Tech Nest: The Proptech Podcast

More about Andrew and Doorvest
Doorvest is an end-to-end solution for real estate investing, done entirely online.

Doorvest helps individuals build wealth remotely by facilitating the purchase of a single-family rental and managing the property—making owning rentals as easy as owning a stock. 

Only in this case, they’ll own the whole home!

Andrew Luong is the co-founder of Doorvest, a venture-backed startup advancing financial security for all. Andrew is also a real estate investor, Realtor, and mortgage loan officer. With a passion for all things technology and personal finance, Andrew created Doorvest to enable everyone to access to financial security through investing in the $3 trillion single-family rental market.

• Follow Doorvest on Twitter
• Connect with Andrew on LinkedIn
• Check out Doorvest

Seasoned tech veteran and entrepreneur, Sal Patalano, shares with us today how he's leveraging his 30+ years experience to lead the expansion of Plentific into the US rentals market. Plentific has amassed a network of more than one million properties and 20,000 service providers. This network, coupled with their software interface, is what makes real-time operations possible for owners and property managers. Sal breaks it all down for us. Listen in!

More About Sal and Plentific
At Plentific, we’re making real-time property operations a reality. Our industry-leading platform integrates data, insights, and digital solutions to streamline property operations and enable action. Through Plentific’s platform, real estate owners and operators can see the status of their properties, manage work orders, track repairs, and hire contractors in real time. We’re pioneering property operations and creating real world impact – developing communities, growing businesses, and creating places where people can thrive.

Salvatore (Sal) Patalano is the Executive Vice President, North America at Plentific with 30+ years of experience in the technology sector as an entrepreneur and in senior leadership roles at IBM and Lenovo. 

• Connect with Sal on LinkedIn
• Check out Plentific

Let's imagine e-commerce, but for rental listings. It's kind of what we're talking about today. I've got Austin Lo, he is the founder and CEO of Peek. He got his start in real estate working at an investment fund. They were creating data-driven models, investing in e-commerce internet platforms. And, you know, he had this interest in real estate and so he went so far as to become a licensed agent in New York City. He learned the rentals game in New York City. And as I've been told, because I've not done it myself in the city, that can be a grueling way to cut your teeth.

Austin decided to take things further and started Peek in 2019. Peek is delivering a self-serve leasing experience, enabling renters to shop and tour properties, online. Imagine you can check out an apartment just like e-commerce. And that's the vision that Austin has here. We talk about that. We talk about a new product launch coming up from Peek. And then we even got into a little bit on artificial intelligence. Austin had a really interesting take on AI, the data that they're collecting at Pee, and how that could be a very unique input for AI models moving forward, whether they're using it or other use cases that are represented in the market. So you're going to want to hear his take on that. Go ahead, hit play. 

More about Austin and Peek
Peek was founded in 2019 with the mission to create a better way to find a home. Peek is a complete solution for property owners and managers to deliver an immersive self-serve leasing experience that’s available to renters 24/7–online or on-site. Peek’s flagship Total Leasing allows prospective residents to see a property with both unit-level 3D tours and self-guided tours while providing the property with precise data and analytics on prospects to lease more efficiently. For property owners and managers, Peek has been able to reduce the need for onsite staffing levels, increase tour conversion rates by 3.5x and save clients an average of $750 per unit leased. Peek is a National Preferred Provider for Greystar and partners with other leading property owners and managers like Brookfield, Toll Brothers, Cushman & Wakefield, Nuveen and Hines. For more information visit peek.us.

Austin Lo is founder and CEO of Peek, whose mission is to create a better way to find a home. Prior to launching Peek in 2019, Austin worked at an investment fund, creating data-driven models to invest in e-commerce and internet platforms. He is also a licensed New York Real Estate Salesperson and a lifelong photography enthusiast–both of which sparked his interest in leveraging 3D virtualization technology to bring the e-commerce experience to finding a home. Austin is a graduate of Columbia University’s engineering school.

