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UPDATE #10/22

December 2022

Dear PropTech Community,

I hope this message finds you in good health and with a peaceful mind – wherever you are!

Below is some insightful practical philosophy that can change lives, maybe also yours:
Charlie Munger – Treat your mind like your greatest asset!
Naval Ravikant – Happiness is a choice you make and a skill you develop!

I want to thank everyone around me for enriching my life, especially in the last 20 months after my cancer diagnosis. Yes, my road to full recovery will take some time and continues to require effort. It’s sometimes tough to cope with all the side effects of my surgery, radiation treatment, and long-term medication.
My teenage sons Kian and Levi are my rock stars. Thanks to them I am constantly getting challenged. My mom is such a strong role model when it comes to selfcare and healthy living. My family and friends are amazing. My 7 mentees are outperforming and a true inspiration. My dear coach Robin, you are my mirror, and I am so grateful to have you in my life! The ability to say ‘no’, and to only say ‘yes’ if you really mean it, is a superpower. (Ok … I am still working on it.)

I wish you a joyful holiday season and a smooth start into a HaPpY new year 2023 – you are in charge of your life, enjoy the creation, it’s like a beautiful puzzle!

Big virtual hug and please be caring with yourself (it’s a great skill to have),
Your Julia 😉

Big Tech moving out

The downsizing of large tech companies such as Meta, Salesforce, and Lyft means that a lot of office space which was used by these companies is now flooding the market in the United States. This currently amounts to 30 million square feet.
 

Big money moving in

Venture capital funds now have almost $300B waiting to be invested. Out of this, it is estimated that around $37B are in funds which have their main focus on decarbonization. This is in addition to the $6.1B these have already deployed.
 

Venture capital experience

In an interview, climate tech VC Mia Diawara shares her experience on topics ranging from where to start to which kinds of questions she asks founders. She identifies buying more time for communities and ecosystems as one of the biggest current gaps.
 

Your experience

Tired of just reading about climate change? Then how about experiencing it yourself? A recently released strategy game called Floodland lets you do exactly that by placing you in a dystopian future of a world destroyed by climate change.
 

 RESEARCH 
 

Building in a low carbon world

The report The Future Of Building In A Low Carbon World by A/O PropTech draws attention to the emissions caused by building and operating properties, which account for more than 40% of global green house gas emissions. Without innovation, construction and demolition waste alone is projected to increase by 350% by 2100. On the other hand, more than 4.5 billion dollars of early stage capital went into green building startups over the past 5 years. You can download the full report here.
 

Emerging trends in real estate

PwC has published its Emerging Trends in Real Estate report for 2023. You can download the version for North American here and the one for Europe here. 

RECOMMENDED READING 

How startups think:
Startups, it’s time to think like camels — not unicorns

How generations think:
Cross-generational attitudes that will transform the built environment

Thinking about efficiency:
The impact of efficiency enablers in PropTech

Thinking about climate change:
Speed & scale: An action plan for solving our climate crisis now

Deals & Cooperations

Dubai based Silkhaus, which provides a platform for short-term rentals, has raised a $7.75M seed round.

San Francisco based Atmos, which provides an online marketplace for custom homes, has raised a $12.5MSeries A round.

Paris based Virgil, which provides investments in apartments alongside home buyers, has raised a €15M Series A round.

Pittsburgh based RoadRunner, which provides recycling solutions, has raised a $20M Series D round.

Barcelona based Lodgify, which provides a vacation rental software to landlords, has raised a $30M Series B round.

Munich based Limehome, which provides serviced apartments in Europe, has raised a €45M Series B round.

Brussels based Cohabs, which provides a network of shared homes for nomads, has raised a €70MSeries C round plus $40M in loans.

Bangalore based NoBroker, which provides a one stop shop for buying and renting properties, has raised a $210M Series E round.

 PROPTECH OF THE MONTH  

Sync Technologies

What does it take to build a good digital twin of a property? How about 3D Modelling, BIM, Drone Mapping and Virtual Reality? Have a look at Sync Technologies.

UPDATE #09/22

November 2022

Dear PropTech Community,

I hope this message finds you well – wherever you are!

In case you are looking for a job in VC, have a look at these resources.
And here is an overview of some PropTech associations.
Now is also the perfect time for M&A in PropTech – check out this interesting article.

I am back in Sydney to attend the Real Estate Innovation Summit.
Several members of our Global Leadership Board of FuturePlace will come from around the world:
Susanne, Lauren, Hongqi, Joanna, and also Satoshi representing MetaProp.
We expect more than 1000 people to attend the event.
My co-founders John and Leon did a great job in establishing this epic APAC #proptech #event!

I am staying at the beautiful Bondi Beach with a view of the ocean – hard to beat this view while working. 😉

Sending you sunshine,
Your Julia

Big PropTech optimism

After lagging behind Android for a long time in this respect, Apple meanwhile allows NFC on its iPhones to be used for access control. The integration of this with Apple Wallet will certainly be convenient for many users, but also potentially problematic for existing PropTech apps which currently leverage their own access control features as a hook for user adoption.
 

