Dec 18, 2020

Avenue 8 raises $4M to rebuild the traditional real estate brokerage model – ClearTips We’ve seen a huge wave of PropTech startups emerge to reinvigorate how houses are bought and sold, with distressed property tapped into opportunity, and others discovered the “iBuyer” model where houses would be bought Are, fixed and recreated by singles. Startups to homeowners who don’t want to invest in a fixer-upper. But most homes are still sold in the traditional way, through a real estate agent working through a broker. x Today, a startup is announcing that it has raised seed funding to not be constrained, but improve that basic model with a more flexible approach that can help agents work in a more modern way, and One can eventually measure the number of people working as agents. market. Avenue 8, which describes itself as a “mobile-first residential real estate brokerage” – provides agents with a new set of tools to source, list and sell, and handle other aspects of the process that They fall between them – $ 4 million is raised. This is a seed round, and Avenue 8 plans to use it to expand further into cities where it is already active – it has been in beta thus far in the areas of San Francisco and Los Angeles – as well Many more develop with it. The funding due to BackAir is notable given that the startup was attracted early. It is being produced by Kraft Ventures – co-founded by David Sachs and Bill Lee, which has built a stunning and impressive portfolio of companies with Zig Capital and Good Friends – Warriors Parker, an early one from Harry’s founders Charan’s fund, and Allbirds) also participated. At least $ 18 billion has been invested in funding raised by PropTech companies over the past decade, and with it, there has been no shortage of efforts to take technology lessons – from cloud computing and mobile technology, artificial intelligence, data science And e-commerce through innovations – and apply them to the real estate market. Michael Martin, who co-founded Avenue 8 with Justin Fickelson, believes that this pace of change, in fact, means that one has to constantly consider new approaches. “It’s important to remember that Compass’ development strategy was for traditional brokerages to roll out their technology,” he said of one of the big jugglers in the space (which has seen its own challenges). “But if you made it today, it would be fundamentally different.” And he believes that “different” won’t look unlike Avenue 8. The startup is based around the membership model for a start, rather than a classic 30/70 split on sales commissions that exist (and usually) between brokers and agents, respectively. Around that basic model, Avenue 8 has built a set of multiple tools that provide agents with an intuitive way to use new types of marketing and analytics tools, allowing both to leverage their attributes across multiple channels To know; Analytics to measure how their efforts are to improve future listings; And access to comprehensive market data to help make more informed decisions on valuation and sales. It also provides a marketplace of people – vets – who can help stage and photograph properties for listings, and Avenue 8 does not need to pay those partners until the house is sold. It also provides all of this through a mobile platform – important for people in a profession that often leads them forward. Targeting agents who have been in the past essentially depend on using the tools that brokers use – which were often their own sites and some aggregating portals – Avenue 8’s pitch is not only better returns, but there. There is a better process to reach. “We have heard time and time again that agents struggle to identify and leverage technology and tools to successfully manage their relationships and qualities. Changing buyer / seller expectations has accelerated the digital transformation of most agents’ workflows, ”Ryan Aurley, Zig Capital’s partner, said in a statement. “Avenue 8 is building and integrating the right software and resources for our new reality.” Also interesting about Avenue 8 is how it can open the door to a wider pool of agents in the long run. The real estate market has been largely resilient during the epidemic, with lower interest rates, generally lower overall home inventories, and a higher level of demand for people to spend more time at home (and seek a better location). As with many other industries that feel the pinch, a flexible platform like Avenue 8 creates a way for people – who have taken and passed the necessary certifications to become agents – to register and flexibly as an agent. They choose to work as more or less in “Uber for Real Estate Agents”, as it were. This scaling opportunity is probably one of the reasons it has potentially caught the eye of investors. “The organic growth of Avenue 8 is clear evidence that the market demands a mobile-first, digital platform,” said Jeff Flur, general partner of Kraft Ventures, in a statement. “Michael and Justin have a clear vision for real estate modernization, with agents at the center. The model of Avenue 8 helps agents to take home even in today’s environment where commissions are shrinking. “ Interestingly, as Uber ordered and delivered on-demand transportation, Avenue 8 has begun to see some interesting traction in terms of its place in the real estate market. Although it was originally targeted at agents with the pitch of being a “better broker” – regulated to provide brokers providing services, but with a more modern cover around it – it would in some cases allow brokerages Also attracts. Martin said it is already working with some younger people, and may eventually consider ways to make their devices available to better manage their businesses. Share this: