Mike Simonsen, President of Altos Research, joins Tech Nest today to discuss real estate data and some of the myths around mortgage rate lock-ins. Altos Research offers local and national real estate data to financial institutions, real estate pros, and investors. Simonsen reveals that the lock-in effect started in 2014, not 2022, due to falling mortgage rates making homeowners hesitant to sell. He highlights the importance of viewing data from various angles and explains how Altos Research tracks the active market, focusing on pricing, inventory, and trends. Altos Research just recently announced a new product feature, adding pending data to show properties under contract, giving a quick, accurate market snapshot. Mike also shares insights as to how the future of real estate data will see more sources and better analysis, though affordability issues will likely remain (sadly). Despite affordability challenges, purchasing a home is expected to get simpler as advances in tech could lead to faster underwriting and quicker closings, streamlining the home buying process.More about Mike and Altos ResearchAltos Research tracks the US real estate market in real-time. For over 15 years the company has provided national and local real estate data to financial institutions, investors, and tens of thousands of real estate professionals across the country.Altos Research was acquired by HW Media in December 2022.Mike Simonsen is the founder and president of real estate analytics firm Altos Research, which has provided national and local real estate data to financial institutions, real estate professionals, and investors across the country for more than 15 years. An expert trendspotter, Mike uses Altos data to identify market shifts months before they hit the headlines and his work has been featured in the New York Times, The Atlantic, Fortune, Bloomberg, and other publications. Connect with Mike on LinkedinFollow Mike on TwitterFollow Altos Research on TwitterCheck out Altos Research

Chet Kittleson, Co-founder and CEO of Far Homes, shares how the company is simplifying international home buying. Born from the pandemic's remote work trend, Far Homes helps people buy and sell homes abroad, starting with Mexico. They offer a thorough real estate search platform, connect buyers with local agents, and focus on high-demand markets like Cancun and the Riviera Maya. Far Homes aims to be the go-to for global cross-border purchase financing, with tools like the Financing Finder making the process easier. One thing Chet points out is that despite all the possibilities with technology, agents remain a vital part of the equation when it comes to buying real estate both abroad and domestically.More about Chet and Far HomesFar Homes is a real estate company that is making it easier to find and buy homes in international destinations in a world where more and more people can live and work anywhere. Founded by real estate industry veterans in 2022, the company is working to simplify the international home-buying and selling experience through a technology-powered marketplace. Far Homes has built a database of pre and new-construction, and existing homes for sale making it easy to find the home you want. The company has a bilingual customer service team who respond quickly, and a network of local, multi-lingual partner agents with experience helping buyers from outside the country navigate the home buying and selling process.Far Homes has raised more than $2 million from PSL Ventures, Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman, and DoorDash co-founder Evan Moore, among others.Chet is the CEO of Far Homes, a US-based real estate start-up focused on simplifying the international home-buying experience. Chet started Far Homes in 2022 when the rise of remote work gave more people than ever the opportunity to live and work anywhere in the world, dramatically increasing the need for support in finding and buying a home in another country. Prior to starting Far Homes, Chet spent 6 years at Redfin where he first led New Ventures, building off his strong background in partnerships to create millions of dollars in high-margin revenue before becoming the GM of Marketplaces. Connect with ChetFollow Far Homes on TwitterCheck out Far Homes

Stephen Capezza, President of Side, discusses Side's unique brokerage-as-a-service model in residential real estate. Topics include evolution of real estate marketing, challenges of traditional processes, enabling agents to become boutique owners, cautionary tales of client deception, future plans for Side, decline in real estate licensees, technological advancements in transactions, and SIDE's innovative approach to agent success.