Small PropTech pessimism

After second home mortgages decreased by 28% percent, startups relying on this market face tough headwinds. Pacaso, which has owed its growth to its platform vacation co-ownership platform, has now laid off 30% of its staff across all departments.
 

Three reasons for PropTech

A Forbes article lists several good reasons why commercial real estate should (or, according to the article, even need to) adopt various forms of PropTech. These are summarized under the headings of avoiding risk, embracing remote work, and improving relationships.
 

A fourth reason for PropTech

In a related line of reasoning, another article points to cost cutting as a potential major benefit of applying PropTech solutions in the current business climate of commercial real estate. It also touches on the fact that efficiency gains would or will be significantly easier after appropriate vertical integration.
 
 

 RESEARCH 
 

How to build a unicorn

After analyzing 100 unicorns and talking to 10 investors, McKinsey examined 5 aspects that seem to be particularly important for startups on their way to becoming unicorns: Team, total addressable market, timing, technology, and traction. 80% of unicorn founders had prior work experience, 70% a higher university degree. Green buildings were identified as one of the most interesting markets with a likely addressable size between 1300 an 1800 billion dollars in 2030. You can read the whole report here.
 

Emerging Trends in Real Estate

PwC has published this year’s Emerging Trends in Real Estate report, which also includes a box on emerging trends in PropTech. You can download the report here.

RECOMMENDED READING 

PropTech and payments:
JPMorgan Platform Taps Into Demand for Paperless Rent Payments

PropTech and affordability:
Where Proptech Meets Affordable Housing

PropTech and leadership:
Why more creatives should lead major companies

Deals & Cooperations

Egypt based Seqoon, which provides a platform for co-ownership of vacation homes, has raised a $500K pre-seed round.

UK based Snap It, which provides an instant delivery building materials delivery app for tradespeople, has raised a €2.4M seed round.

Thailand based PropertyScout, which provides a rental and sale platform, has raised a $5M series A round.

Australia based PropHero, which provides an investment platform with personal strategy consultations, has raised a $5.2M seed round.
US based SwiftConnect, which provides a physical access control platform, has raised a $17M series A round.

US based Landis, which provides a rent-to-own service, has raised a $40M series B round.

Germany based Holidu, which provides vacation rental software and services, has raised a €75M series E round as well as a €25M debt financing.

US based Bilt Rewards, which provides a loyalty program where tenants earn points for paying rents, has raised a $150M venture round.

 PROPTECH OF THE MONTH  

Navian

How predictable can profit become by optimizing the real estate process for developers and investors? Have a look at Navian.

UPDATE #08/22

October 2022

Dear PropTech Community,

I hope you had an awesome summer, and you seized the moment!

Wow, what an amazing move:
Billionaire No More: Patagonia Founder Gives Away the Company

Time flies. Five and a half years ago, I co-founded the apti (Austrian PropTech Initiative) with Ferdi and Jörg.
We have approximately 100 members and once per year we have our prestigiousapti PropTech award gala dinner event. We got over 100 applications. Congratulations to everyone who made the cut to be among the finalists!
The winners are:
1. Invest and Finance: https://www.brickwise.at/
2. Planning and Build: https://www.cathago.de/
3. Manage and Operate: https://www.aedifion.com/
4. Buy, Sell and Rent: https://www.wohnsinn.com/
5. Digital Real Estate Marketing: https://www.repark.at/
6. Sustainability: https://www.ecoworks.tech/
Ferdi, Jörg, and I also founded an event company and we had our 4th edition of PropTech Vienna this summer and in September 2022 we launched PropTech Hamburg!
 
Wishing you an awesome autumn!
Your Julia

PS update about my two teenage sons: They prefer to be ‘home alone’ so they can have poker nights including FIFA PS5 games and watching soccer … what a world …

Housing PropTech trends

An article in the Journal of Property Management points out 5 emerging trends for residential property managers. These include innovative, technology-enabled security deposit models, alternative tenant screening processes, and loyalty and rewards programs.
 

Housing PropTech topics

In a similar vein, a Forbes article looks at 3 areas poised to yield PropTech innovations. While the first one (cost reductions) is hardly a surprise, the other two are on the one hand about incentivizing green decisions, and on the other hand about more liquidity and access through better transactions.
 

PropTech startups in Pakistan

Of course innovation happens all around the world. Pakistan has a huge and growing market with for instance half a million college graduates each year. An article provides a few examples of PropTech startups there, both for the local market and targeting Fortune 500 companies.
 

PropTech startups in general

Several venture capital firms contributed what they consider to currently be the most promising PropTechs to a list of 21 such startups. Each listing includesboth a short summary of what the startup does and the reason why it is regarded as particularly interesting.
 

 RESEARCH 
 

Technology trends

A McKinsey report analyzes 14 technology trends. Looking at the innovativeness of each of the trends versus the attention they receive, an interesting picture emerges. For example, applied artificial intelligence scores high on innovation (91%), but still receives only moderate interest (45%). The future of clean energy, on the other hand, while rated only at 37% for innovation, scores a perfect 100% for interest. You can read and download the whole report here.
 