• Follow Austin on Twitter
• Check out Peek

In this episode we're talking about the Shopify of real estate. I'm thrilled to have Jason Hardy, the CEO of Ownly, a Canadian-based company that is also working in the United States, as our guest today. Ownly is bringing e-commerce to the residential real estate industry, creating a frictionless home buying experience. Their patent-pending technology, called Verified, connects qualified buyers and sellers, solving the problem of verifying identities and funds of potential buyers.

The world of residential real estate has been in a dizzy state in the last few years, and it's unclear when it will get back to "normal," or if there will be a new normal. But Jason and his team have been working to solve what they see as one of the real estate industry's biggest problems. 

If you're someone who likes having fun while digging into proptech, then you're in the right place. Join us today as we dive deep into Ownly.

More about Jason and Ownly
Ownly brings e-commerce to the residential real estate industry, creating a frictionless home-buying experience. The platform makes real estate transactions easier through its proprietary and patent-pending technology, connecting qualified buyers and sellers.

Jason has built his reputation as a thought leader in real estate and a driver of innovative marketing and sales initiatives. An influential industry leader, he is also a business school instructor and sought-after speaker. Jason is the executive director of the Real Estate Development Institute (REDI), chairman of real estate marketing agency Chatterson, sits on the Management Advisory Council for the Haskayne School of Business, and is an advisory board member and committee chair for the Westman Centre for Real Estate Studies.

• Connect with Jason on LinkedIn
• Check out Ownly

This is a different approach. We've got Nick Farquhar. He is the CEO of a company called Appreciate. You can find them online, appreciate.io. They describe themselves as a tech-enabled property management. And one of the first questions I asked Nick was, "what does it mean to be tech-enabled property management?" You got to listen to this one. Appreciate gets into the data, their approach is a little different than others with educating their clients—helping them make sure that they get all the tax advantages they deserve. And they have a unique revenue model in that they don't charge turnover fees and they don't upcharge on maintenance. It's very interesting. Let's jump in and hear what Nick has to say.

More about Nick and Appreciate

• Connect with with Nick on LinkedIn
• Follow Appreciate on Twitter
• Check out Appreciate

You'll hear me say it in the intro, but wow. This was a heck of a discussion. John Andrew Entwistle is the Founder and CEO of a company called Wander. In a very short amount of time, Wander has exploded on the scene for vacation rentals. They're approach: verticalize the entire business. When I say the entire business—I mean everything! The tech, the management, property selection, the marketing, and oh the brand. Wander has masterfully build an incredible community around their brand of high-end, luxury smart homes that serve as vacation rentals. There's more to the business than I can write for this intro so hit play to hear what John Andrew has to say about Wander.

More about John Andrew and Wander
Wander is vertically integrating the vacation rental space, creating a radically better experience for travelers.

Wander is the only network of smart homes built for the future of work—there are currently 15 properties (more to launch in 2023) in stunning locations across the US. Everything from unlocking the door, turning on the lights, lighting the fireplace, and opening the Tesla in the garage (which each home is equipped with) can be controlled from the Wander mobile app. 

The company launched with a seed round led by Redpoint Ventures in 2021, and months later raised a Series A led by QED with participation from a16z, Fifthwall, Susa Ventures, Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman's Thirty Five Ventures, Packy McCormick, Sahil Bloom, and others.

The co also recently launched their B2B product, Wander Teams, which allows employers to offer Wander credits/stays as a benefit. With Wander, working remotely becomes much easier: the workstations are comfortable, with adjustable desks and extra monitors; the WiFi is strong and reliable; and the kitchen and gyms are equipped so guests don’t have to sacrifice their daily routines. Wander Teams is still in beta but will become a core part of the business as they ramp up.

Wander recently secured a $100M credit line from Credit Suisse in November to turbocharge growth.

John Andrew Entwistle is Founder and CEO of Wander. Previously John Andrew was Co-founder of Coder (exited) and a Thiel Fellow.

