on Financial Institution Services suite including Co-Branded Car Buying Web Page, Affinity Lending, Direct/Indirect Lending, Auto Advisor Program, Near Prime/Sub Prime Pass Through Financing, Back End Products (Extended Warranty, Gap, Credit Life), and Indirect Lending Field Support. The architecture is referral-based, leveraging mass purchasing power across a network of over 1,500 labor unions, companies, associations, banks, and credit unions to deliver exclusive pricing to 500,000+ members.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mortgage Finance

Quantifiable outcome

• Members can save up to $4,000 on a $400,000 home purchase through 1% closing cost credit
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Labor Unions (1,500+ network)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership with over 1,500 labor unions providing members access to UBSI's buying and finance referral services. Unions offer UBSI as a member benefit, enabling significant savings on major purchases including homes, vehicles, and consumer products through pre-negotiated vendor pricing.
• Banks and Credit UnionscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFinancial institution partners utilize UBSI's vehicle pricing and dealer referral services, co-branded web pages, and lending programs. UBSI helps increase loan penetration rates and provides indirect lending support through its dealer network. Services include Auto Advisor Program, affinity lending, and near prime/sub prime pass-through financing.
• AssociationscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAssociation partners (beyond labor unions) provide UBSI services to their members as a value-added benefit. Members gain access to purchasing discounts on consumer products, real estate services, insurance, and financing options through the UBSI network.
• Insurance ProviderscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInsurance company and brokerage partners participate in the UBSI network, offering auto, home, life, health, disability, long-term care, Medicare supplement, home warranty, and car warranty products to UBSI members at competitive pricing.
• Participating Dealers (Team Dealer Network)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNetwork of new and used vehicle dealers across major cities who receive referral customers from UBSI's partner organizations. Dealers benefit from purchase-ready customers referred through trusted affinity relationships. UBSI coordinates with dealers on loan approval and funding processes.
• Mortgage Lenders (50+ network)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOver 50 mortgage lenders in the network serve UBSI members seeking home purchase financing or refinancing. Lenders offer competitive rates and accommodate various credit profiles including credit-challenged borrowers, self-employed individuals, and those with prior bankruptcy discharges.
• Real Estate Agents and BrokerscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPreferred licensed professional realtors and real estate brokers offer discounted services to UBSI members. Agents provide 5% commission rates (vs 6% standard) for sellers and up to 1% closing cost credits for buyers. The network includes Members Realty, LLC which coordinates buyer-broker relationships.
• Neal Halperin (Account Executive, Internet Dealer Relations)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerIndividual contact for auto dealer onboarding and partnership inquiries. Dealers interested in joining the Team Dealer Network contact Neal Halperin for information about marketing opportunities and program participation.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• AAA: AAA operates a membership-based benefits and discount service offering roadside assistance, insurance, travel, and member-only purchasing benefits through club affiliations. It is the closest conceptual peer to UBSI's affinity group model of bundling discounts across categories behind a membership.
• LendingTree: LendingTree operates an online lending marketplace that matches consumers with multiple lenders across mortgages, auto loans, and other credit products, generating revenue through referral fees. It is directly comparable to UBSI's multi-lender mortgage and auto finance referral model.
• TrueCar: TrueCar runs a digital automotive marketplace that connects car buyers with certified dealers and provides pricing transparency. It is a direct competitor in the car buying referral vertical that represents one of UBSI's core product categories.
• Bankrate: Bankrate aggregates and compares financial products including mortgages, auto loans, and insurance, earning revenue when consumers are referred to providers. It mirrors the referral-fee-driven model UBSI uses across financial product categories.
• Rocket Mortgage: Rocket Mortgage is a direct-to-consumer mortgage lender that also operates referral-style home search and real estate agent services. It competes with UBSI's mortgage and real estate referral verticals.

Broad incumbents

• Zillow: Zillow operates a broad real estate platform encompassing home search, agent referrals, mortgages, and ancillary services. It overlaps with UBSI's real estate and mortgage referral offerings but with a much larger consumer-facing footprint.
• Costco: Costco is a membership-based retailer that aggregates consumer purchasing power to negotiate pricing across categories. While retail rather than referral-based, it is a useful analog for the underlying mass-purchasing-power model UBSI uses with affinity members.
• CarMax: CarMax is a national used car retailer offering fixed-price purchasing, trade-in, and financing services. It competes with UBSI's car buying service by providing an integrated purchase experience rather than a referral.

Emerging players

• Redfin: Redfin is a technology-powered residential brokerage that offers lower commission rates and an integrated home search experience. It competes with UBSI's real estate referral vertical by offering direct brokerage services at discounted rates.
• Credit Karma: Credit Karma provides free credit monitoring and matches consumers with financial product offers including loans, credit cards, and insurance, earning referral fees from providers. It is a digital-first analog to UBSI's multi-product financial referral model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/unitedbuying
• Facebookfacebook.com/UnitedBuyingService
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/united-buying-and-finance-service

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about United Buying Service