PropTech Confidence

Metaprop has published the mid-year 2022 update of its Global PropTech Confidence Index. You can download that report here.

RECOMMENDED READING 

Value in residential properties:
Why the housing market is not in recession

Value in alternative accommodation:
HomeToGo shares admitted to Prime Standard

Value in the Metaverse:
Potential to generate up to $5 trillion by 2030

Deals & Cooperations

Germany based Syte, which provides real-time land analysis, has raised a €2.6M seed round.

London based Modulous, which operates in the ConTech space, has raised a $11.5M series A round.

Singapore based Propseller, which combines agents with technology, has raised a $12M series B round.

Miami based DoorLoop, which develops property management software, has raised a $20M series A round.

San Francisco based Dealpath, which develops deal flow software, has raised a $43m series C round.
New York based VTS, which provides a real estate CRM, has raised a$125M series E round.

Vienna based Bimspot, which produces an open BIM platform, has been acquired by construction software company Smino for an undisclosed amount.

Paris based Axeleo Capital has raised $50M for its early stage third fund AXC2.

Boston based Building Ventures has raised $95M for its second PropTech/ConTech fund.
 

 PROPTECH OF THE MONTH  

Swapp

There are architects who leave the field because they are fed up with the boring parts of creating construction documents. Can artificial intelligence do this in mere minutes? Have a look at Swapp.

UPDATE #07/22

September 2022

Dear PropTech Community,

I hope you had an awesome summer and you seized the moment!
We continued travelling around, enjoyed the Amalfi coast in Italy by boat and relaxed a couple of weeks at my HaPpY place on the island Corsica in a house at the ocean with the perfect view. 😉

I started working for an interesting project in Saudi Arabia, NEOM. They are building a new city from scratch for approximately 9 million inhabitants. So far there is nothing – just sand and 2,000 people.

Being a working mom of two teenage sons (13 and 16 years old) is all about work-life balance and I love initiatives like this one from Airbnb: 20 destinations supporting remote work around the world. Will see how the education system is developing as well.

Enjoy the last couple of summer days. I am sending you all positive energy for a busy autumn in an extremely demanding time – time to change …
What do you plan to change in your life?

Your Julia

Collecting facts

Unissu has gathered 100 facts about construction. Some of them point to market opportunities only partially addressed by current PropTech solutions. Examples: Finding the right service provider for home renovation is still a top challenge; construction professionals spend 35% of their time on non-productive activities; and 95% of the data generated is never used.
 

Collecting items

Fully automated warehouses incur large upfront costs, while semi-automated ones are getting cheaper. An article by JLL considers a number of ways to balance capital expenditure with ROI, including the use of Robots as a Service (RaaS).
 

Tall buildings

Five experts from McKinsey have discussed the future of high-rise buildings in the coming decade, touching on topics such as modular construction, noise pollution, community experience, childcare services, and product/service delivery cycles.
 

Tall farms

Dubai is already well known for many superlatives, and has now added another one: The world’s largest vertical farm. Located near the airport and focused on green leafy vegetables, it consumes 95% less water than traditional agriculture.
 

 RESEARCH 
 

Home prices in the US

An infographic by Visual Capitalist shows home prices in terms of the salary needed for home ownership in various US cities. The most expensive city is San Jose (requiring an annual salary of $330K+), followed by San Francisco ($249K+/a). New York City comes in at rank 7 ($129K+/a). The cheapest city covered is Pittsburgh ($42K+/a). More details here.
 

Proptech in Canada

Two new reports from Canada are available now. You can find the Proptech in Canada 2022 Report here and the Sustainable Proptech Canada Report here.

RECOMMENDED READING 

Strategy issues:
Strategies to inspire continuous innovation in real estate companies

Materials issues: 
Are volatile lumber prices slowing mass timber’s rise?

Technology issues:
Confronting commercial real estate’s biggest challenges with technology

Every second company:
Nearly Half of Companies Will Cut Office Space Next Year

A second chance:
Zillow’s Home Buying Experiment Fell Apart, But Investors Think It Could Work In Europe

No second chance:
Proptech Startup Shuts Down One Year After Raising $100M
 

Deals & Cooperations

Athens based Protio, which aims to reinvent how we buy and sell real estate, has raised a €2M pre-seed round.

London based fu3e, which develops management reporting software for real estate, has raised a £3.5M seed round.

Mexico City based Naya Homes, which manages vacation rentals for homeowners, has raised a $5M seed round.

London based Hammock, which helps landlords reconcile transactions, has raised a £4Mventure round.

Zurich based Properti, which operates in real estate brokerage and administration, has raised aCHF6.2M seed round.
Melbourne based XY Sense, which provides sensors for real-time workplace utilization data, has raised a $8M seed round.

London based Flyway, which focuses on second home ownership in European capitals, has raised a $10Mseed round.

Dubai based Huspy, which simplifies home financing, has raised a $37Mseries A round.

Milan based Casavo, which buys, renovates and then sells homes, has raised a €100M series D round plus plus €300M in debt.

New York City based Flow, which plans to operate over 3,000 apartments with a focus on community features, has raised a$350M venture round.

