Jun 24, 2020

Share Fast-growing proptech disrupter Yabonza has made its first acquisition since being founded three years ago by former Macquarie executives. The digitally focused property management platform, which heavily undercuts the fees charged by traditional agents, has acquired fellow disrupter Easyshare, a rental and bills payment app for share houses. Moving into a growth phase:  John Bush, Mark Trowell, Heidi Guenther and Simon Kinsey. Chief executive Mark Trowell said a series B funding round planned for later in the year would aim to raise between $10 million and $20 million as Yabonza moved out of its foundation phase and into a growth phase. "We're growing at 20-30 per cent a month. The business is now scalable and can service any area of the country," he said. Advertisement Mr Trowell forecast further consolidation in proptech due to the collaborative nature of the sector and said a "big momentum shift" was under way in real estate sparked by COVID-19. "More money is entering the proptech space. The pace of change from old process to newer alternatives is accelerating," he said. Mr Trowell said property management was particularly ripe for disruption given the fragmented nature of the market, the requirement for multiple trust accounts and the different systems used by agents. "We can offer a better level of service than a traditional agent," he said. Yabonza has 1000 users and about 500 properties under management. It pitches itself as a full-service asset management platform and charges a 3.9 per cent fee (of rental income) compared with an industry average of about 6.8 per cent. Yabonza collects and pays rent directly to landlords, selects tenants, co-ordinates repairs and maintenance jobs and undertakes inspections and open homes. Investors also get a dedicated asset manager. Advertisement Mr Trowell said the acquisition of EasyShare would add a payments gateway to the business. "Payments are core to real estate and property management ... so we either had to build a gateway ourselves or find a solution out there," he said. "Easyshare solved that problem on the tenant side." Under the cash and equity deal, Easyshare founder John Bush will join the Yabonza leadership team comprising Mr Trowell, his former Macquarie Group colleague Simon Kinsey and chief marketing officer Heidi Guenther. "Joining Yabonza means that we have the capacity to offer so much more to millions of landlords and tenants and continue to provide the best possible product for the sector," Mr Bush said. Leading property coverage delivered to your inbox Sign up to our new weekly Inside Property newsletter