In this conversation, I talk with Ned Murphy, the General Manager at Level M, about the state of the multifamily industry and the role of smart buildings. We discuss the impact of new construction on the market, the competitive dynamics and concessions in the industry, and the challenges of hardware and software integration. Ned shares more about Level M as a next-generation platform, aimed at helping existing properties adopt smart technology. One blocker to adopting smart building technology has been around measuring the ROI of both software and hardware. Ned digs into some of the misconceptions here and highlights the importance of tailoring value propositions differently, to different stakeholders, in order to achieve adoption. Smart building technology is evolving fast, and its becoming more clear the benefits extend beyond resident experience or management convenience. Listen in to hear more about the evolution of multifamily smart buildings.More about Ned and Level MLevel M is the next-generation smart apartment and property automation platform for multifamily. With revolutionary hardware and premium user experiences, Level M uniquely delivers smart access control, property automation, and building intelligence solutions that are cost-effective, dependable, and future-proof.Ned was the Co-founder of Dwelo helping guide the company for six yers before being acquired by Level Home Inc. He leads the companies multifamily business. Connect with Ned on LinkedInFollow Level M on LinkedInCheck out Level M

In this episode of Tech Nest, we have a returning guest, David Sullivan, on the show. David was previously CEO of a company called Till, which was acquired by Best Egg. David's been working to bring flexible rent solutions to the renters market, and through the acquisition by Best Egg, is now better positioned to do so. We get into the challenges of disrupting the property management industry and the complexity of embedding point solutions, such as flex rent, in multifamily. The effects of the pandemic on the rental market and the shift towards renter-centric solutions has changed some things for all parties involved, some of those changes for the better. This discussion isn't just about flex rent options, however. We get into a handful of topics such as the importance of building trust and durability in the industry as a point solution provider, the benefits of SOC 2 compliance, and some of the trends moving the proptech industry forward when we talk about property management and tenant-centric solutions. There's a little bit for everyone in this one. Listen in to what David's got to say.More about David and Best EggBest Egg Flexible Rent gives renters control of when they pay their rent by splitting rent into 2, 3, or 4 payments during the month while ensuring rent is paid in full and on time to the property. David is the Managing Director of Best Egg Flexible Rent.  Prior, David was the COO of the American Home, a rental housing REIT, and has spent time investing in Fintech startups at Route 66 Ventures. Connect with David on LinkedInFollow David on TwitterFollow Best Egg on TwitterCheck out Flexible Rent through Best Egg

Brian Boero, Co-founder of 1000WATT and a seasoned brand-builder in real estate, shares valuable insights. He emphasizes the power of storytelling in real estate marketing, urging brands to focus on benefits rather than features. The conversation covers the impact of Zillow's Zestimate on home valuation perceptions and how early-stage companies can effectively brand themselves on a budget through creativity. Additionally, they discuss the shifting landscape of real estate commissions and the innovative strategies for branding amidst these changes.

This week's interview features Vincent Hodder, Co-founder and CEO of Local Logic. Local Logic is a location intelligence platform that focuses on digitizing the built world and providing predictive analytics for addresses in the US and Canada. They have a massive data set of 100 billion unique data points, which allows them to understand and quantify cities at a hyperlocal level.You'll hear us discuss the need for data-driven insights to help consumers, agents, and investors (all in their own, unique ways) make better decisions in real estate. Local Logic provides innovative data solutions for the real estate industry, helping consumers and agents make informed decisions based on location-specific insights. Real estate is a hyper-local game. Dig in on how better access to data and enhanced tools can make a difference for consumers, agents, and investors. More about Vincent-Charles and Local LogicLocal Logic is a location intelligence platform that digitizes the built world for consumers, investors, developers, and governments – delivering unrivaled clarity and actionable insights capable of creating more sustainable, equitable cities. With more than 100 billion unique data points – the largest unique location data set in the U.S. and Canada – the platform creates a digital twin of cities, quantifying the built world and offering predictive, precise analytics to inform the present and future of over 250 million individual addresses.Vincent-Charles started his journey as a young boy, aspiring to be a real estate developer. While in school, he recognized a significant issue in the industry, particularly in urban planning. The lack of actionable data on how the built environment impacts the supply and demand of real estate led to investments being based solely on a “gut check.” Seeing the ramifications this had on community developments, he seized this opportunity and co-founded Local Logic with his fellow classmate, Gabriel Damant Sirois. Local Logic is now empowering customers to achieve their real estate goals by providing them with high-quality, unique, and actionable insights to understand how the built world impacts the risk and return of their real estate decisions of all scales and at all levels of sophistication.Follow Vincent-Charles on TwitterConnect with Vincent Charles on LinkedInFollow Local Logic on TwitterCheck out Local Logic

