Young professionals in some of the nation’s most expensive real estate markets have a new option when looking for a place to live.
Bungalow, a real estate startup, recently launched to bring a new renting option to some of nation’s largest cities. The company pairs “early career professionals who need a home in booming cities” with homeowners who own the “existing, outdated housing supply” to solve a problem for both.
Think of the company as a cross between the new trend of co-living with a short-term rental platform like Airbnb, because instead of co-living in an apartment building, Bungalow renters co-live in a house. And instead of only staying for just a few days, Bungalow renters stay for an average of 12 months.
The company takes older homes and “repurposes and redecorates” them, modernizing the homes for what today’s renters want. Then, the company vets and matches renters together to serve as housemates in the fully rented-out house.
And now, the company is officially launching nationwide with $64 million in backing.
The company recently raised $14 million in its Series A funding round, with participation from Khosla Ventures, Atomic VC, Cherubic Ventures, Founders Fund, and Wing Ventures.
Additionally, the company also secured a $50 million senior secured warehouse credit facility with help from Finitive, a financial technology platform providing institutional investors with direct access to alternative lending investments.
“Finitive’s unique financing solution enables Bungalow to leverage our assets to quickly scale without equity dilution. We received multiple term sheets in a short period of time, giving us choices in selecting the best partner for our business,” said Andrew Collins, co-founder and CEO of Bungalow.
And now, the company is planning on expansion.
This how the company describes what makes its business model different:
Bungalow finds gorgeous homes in prime urban locations, all while creating tight-knit communities of roommates. Our homes are not only in top-tier neighborhoods, but are also equipped with lightning-fast Wifi and beautifully furnished dining and living rooms. Forget living with strangers — our residents and applicants have a chance to get to know each other through house “meet and greets” before taking the plunge and becoming roommates. We also organize awesome events at highly-rated attractions so that our tenants have an open gate to experiencing the city they’ve moved to.
The company soft-launched in New York City, the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, and Seattle, and recently expanded into Portland, Washington, D.C., and San Diego.
“The future is looking bright for easing the stress that comes with moving to a new city. Our recent round of funding builds upon a fast-paced year, where Bungalow has expanded into 7 markets across the U.S.,” the company said in a blog post announcing its launch. “While we are incredibly excited to officially launch, for us, the best part about announcing plans for financial growth is knowing that there are that many more opportunities to make finding ‘home’ attainable.”
