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When it comes to real estate tech, pinning down a singular definition is tricky—it’s a multifaceted and evolving industry with many component parts. PitchBook’s Zane Carmean, a quantitative research analyst and expert in the space, says some people think of real estate tech as any broad disruptor of the established real estate sector. And that’s a big deal. On an episod of PitchBook's In Visible Capital podcast, Carmean continued, “Real estate, in a traditional sense, is probably the one area of investment that we all touch every single day of our lives—whether it be in your home, office, retail centers or restaurants.”

In this blog post, we’re taking a closer look at real estate technology—specifically its emerging tech landscape, segments and a few of its key players.

What is real estate tech?

Real estate tech startups develop and leverage technologies that facilitate the purchase, management, maintenance and investment in both residential and commercial real estate. This industry vertical—one of dozens tracked by PitchBook—includes companies innovating in areas like property management, property listing and rentals, mortgage and lending, virtual reality modeling and much more.

Quick stats

The real estate tech emerging technology landscape

PitchBook analysts classify real estate tech startups into three broad buckets based on how one might use or interact with the space. Those three segments—commercial, residential and construction. In this section, we look at each of those, the sub-categories they’re comprised of and an example of each.

Commercial real estate tech

Companies within this segment provide services and technologies for property intentionally owned to produce income. Although it is comprised of a hefty set of sub-categories (outlined below), Carmean says asset utilization is one of the primary buckets. “Think of the WeWorks of the world, your supply chain management companies on the property management side and startups focused on helping landlords track how their properties are performing and manage tenant interactions,” he says.

Asset utilization

Companies carving out space under the asset utilization sub-category of commercial real estate tech lease physical space for various use cases, including offices, retail shops, warehouses and residential accommodations. Asset utilization covers everything from co-working to co-living spaces to home-sharing. It also includes residential rentals and rentals of event, retail and industrial spaces.

New York City-based Common is a real estate tech company operating under this asset utilization umbrella. Founded by Bradford Hargreaves in 2015 to promote community-driven housing, the startup operates a booking platform for co-living spaces. Common helps users rent out rooms in furnished and shared apartments on flexible lease terms without any broker fee, enabling students, professionals and couples get access to the fundamental amenities they need. The startup raised $27.72 million of Series D2 venture funding in February 2022 from undisclosed investors.

Property management

Property management startups operating within the commercial real estate tech segment provide software and other solutions to help landlords and property owners connect with their tenants and manage building operations. Property management includes everything from commercial and residential tenant management to building operations, analytics and automation. It also includes security deposit alternatives—an up-and-coming space that PitchBook tracks as part of its Emerging Spaces feature.

Alfred is a New York-based startup operating under this property management umbrella within a space PitchBook call's residential tenant management. Founded in 2014 by Marcela Sapone and Jessica Beck as a single-stop residential management platform and app-based personal assistant for renters, Alfred operates in 44 cities across two countries and supports more than 300,000 residents. The company closed on $125 million of later-stage VC funding in March 2022 in a deal led by Rialto Capital.

Finance and investment

Another area of note within commercial real estate tech is finance and investment. Companies operating in this space provide commercial real estate loans and financing—including debt financing—through their various platforms.

Oakland’s Roofstock is a finance and investment startup within the broader asset utilization category. Founded in 2015 by Gary Beasley, the company operates an online property investment marketplace designed to help people buy and sell tenant-occupied rental properties. Roofstock’s marketplace provides detailed home and tenant information, vetted local property management options, as well as general market insights, tools, data and analytics that can be used to evaluate listings. In March 2022, Roofstock raised $240 million of Series E venture capital funding in a deal led by SoftBank Investment Advisers.

Real estate transaction solutions

Lastly, startups that provide real estate transaction solutions are also part of the asset utilization bucket. These companies are in the business of developing software to help real estate professionals with commercial real estate transaction workflows. These software solutions can focus on data and analytics, marketing, real estate agent technology and tools and commercial real estate marketplaces.

Unlatch is a Paris-based startup that supports real estate pros through its software offerings that digitize and standardize the entire process. The company’s software solutions provide customer relationship management and digitize real estate sales. Unlatch also offers real estate sales monitoring, customer and buyer area business intelligence and more. Founded in 2018 by François Marill, Unlatch most recently raised $5.47 million in Series A venture funding in July 2020 in a deal led by AXA Venture Partners.

Residential real estate tech

Startups within this segment provide services and technologies within the home ownership ecosystem. “People might think of Zillow or Redfin,” Carmean says. “ But it also includes residential side of home improvements, renovations and then the finance-side—like mortgage tech.” PitchBook tracks mortgage tech as a standalone industry vertical, too. The space consists of more than 320 companies that have raised $862.7 million in venture capital funding since the beginning of 2022.

Finance

Along the path to homeownership, prospective buyers and investors juggle an array of considerations at every step. Financial technology and services startups within the residential sub-sector of real estate tech aim to make at least some aspects of that process easier to navigate—specifically as it relates to mortgages and home insurance.

London’s Landbay developed a peer-to-peer lending software that provides users with information on mortgages and alternative investments. Founded in 2013, the startup matches funding to a diversified portfolio to support the growth of quality private rental accommodations, thus enabling investors, institutions and local governments to invest in the UK’s private rented sector through the funding of residential buy-to-let mortgages. In March 2022, Landbay raised just over $2 million of later-stage VC funding from Dale Ventures.

Real estate transaction solutions

Companies developing software solutions that help with the homebuying and home-selling process are part of the residential real estate subsector of real estate tech. These startups dig into data and analytics, tee up marketing, provide agents with the technologies and tools they need and more.

San Francisco-based HouseCanary is the developer of a real estate analytics platform that aggregates data elements—including four decades of property data and a rapidly expanding proprietary dataset—to accurately define and forecast values and market influences. The startup aims to help individual buyers, agents, realtors and other real estate pros make sound buying and selling decisions. Founded in 2013, HouseCanary raised $65 million of Series C venture funding in February 2020 in a deal led by PSP Partners, Morpheus Ventures and Alpha Edison.

Construction real estate tech

Construction real estate tech consists of startups working in the realms of construction robots, digital twins, architecture, design and planning, project management, and 3D printing. “The big players in this space in terms of capital raised have been modular construction business,” Carmean adds. “Think of Katerra in that group.” The long and short of it is that construction real estate tech companies provide services and technologies that support the construction of physical assets for real estate developers.

Founded in 2008 Veev provides housing materials intended to reinvent the way homes are built and experienced. Based in San Mateo, CA, the startup’s materials are moisture-, termite- and fire-resistant, ensuring a lower carbon footprint vis-à-vis improved logistics, zero waste and recycling. Veev raised $400 million of Series D funding in a deal led by Bond Capital in March 2022.

More about real estate 

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Which real estate tech startup recently joined the unicorn herd?
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