This week's guest is Everett Lynn, Founder and CEO of Amenify, a plug and play platform for amenity services in the multifamily space. We  discuss Amenify's recent growth trajectory (hint: they've been on fire!). Everett shares his insights on different types of fundraising and the challenges of disruption in the real estate industry—a topic that is frequently discussed, but Everett offers some unique takes for founders. You'll hear Everett emphasize the importance of finding a balance between value and efficiency in proptech solutions and the need for understanding the ecosystem in which these solutions operate. We also get into various aspects of proptech and the challenges faced by companies in the industry such as the difficulties of scaling in-person services, and the efficiencies (and difficulties) of a three-sided marketplace. We cover a lot of ground in this episode. Download and listen in!More about Everett and AmenifyAmenify powers lifestyle services for 1.3+ million homes across 500+ cities, with tracked, trained, and compliant Service Pros. Amenify drives retention and ancillary income for multifamily operators while helping the local community with trust and efficiency gains. Their integrated Service Pros include teams for cleaning, handyman, restaurant delivery, grocery delivery, and more, each with real-time support. The company has raised $20 million to date to invest in technology for the three stakeholders of their technology platform, including: Multifamily Operators, Service Providers, and Residents.Connect with Everett on LinkedInCheck out Amenify

It's my second time interviewing Joseph Woodbury, co-founder and CEO of Neighbor.com. In case you missed, Joseph previously joined Tyler Cauble and I for a live stream on Tyler's CRE YouTube channel. This time for Tech Nest, we switched up the topics.We get into how his company is disrupting the self-storage industry by leveraging the peer-to-peer model. Neighbor allows individuals and businesses to monetize unused space by renting it out for storage. They have operations in all 50 states, providing storage solutions at a micro level that traditional storage facilities cannot justify.The company has experienced challenges in acquiring residential customers but has evolved its user acquisition strategies over time. We also get into the demand and supply dynamics of the storage industry and the opportunity for property owners to achieve full property monetization through storage solutions.One topic I personally get excited to discuss that Joseph touches on is the network effects and the challenges of expanding to new markets. There’s all that and more in this one. Tune in!More about Joseph and Neighbor.comNeighbor is revolutionizing proptech by unlocking the hidden value in existing properties. Our platform empowers individuals and businesses to convert underutilized spaces like garages, parking lots, and even vacant land into lucrative storage and parking solutions.This not only increases income for property owners but also creates a more efficient and sustainable use of space in our communities. Neighbor is a prime example of how proptech is innovating the real estate landscape by optimizing existing infrastructure and resources.Joseph Woodbury is the Co-Founder and CEO of Neighbor.com. He has successfully disrupted the $500 Billion self-storage industry by raising more than $65 million from top investors like Andreessen Horowitz, Airbnb, Uber, StockX, and DoorDash. Under his leadership, Neighbor has expanded to all 50 states, providing more storage options than any other company in the industry. Joseph brings his expertise in real estate to help property owners optimize their assets.Follow Joseph on TwitterConnect with Joseph on LinkedInFollow Neighbor.com on TwitterCheck out Neighbor.com

I promise you, discussing security deposits isn't as boring as it may seem. This week, I'm joined by Conor Brennan, Co-founder of Rentable, a security deposit management platform for residential real estate. He shares about the pain points of security deposits, including the legal challenges and outdated processes. We dig into the importance of integrations and Rentable's focus on cash deposits. Conor shares how Rentable offers flexible payment options for deposits and highlights the ideal customers for their platform. You'll hear Conor explain further more about the inefficiencies of traditional security deposit processes and the time and cost savings that can be achieved through improved technology. He highlights the importance of educating property managers on these benefits and addressing pain points such as returned checks and new legislation. We also get into Rentable's go-to-market strategy of targeting the mid-market for adoption and the key value props of using Rentable. More about Conor and RentableRentable is the leading security deposit management company in America. Rentable is utilized by hundreds of property managers across the country to streamline and modernize the process of handling security deposits. In addition, Rentable provides renters with flexible payment options that allow them to spread their deposit out over time. Conor Co-founded Rentable alongside Alex Kamisher. The two worked together at Boston based fintech company, Toast. After experiencing the difficult and archaic process of paying and receiving their security deposits in their Boston apartments, the two realized that a solution was needed to address this issue. Connect with Conor on LinkedInCheck out Rentable