 PROPTECH OF THE MONTH  

KookieJar

How will future air mobility work? Easily accessible start and landing spots all over the city? Have a look at KookieJar.
 

UPDATE #06/22

June 2022

Dear PropTech Community,

I hope this message finds you well!
This week we had the 4th edition of our PropTech Vienna event. Amazing PropTech solutions presented on stage like cherre, SWAPP, aedifion, Basking, spaceOS, WiredScore, CREE, wowflow, Storebox, PriceHubble, DigiShares, and Velis.
I had a pretty active last couple of months. I’ve been in Dubai, Bolzano, Cannes, Hamburg, London, Sydney, NYC, Boston, Washington D.C., Copenhagen, Stockholm, and Amsterdam.
It’s imperative to rest well – mentally, physically and spiritually – in order to deal with the everyday workload. Check out this amazing article:
The 7 types of rest that every person needs
 
Sunny greetings,
Your Julia 😉

 

An important experience

Yes, of course the location of a property is (still) very important. But as a recent McKinsey article points out, another factor is gaining prominence in both commercial and residential real estate: The customer experience.
 

A new experience

Imagine experiencing a city on an island not just in the ocean, but actually on the ocean: A floating city. One that automatically rises with the sea level. Not using land, but creating it: That’s the goal of a UN Habitat project in Korea.
 

About technology

There’s no end to opinion pieces as to which technologies should be considered the most promising for real estate. According to The Property Girls of Michigan (don’t ask), the top 3 are AI, virtualization, and augmented reality.
 

About energy

The EU’s energy performance certificates exhibit a number of shortcomings, both on the technical side and in terms of market impact. A European research project addresses this by developing a more holistic approach.
 

 RESEARCH 
 

Global Real Estate Perspective

JLL reports on the state of real estate markets, including a comparison of 15 important cities. Of these, Tokyo had the lowest vacancy rate (3%), while Dallas had the highest (26.3%). On the other hand, Dallas also had the highest investment during Q2 2021 through Q1 2022 ($42.9bn). Amsterdam had the lowest investment in that timeframe ($4bn). More details here.
 

ANZ PropTech Report

FuturePlace has published the PropTech in Australia and New Zealand 2022 Report. You can download it here.

RECOMMENDED READING 

Funding a new generation of startups:
Formwork Labs aims to build ‘the YC of construction tech’

On pace to shatter last year’s record:
VC Funding for Proptech Skyrockets as ESG Monitoring Advances

Regulators want to rein in blank-check mania:
New SPAC rules could slash proptech deals

From cost center to competitive advantage:
Workplace real estate in the COVID-19 era

Making solar the largest electricity source
EU Set to Make Solar Panels Mandatory on All New Buildings

PropTech perspective from India:
Digital transformation set to rewrite the future of the real estate sector

PropTech perspective from Pakistan:
The inevitable digitization of real estate in Pakistan

Deals & Cooperations

Construction labor marketplace Werk has raised $1.3m of Pre-Seed funding.

Firmus, a construction risk management solution, has received a $4.5m Seed round.

Indoor positioning company Oriient from Tel Aviv has secured a Series A of $11m.

Berkeley-based UrbanFootprint, a data platform, has announced a $25m Series B.

Upflex, a flexible workspace booking platform, has raised a $30m Series A.
Subcontractor software company BuildOps has secured a Series A of $43m.

A $60m Series C has been announced by Buildots, a construction management platform.

Built Robotics, a specialist for self-driving construction equipment, has received a $64m Series C.

Home ownership financing platform Point has raised a Series C amounting to $115m.

Habi, a real estate marketplace based in Colombia, has closed a $200mSeries C.

 PROPTECH OF THE MONTH  

Biomason

Which new building material could remove 25% of carbon emissions from the concrete industry by 2030? Biocement, says Biomason.

UPDATE #05/22

May 2022

Dear PropTech Community,

I hope this message finds you all well!

Approximately two years ago I co-founded FuturePlace, the leading intelligence platform for digital real estate in APAC, with John and Leon. This week I met them in person in Sydney. I got to experience our amazing Future of Construction event with 480 participants first hand. Especially noteworthy was the composition of attendees – ConTech startups, real estate corporates, investors, associations, and the government represented at the highest level – oh boy, my co-founders rocked it!

Today is my birthday, and reflecting on my life I am most grateful for my family, gorgeous friends, smart co-founders and teams, mentees and mentors who enrich my life, work that I intrinsically love, and the fact that I am ok – considering I was diagnosed with cancer 14 months ago, I am now at 60% of my energy level. 😉

A wonderful quote from Mahatma Gandhi:
“Your beliefs become your thoughts,
your thoughts become your words,
your words become your actions,
your actions become your habits,
your habits become your values,
your values become your destiny.”

Explore, dream, and discover!

Love,
your Julia

 

Funding startups

While publicly listed PropTech stocks have experienced quite a downturn, and SPACs have had a particularly hard time, venture funding for real estate startups was up 31% year-on-year last quarter, reaching $4bn. Among the most significant deals were $400m for Veev and $250m for Pathway Homes.
 

