From trying to cut brokers out of the game, to being the "eHarmony of office space," real estate tech was one of the biggest themes—and money raisers—last year. The sector raised $1.5B in 2015 alone—and the big players are bullish on the industry, too. Here's how much five real estate startups have raised in the past 12 months.
VTS
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What it does: Asset management and leasing platform
Money raised: $24.3M in a Series B round
When: July 2015
The company had raised $3.3M around six months earlier before taking in $21M in a round led by OpenView Venture Partners. VTS gives asset managers and leasing teams a single platform to track deal activity, manage space, identify trends, quantify portfolio performance and collaborate seamlessly.
Hightower
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What it does: Asset management and leasing platform
Money raised: $13M in venture capital
When: While it raised most of this during a May 2015 fundraising round, there were confirmed investments for undisclosed amounts (sneaky) in strategic investments by Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, William Rudin of Rudin Management Co and Barry Sternlicht of Starwood Capital Group.
Hightower's next-gen platform enables commercial real estate professionals to collaborate with teams, manage important files, and update deals all in real-time from the web or their mobile devices.
Common
What it does: Plans to offer rooms in Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights on a short-term basis to students and young professionals new to New York City.
Money raised: $7.4M in a Series A round
When: July 2015
This new kid on the block put together over $7M in funding through five investors. Founded by veteran tech entrepreneur Brad Hargreaves, Common partners with property owners and local organizations to create residential communities with monthly terms, shared services, and community events and management.
Honest Buildings
What it does: Cost tracking and portfolio insights for real estate owners
Money Raised: $17.25M total
When: June 2015
The company put together a nice $5M funding round last June, adding to the $9M it raised in a pair of 2013 rounds. The purpose-built platform combines real-time business intelligence with vendor selection and project management tools that allow cross-functional teams to collaboratively track projects' spending, intelligently compare bids, and access data across their portfolio.
TheSquareFoot
What: App-driven office brokerage
Money Raised: $2.47M
When: August 2015
The bulk of the company's cash came in a funding round led by Primary Venture Partners last August.
TheSquareFoot launched in Houston in 2011 as a one-stop online shop for commercial real estate listings, from search to lease execution (and some concierge mixed in between). The startup has since relocated to New York. “When we started four years ago, most people looked at commercial real estate as the last industry to really start adopting technology,” co-founder Justin Lee said then. “We’re making strides to change that.”
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