• Follow John Andrew on Twitter
• Follow Wander on Twitter
• Connect with John Andrew on LinkedIn
• Check out Wander

It's not enough to just list a pretty home or apartment on Airbnb in order to stand out. Maybe it is for some, but not for Jonah Hanig. Jonah is the Founder of a company called Rove. They've set out to build an exclusive network of luxury short-term and mid-term rentals, ideals for those traveling and working. It's more than just the bones of the building, though. The team at Rove is especially skilled in upscaled design, ensuring each property is tastefully complete. Of course every Rove property is well-equipped with high-speed internet, and on-call concierge. And if that wasn't enough, Rove has recently launched its own marketplace to help investors buy and sell "ready to rent" properties. Hit play to to hear what Rove is all about.

More about Jonah and Rove
Rove is a rental booking platform for homes designed for remote work.

Rove homes are professionally designed with upscale kitchens, comfortable work spaces with lightning fast wifi, and on-call customer concierge. (No more IKEA chairs or waiting for an unresponsive host to send you the updated wifi password.)

Rove also just launched a marketplace for investors to purchase "ready-to-rent" rentals (and turns their existing properties into one). Rove even handles management for the owner, so it's completely turn-key. Their managed properties generate 30-70%+ higher booking revenue annually for property owners than comparable residential rental property benchmarks.

Here's an example: https://www.rovetravel.com/marketplace/property/133west-14th-street

Jonah is a Columbia and Y Combinator alum who got the idea from personal experience-–struggling to find Airbnbs where he could take Zoom calls all day during his travels. So, he built a team from Snap, SpaceX, June Homes, and CORE to launch the central place for luxury rentals for consumers and investors alike.

• Follow Jonah on Twitter
• Connect with Jonah on LinkedIn
• Follow Rove on Twitter
• Check out Rove

More about Cameron and Prophia
Prophia is a rising proptech smart tool for commercial real estate & lease abstraction used across 1,800 buildings, with 100% customer retention, and has exceeded one million pages scanned with its AI-powered technology. With Prophia’s AI abstraction tool, commercial real estate owners, investors, and operators can eliminate manually intensive lease abstractions and data accessibility processes. This allows users to enhance their investment strategy in real time with complete, verifiable, and structured commercial portfolio data.

• Follow Prophia on Twitter
• Follow Cameron on Twitter
• Connect with Cameron on LinkedIn
• Check out Prophia

What an honor it was to have Bonnie Murray, founder and CEO of Raccord on the show. Raccord is building a mobile-first data platform specifically for commercial real estate owners and operators. We had a fun discussion highlighting why the decision to build mobile first as compared to everyone else in the industry, as well as how this can save organizations significant time from handling administrative work and reducing delays with data requests. We also had a chance to discuss the importance of building a diverse team, coincidentally, on International Women's Day. Lots of insights jammed into this interview. Listen in!

More about Bonnie and Raccord
Raccord is a data platform that distills complex, disparate data into clear, powerful and essential metrics, to equip decision-makers with the intelligence needed to analyze portfolios and investment opportunities, the smart way.

Raccord's CEO, NY-based Bonnie Murray, has over twenty years experience in finance, working across various investment verticals, and recognizes the importance of data-driven decision-making. Leading a female-led business that is laying the foundations for a futuristic real-estate investment model, Bonnie is perfectly placed to talk about navigating the industry, share her unique insight, and discuss potential challenges.

• Connect with Bonnie on LinkedIn
• Check out Raccord

More about Anne and Lobby CRE
Lobby CRE helps commercial real estate firms transform their portfolios with intelligent analysis, industry benchmarking, and asset management, enabling access to all data sources and automating performance reporting across all properties from a single platform. Lobby CRE is the first data analytics and management platform designed specifically for commercial real estate. Lobby helps companies discover opportunities in their business and provides configurable insights to make data-driven decisions faster.

Anne Hollander, CEO of Lobby CRE, a Thirty Capital company, is making an impression in CRE and tech as one of few CEOs with a background in both real estate operations and rapidly scaling technology companies. Hollander is an expert in strategic planning, partnership development, go-to-market execution, and venture investment across portfolios focused on real estate, technology, and financial services. Hollander formerly held executive leadership roles in product development at Trimble and Real Page. Hollander offers uniquely informed perspectives on real estate management, investment, and the potential of tech in CRE and integrates these insights to serve and educate property owners, managers, and investors.

• Connect with Anne on Linkedin
• Check out Lobby CRE