Indian startups

The huge economy of India of course has its own share of local PropTech startups. A recent article highlights five of them, including Brick&Bolt, a tech-enabled construction marketplace, and Zapkey, which guarantees home sales within three months.
 

Blockchain technology

The importance of ESG is hardly news anymore. But how do you track for example your decarbonization efforts, and provide proof to various stakeholders? Blockchain technology is now used for this by the likes of Brookfield and JPMorgan Chase.
 

Integrating technologies

Technology suppliers like to emphasize their products’ integration features. But there are substantial differences in the depth of these capabilities. An article discusses five questions you may want to ask potential suppliers of PropTech solutions in this context.
 

 RESEARCH 
 

The World’s Largest REITs

An new infographic visualizes the sizes of the world’s 10 largest publicly traded real estate investment trusts, as well as which property types they hold. Prologis, which focuses on industrial properties, is number one with a market cap of $116.4bn. The second and third places go to American Tower and Crown Castle, both of which specialize in communications infrastructure. The highest dividend yield (4.44%) came from commercial real estate in Realty Income, the ninth by size. More details here.
 

Reducing #embodiedcarbon in #buildings

Proven solutions and strategies for carbon savings of 19%-46% at cost premiums of less than 1% according to RMI with data from Skanska. Download the report here.
 

The grand challenge of the #builtenvironment of the 21st century

We have ~350 GtCO2 and 30 years left to make the global #building stock carbon neutral. The #retrofit rate must be increased substantially from today’s 1% to around 4-5% and new buildings must be built in a net zero standard by 2040 to meet the climate goals as #embodiedcarbon is key. Download the paper here.

RECOMMENDED READING 

Digital nomads as a source of growth:
Airbnb Says Employees Can Work Remotely From Just About Anywhere

Ideas for sustainability:
6 innovative schemes helping cities to become more sustainable

Rules for sustainability:
What SEC’s Proposed Climate Disclosure Rule Could Mean for Real Estate Companies

What you need to know and understand:
What matters in the future of Real Estate?
 

Deals & Cooperations

In Singapore, blockchain-based construction management solution Doxa as raised a $2.2m seed round.

Speckle, which provides 3D data processing software, got $5.5m of Seed money.

Landlord software developer RentRedi has announced a Series A of $12m.

Leasecake, a lease and location management platform, also had a $12m Series A.

Canadian Falkbuilt, which digitizes interior construction, has a CA$35mSeries A.

In Indonesia, real estate transaction platform Pinhome has announced a $50m Series B.
Built Robotics, which upgrades excavators to operate autonomously, has closed a $64m Series C.

Home energy tracking device company Sense has completed a Series C of $105m.

Lev, a commercial real estate lending marketplace, has closed a $70mSeries B as well as a $100m debt financing.

Real estate decarbonization platform Hatch Data has been acquired by Measurabl. The terms were not disclosed.

Real estate developer Fairstead is launching a $100m PropTech fund.

 PROPTECH OF THE MONTH  

Aisti

Anyone who has ever been in a noisy room will appreciate the value of sound-absorbing tiles. But can one make plastic-free acoustic tiles based on wood fibers that are carbon-negative and also easy to recycle? Aisti in Finland says yes.

 

UPDATE #04/22

April 2022

Dear PropTech Community,

I hope this message finds you well and you celebrate spring! Enjoy this amazing season with all your senses. Yes, home office and virtual meetings can be very effective, but in person meetings are priceless. It was great to meet several familiar faces at MIPIM in Cannes again.

I am learning to slow down, to seize the moment, and to be grateful for my precious life. Yes, my cancer taught me a lot – my diagnosis was one year ago, and I am now at approximately 60% of my energy level than before my treatment. With the help of my management coach I am trying to reprogram myself to be process-oriented and not only outcome-oriented … it’s really tough.

A wonderful quote from Rumi:
Yesterday I was clever, so I wanted to change the world. Today I am wise, so I am changing myself.
 
Big virtual hug and stay well,
Your Julia 😉

 

Big companies and hybrid work

A recent Fortune article mentions examples of companies building their new headquarters already with hybrid work in mind. Mutual of Omaha will provide space for only 2,500 of its 4,000 employees in the area. Similarly JP Morgan Chase is planning to provide workplaces for only about 60% of employees (but here that still means up to 14,000 of them).
 

Startups and hybrid work

Many startups are also heavily into the hybrid office trend. That’s one of the learnings from a video interview conducted by Jason Lemkin from SaaStr. Another is a marked difference in office space density between New York (50%) and San Francisco (20%).
 

Bioplastic, hemp, potatoes

What do bioplastic, hemp, and potatoes have in common? You can actually make buildings out of them. A new article briefly describes these and also several other promising new construction materials.
 

Diversity, ESG, VCs

As Joy Nazzari looks back on MIPIM Cannes, her takeaways include the trend towards more diversity (but still with room for improvement), significant opportunity in the social aspect of ESG (which however is hard to measure), and a certain lack of accessibility of VCs.
 

