Weekly Radar #318: Another Discount Pitch, Climate Risk Class In Session
In this Weekly Radar, we cover:
- Brookings Institution report highlights the financial burden of climate resilience improvements for homeowners and renters, with affordable housing nonprofit Enterprise Community Partners launching Resilience Academies to help low-income housing professionals address climate risks.
- Discount brokerage Falaya offers a low-fee service for sellers, but skepticism remains around its ability to overcome customer acquisition costs and whether tech-focused teams without real estate agents can earn sellers' trust.
- The GEM Proptech Index had a combined market cap of $241.46B, a 3.38% increase from the previous week.
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Geek Estate Blog Recap:
Geek Estate Team
Geek Estate Team
Jonathan Klein
Geek Estate Team
Geek Estate Team
Transmission Recap:
Last week, Drew Meyers discussed how founders must be ready to answer key investor questions on distribution, unit economics, and leadership to secure funding. Most recently, Drew Meyers pondered the future of AI home search.
CLIMATE
CLIMATE RISK CLASS IN SESSION
By: Logan Nagel
According to a Brookings Institution report, homeowners and landlords alike will be burdened by the costs of energy efficiency improvements as well as flood, wildfire, and related resilience upgrades—costs that will be much harder to bear for low-income households without savings or other equity to deploy. Additionally, lower-income households, which are disproportionately composed of renters, will face pressure from rent hikes as property owners make the necessary improvements themselves.
One response the report suggests is the development of Resilience Academies like those launched by nonprofit affordable housing company Enterprise Community Partners. These academies provide affordable housing professionals a curriculum focused on boosting climate resilience at low-income housing properties, such as how to assess risk, retrofit buildings, and find funding. Although evaluation of the program is ongoing, bringing together subject matter experts and property users in high-climate risk areas is an excellent strategy more climate proptech firms should explore. Perhaps a Climate Proptech Academy could offer property owners, particularly mom-and-pop owners and lower-income households, with the required information to better deploy—and afford—climate technologies that move the needle.
REAL ESTATE
ANOTHER DISCOUNT PITCH
By: Drew Meyers
Though the company is not technically new, Falaya is the latest discount brokerage to hit my radar seeking investment. The value proposition for sellers revolves around keeping track of tasks, executing documents, transaction management, and a mobile app. Their professional plan (aka "Best Value") is $500 flat fee, plus 0.5% at closing.