VCs, LPs, founders

An article on increasing differences between the realities of VCs and the expectations of their LPs points out that this also further exacerbates a misalignment between founders (for whom a reasonably sized exit is already life-changing) and VCs (who need ever higher returns to move the needle).
 

 RESEARCH 
 

PropTech confidence

Last month MetaProp published the latest update of its Global PropTech Confidence Index series. While investor confidence is at a record high of 9.3, startup confidence has declined from 8.3 to 7.4 However, a quarter of founders expect to hire at least 20 full-time employees this year, which is the highest level observed since 2016. You can download the full report here.
 

ESG background

In From Green to ESG: How Data-Driven Transparency Changed Real Estate for Good, Matt Ellis provides in-depth background on how the commercial real estate sector can manage climate risks. The book is available from Amazon.  

RECOMMENDED READING 

Whole office buildings
What’s Going to Happen to All Those Empty Office Buildings?

The inside of office buildings
The rebirth of workspace design: An interview with Gensler co-CEO Diane Hoskins

The outside of office buildings
Modular facade with integrated systems technology supplies buildings with renewable energy
 

Deals & Cooperations

Colabs, a flexible workspace provider in Pakistan, has raised a $3M seed round.

3D printing startup Black Buffalo 3Dhas received $3.5M of seed money.

Weaver, a home renovations contractor marketplace in London, has closed a $4M seed round.

Israel-based Skyline Robotics, which specializes in facade maintenance at heights, has obtained $6.5M of seed capital.

Construction payment compliance software developer Handle has closed a $10M series A.
Home365, an innovative property management service, has announced a $26M series B.

A large series A of $50M went to robotic construction technology provider Diamond Age.

Parking technology developer Flashhas received $250M in a private equity round.

SightPlan, a maintenance and resident service software provider, is being acquired by SmartRent for$135M.

Real estate investment firm Tishman Speyer is creating its first PropTech venture capital fund and has already secured $100M for it.

 PROPTECH OF THE MONTH  

S.I. Container Builds

Can recycled shipping containers be used to create affordable guest suites, backyard offices, gym studios, pool houses and more? Definitely. Check it out!

UPDATE #03/22

March 2022

Dear PropTech Community,

I want to thank all of you who are supporting Ukraine!
We’ve seen lots of amazing real estate and PropTech initiatives to help, such as:
immo-hilft.at, wunderflats.com/page/ukraine/landlords-who-help-en and #proptechforukraine.
We are all human beings!

On a different note, I highly recommend reading How Emotionally Intelligent People Use the Rule of Rethinking to Think Like Scientists.
The rule of rethinking is based on emotional intelligence, the ability to understand and manage emotions. It’s a principle I’ve found immensely helpful, not only in my personal life dealing with two teenage boys, but also in how I act/react in my business life.
The key: One has to learn to detach oneself emotionally from one’s ideas – which is about as easy as it sounds. I recommend a two-step process:
1. Ask yourself: Why do I feel so strongly about what I believe?
2. Practice reciting a single sentence: Sometimes, I’m wrong.
So next time you’re faced with an alternative point of view (or even a bruised ego), remember the rule of rethinking: Resist the urge to dismiss that point of view, listen carefully, and think like a scientist. Because recognizing that sometimes you’re wrong helps you become right more often.

Stay safe,
your Julia 😉

A troubled past

Late last year industry giant Zillow shut down the home-flipping part of its business. Now the numbers are in. While that part accounted for $6 billion of the company’s $8.1 billion income, instead of generating a profit, it lost $880 million. More than half a billion dollars have been written down in losses on the homes the company still owned, and 2,000 employees lost their jobs.
 

A bright future

Luckily, PropTech overall is still booming. A recent article identifies five particular ways in which our industry will benefit the economy and society at large. Labor and supply shortages can be mitigated by new efficiencies, contactless technologies can help with the pandemic as well as convenience, homes can be monetized in other ways than mortgages, smaller investors can go into real estate, and technology can enable the aging population to stay in their homes longer.
 

Into the metaverse

Investment platform Republic is spinning off its metaverse real estate business as Everyrealm. Presumably the name derives from the fact that is already invested in 25 metaverses and envisions becoming a gateway to the whole ecosystem. Crucially, it also emphasizes education and communities in order to get more people into the metaverse.
 

In the metaverse

Another article about the metaverse among other things addresses an ongoing debate about how important location really is in virtual worlds. One side maintains that as in the real world, location is everything. The other side points out that features like teleportation may make location less important, or view the whole thing as basically a pyramid scheme anyway. Some note that the value may depend a lot on what owners will actually do with their virtual property.
 

 RESEARCH 
 

Climate risks and opportunities

A new McKinsey publication looks at what climate change really means for the real estate sector. The investment necessary to achieve net-zero is estimated to be $9.2 trillion annually. As an example of direct physical dangers, higher insurance premiums and refused coverage have resulted in a 61% annual increase of non-renewed insurance in areas of moderate or higher fire risk in California. The report discusses three kinds of actions that real-estate players can take: incorporating climate change risks into valuations, decarbonizing buildings and portfolios, and creating new sources of value and revenue streams. You can read the whole text here.

RECOMMENDED READING 

One new fund:
Wilshire Lane Capital Launches New Fund to Invest in the Rapidly Growing PropTech Space

Several new funds:
Temasek and BlackRock Launch Decarbonization Investment Partnership

Lots of funders:
Real Estate And Crowdfunding

Deals & Cooperations

3D scan data management startup Cintoo, based in both France and the US, has announced a €5.3M Series A co-led by AMAVI Capital and Armilar Venture Partners.

LEX, a commercial real estate securities marketplace, has closed a $15M Series A.

German ConTech Cosuno has received a Series B amounting to $30M.

Withco, which focuses on real estate ownership for small businesses, got a $32M Series B.

Clikalia, the European and Latin American iBuyer, has raised €75M.
A CA$181M series B has been announced by the Canadian construction materials purchasing platform RenoRun.

Asian home interior and renovation platform Livspace has received a$180M Series F.

Icon, the 3D printed home company, has raised $185M.

The American PropTech VC Fifth Wall expands in Europe with a separate €140M fund.

Another PropTech VC, Camber Creek, has raised $325M for its fourth fund.

 PROPTECH OF THE MONTH  

Density

Accurately tracking how people actually use given office spaces has undeniable benefits, both at the workplace level and at the portfolio level. Equally undeniable, however, are the associated data privacy challenges. So how about measuring anonymously? Enter Density.

UPDATE #02/22

February 2022

Dear PropTech Community,

I hope this message finds you well!

Uff, I must admit it – I’m pretty much addicted to my cell phone and social media, especially LinkedIn.
My average daily screen time is horrible, my lifestyle isn’t as healthy as I thought it would be.
I’ve started to assess my life – yeah, I really did a dd and the facts are miserable.
I track my daily sleeping time with my Apple watch and sports with the Runtastic Adidas app. In my calendar, I make a note when I managed to meditate. I’ve collected the data.
Well, I really intrinsically love my job, but the whole topic around work-life-balance is so tough for me to live on a daily basis.
Too many hats: Being a mom of two teenage boys, partner, sister, daughter, girlfriend, employee, boss, entrepreneur … Who am I – what do I want?
I’ve just spent 9 days at a gorgeous wellness hotel in South Tyrol with my cousin. The daily routine was yoga, Pilates, swimming, sauna, walking with step irons in the mountains, relaxing at the fireplace, and watching the sunset.
Integrating self-care is crucial to maintaining good mental and physical health!
What do you do to keep the balance?
I am a student for life. 😉

I wish you an amazing February!

Your Julia

External risks

Real estate has always had to face risks, and with trends like climate change new ones are on the horizon. On the positive side, we can see a convergence between InsurTech and PropTech. Areas of applications include making sure that all construction subcontractors have appropriate insurance and instant property insurance quotes.
 

External opportunities

The overall outlook for 2022 appears to be fairly encouraging, according to an interview with Wharton real estate and finance professor Susan M. Wachter at any rate. She expects residential real estate construction, pricing and sales to do very well, particularly for single family homes. In commercial real estate, office and retail will have to deal with challenges.
 

External opinions

Since the Metaverse is all the rage now, a lot more people are starting to look at it from a real estate investment perspective. Now the Wall Street Journal has published a video on this with examples of investors who have poured millions into virtual properties.
 

External data

While many real estate players are still busy getting to grips with their own internal data, the more advanced ones are already systematically combining it with external data like weather forecasts or social media trends. Right now, at least having a strategy in place may still count as good sign. The next area of competition, however, will likely be automatic discovery based on full integration of external data and machine learning.
 

External knowledge

Not all progress can be achieved by automatically ingesting data, however. When ConTech GBuilder considered its options for conquering the UK market, they brought valuable human expertise on board by hiring ex-Zoopla director Mark Witherspoon – who was also quick to spot a very human challenge which GBuilder can help to tackle: improving the cooperation of all building and buying stakeholders.
 

 RESEARCH 
 

The Future of PropTech VC

A new report compares venture capitalists’ investments last year with with their plans for this year. The overall number of targeted investments is increasing. For example, the percentage of investors making 11 to 15 investments per year is set to increase from 14.3% to 28.6%, while those making only 1 to 5 declines from 42.9% to 28.6%. The most overfunded area of technology seems to be CRM, whereas decarbonization solutions garner the most optimism. You can download the report here.

RECOMMENDED READING 

Real estate trends (including technology):
6 Property Management Market Trends to Look Out For in 2022

Technology trends (including PropTech):
Real estate technology trends to use in 2022

PropTech trends (including ConTech):
What’s Next For Proptech In 2022?

PropTech trends (including drones):
PropTech start-ups creating a buzz around. What will we see shortly?

Deals & Cooperations

Agave, which is working on a unified API for construction systems, has received $125K of pre-seed money.

Physical world data analytics and visualization startup Urban SDK has raised a $715K seed round.

Panelite‘s seed round amounted to $763K. It develops and supplies energy-efficient materials.

Construction management software provider Builderhead from Finland has closed a seed round of €850K.

Alquist uses 3D printing for affordable housing and has raised a $1M of seed money for this.

An even larger seed round of $2.5Mhas been announced by construction
materials marketplace SupplyHound.

Access control software provider RemoteLock has closed a $17.8Mseries B.

PlanRadar, the Austrian defect management and documentation PropTech, got a series B of €60M.

Location analytics company Placer.aihas announced a round amounting to $100M.

Building materials e-commerce platform RenoRun from Canada had a series B of $142M.

Hank, a building operations company, is being acquired by JLL for an undisclosed price.

 PROPTECH OF THE MONTH  

PhytonIQ

Agriculture currently causes 30% of climate emissions. Well-known PropTech approaches addressing this are to build with innovative materials and to save energy with smart solutions. But what about using buildings in a fundamentally different way? Welcome to the world of automated indoor farming. Have a look at PhytonIQ.

UPDATE #01/22

January 2022

Dear PropTech Community,

I wish you all a HaPpY, healthy and prosperous new year – may you find enough time in 2022 to seize the moment!

Please watch this:
Matthew McConaughey speech winning Best Actor at the 86th Oscars (2014)
Then ask yourself what your answers are
… to look up to,
… to look forward to, and
… to chase.

I look up to the beauty of nature, the amazing sky and the power of the ocean. I believe that we are all connected in this world and I am truly grateful for the opportunities life gives us!
I look forward to seeing my two teenage sons find their path, to enjoy special moments together and to continuously learn from them. They are my driver and being their mom is by far my most precious accomplishment in life.
I chase myself, I love to learn, to stretch myself and to make the world a better place.
Well, I am far from being perfect – but hey I only turned 50 years and it’s all about the path, step by step.
Surrounding myself with top-notch people is enriching.

For 2022 I will focus on being the best version of myself as a mom, including self-care, and continue to exercise and do my daily meditation rituals until that becomes a habit.
As a business leader I will improve my listening capacity, continue to promote diversity, inclusion, to coach founders and young professionals, and to highlight the importance of ESG in digital real estate!
How to become a better listener

Your smile is your logo, your personality is your business card. How you leave others feeling after having an experience with you becomes your trademark!
“Explore. Dream. Discover.” (Mark Twain)

Big virtual hug,
Your Julia 😉

 

How logistics suffers from supply chain problems

Demand for cold storage facilities is increasing – they are needed not just for groceries, but also for example for medicine. At the same time, a JLL article reports, it is getting harder to build new ones because of supply shortages of key components such as magnesium. 

 

How logistics benefits from supply chain problems

On the other hand, for products which don’t require refrigeration, unreliable supply chains cause a certain shift from just-in-time delivery to larger local inventories, which makes modern warehouses more attractive pieces of real estate. A CBRE article explains more of the background. 

 

How occupants look at technology

Do occupants even care about technology? The short answer is no, they don’t. However, they certainly do care about benefits which technology can deliver. Property week has collected more nuanced points of view from a panel of experts. 

 

How technology looks at occupants

A wide variety of technologies is being used for occupancy sensors, ranging from infrared to ultrasound and from Bluetooth to people recognition cameras. A Propmodo article provides a nice overview of 7 common kinds of such sensors.
 
 RESEARCH  

Real Estate Technology VC Report

The Center for Real Estate Technology & Innovation has released a research report summarizing the PropTech venture capital activity of 2021. Overall investment totaled $32 billion, which marks an increase of 28% over 2020 and is also slightly higher than the pre-pandemic figure of 2019. Nearly half of it (49.1%) went into residential tech companies. The construction sector received more than twice as much (18.9%) as commercial real estate did (7.6%). You can download the report.

RECOMMENDED READING 

What is the space above properties worth?
Air Rights, the Hidden Component Of Density

What were the biggest funding rounds of the year?
As housing boomed, 2021’s proptech darlings were resi solutions

What will happen to 400 million square feet of properties?
New York City Picks JLL Technologies to Lead PropTech Vetting 

Deals & Cooperations

Long-term home rental marketplaceZappyrent from Italy has successfully completed an equity crowdfunding of€900K.

Aedifion, the German startup developing tools for the cloud-based processing of operating data from building automation systems, has received a 7 figure amount in a Pre Series A round.

Occupancy counting radar technology developer Xandar Kardian has closed a $10M Series A.

California-based CREtelligent, which provides due diligence solutions, also got $10M, but as a debt financing.

Casavi, a German platform connecting residents, owners,

managers, and service providers, has announced a €20M Series B.

In China, Jitong Construction Engineering, which focuses on the maintenance and protection of underground buildings, has closed a venture round of around $54M(CN¥343M).

Properties and maintenance services management platform Lessen has received $170M in a Series B.

Vacasa, which helps to buy, manage, and sell vacation home, has raised$200M of post-IPO equity.

London-based WorkClub, which aggregates on-demand workspaces, is being acquired by Upflex. The price has not been mentioned.

 PROPTECH OF THE MONTH  

Strohboid

PropTech doesn’t always have to mean a plethora of electronic devices. It can also mean applying technology to create new kinds of building systems made of sustainable, natural and CO2-neutral materials, like the Strohboid Pavilion. Have a look! 

Here are the news from 2021