Zapkey, a real estate technology (PropTech) firm, focuses on data standardization and property management in the Indian real estate market, with a primary focus on the resale market. The company's unique home sale guarantee commits to selling a property within 90 days, emphasizing the importance of improving the property's desirability through cleaning and painting. Zapkey uses a capital-efficient approach to attract sellers and improve the supply of properties available. Its ultimate goal is to become a full-stack marketplace that covers resale, rental, and primary properties while prioritizing verified ownership, good condition, and affordability. The company also aims to introduce a verified supply of properties that will act as a Multiple Listing Service, which offers better supply than what is currently available on other portals due to exclusivity and verification.
1) In this section, Sandeep Reddy, founder of Zapkey, talks about how their focus on commercial real estate data began with collecting only office-related data. They found that there was no place to find all available office buildings, unlike the residential sector which had a lot of activity. However, as they dug deeper, they found that property registration data was public and realized the potential for standardization and property management in the commercial real estate industry. Reddy also draws a comparison to how the used car market was once transformed by online marketplaces like OLX and how Zapkey aims to do the same for the commercial real estate industry.
2) In this section, the founder of Zapkey shares his entrepreneurial journey, starting with his real estate work during the financial crisis of 2009. He discusses his experience with group buying, which led to the founding of his first company, Grofer, and how it eventually transitioned to the property management industry under the name PlopStack. He reflects on the challenges of the early stages of the real estate industry in India and the difficulties in getting builders to pay brokerages easily but believes that with the consolidation of top-tier builders, the primary business of selling builder properties is much better now. When asked if group buying would work in today's more organized market, he believes it could be a successful idea.
3) In this section, the co-founder of Zapkey discusses the origins of the (PropTech) firm. The founders identified a gap in the market for data intelligence on commercial properties, which was being overshadowed by the attention given to residential properties. They commenced collecting data on office buildings and then stumbled upon the fact that property registration data is public, which led to the creation of Zapkey. The co-founder highlights the need for more awareness among consumers in the public record of registered properties, which the company utilizes to provide standardization and property management services.
4) In this section, the speaker talks about the journey of Propstack, a real estate data and analytics company in India that began by focusing only on office buildings and built a good subscription business with lenders, private equity, and developers paying them annually. Later on, they progressed into residential registration data tracking, which required a lot of tech capabilities to build to solve the problem at scale. They eventually put this data out in an experiment, which gained a lot of consumer value and love. The speaker also mentions Open Door, a trend that started in the USA around 2017 or 2016 and changed the landscape of the entire real estate sector. He emphasizes that data is at the core of Open Door, just as it is at the core of Propstack's offerings.
5) Data standardization in the Indian real estate market. They note how resale is almost as big as primary sales but is largely overlooked by companies focusing on selling developer inventory. Zapkey has focused on resale and offers a unique home sale guarantee, committing to sell the property within 90 days. They emphasize the importance of improving the desirability of the property through basic cleaning and painting. The speakers also highlight the capital-efficient approach Zapkey has taken to attract sellers and improve the supply of properties available.
6) In this section, the speaker explains how their company has learned through their ground experiences that the economics of guaranteeing the sale of property make it difficult to arrive at a fair price for the seller. Stamp duties and registration costs in India can range from 6 to 10 percent depending on the state, which would require businesses to factor in the cost, leading to discounting. of sellers in India are not desperate, so discounting the price would still lead to an expectation mismatch. Instead, the company is building a marketplace where fair prices will enable more properties to sell, and in turn, allow more sellers to upgrade to a new house.
7) In this section, Sandeep from Zapkey discusses the concept of time value of money in relation to the real estate market in India. He explains that the lack of understanding of this concept has led to many sellers staying in the market for longer than necessary, leading to dropouts. Sandeep emphasizes the need for fair pricing and not discounting to establish oneself as the first port of call for customers. The interviewer asks about Zapkey’s place in the ecosystem, to which Sandeep shares his vision of creating a platform that integrates with other ecosystems while providing a unique value proposition.
8) In this section, the speaker discusses the need for a marketplace in the real estate industry, citing examples from other industries such as Cars24. He emphasizes that buyer expectations have shifted from wanting a large number of listings to wanting a trustworthy platform with an end-to-end service. Currently, most real estate marketplaces still rely on listings, which may not meet the buyer's expectations. The real estate sector needs to transforma marketplace, which offers end-to-end services, similar to how other industries have moved from listings to a marketplace.
9) In this section, the speaker discusses the challenges in the real estate sector and how they are taking baby steps towards solving them through data standardization and property management. They believe that the ultimate goal is to have a marketplace that covers resale, rental, and primary properties. They focus on solving the resale market first, which they see as a big white space with a lot of opportunities. They believe that focusing on resale is an excellent way to build credibility since things going wrong are far less common. They have a playbook to manage the entire resale process end-to-end, which has helped them attract buyers. They prioritize good quality supply, which is the right price, in good condition, with verified ownership.
10) In this section, the speaker explains the concept of MLS (Multiple Listing Service) and how it is not something that has been established in India due to the lack of exclusivity on properties in the market. However, Zapkey aims to introduce a verified supply of properties as part of the MLS in India, showing only those properties that are onboarded and have a seller behind them. This will be a subsequent phase but will offer better supply than what is currently available on other portals because of exclusivity and verification. Currently, the focus is on only the onboarded properties that have the best quality supply to attract buyers. The speaker also discusses how the buyers are conflicted in deciding between primary and resale properties, and Zapkey aims to address this by making secondary supply stand out better.
11) In this section, the speakers discuss the challenges that arise when purchasing a resale property and how Zapkey aims to solve these issues through data standardization and property management. These challenges include not knowing the history of the house, uncertainty over the right price, unverified ownership and unknown property conditions. Zapkey's focus on data-driven micro markets and quality apartments with a high volume of resale transactions enables them to provide financial benefits to buyers who opt for resale properties. The majority of their buyers and sellers come through brokers, and Zapkey aims to add an extra layer of trust and experience to the transaction process.
12) In this section, the speaker explains how their company works with sellers and their broker partners to provide exclusive rights to properties for three months. This gives their broker partners and the company themselves a share of the revenue, while also providing a professional service to the seller without making any false promises about price. They believe that exclusivity can provide certainty to brokers who work hard but have no guarantee of income since they are not certain of the output. Furthermore, the speaker highlights how their company redefines the real estate industry by creating a more efficient process for brokers to show properties to buyers using tokenization and key boxes. This allows their properties to become the first option for brokers to show to buyers, making the process hassle-free.
Zapkey is a real estate platform that aims to disrupt the industry through standardized data delivery and property management. The platform mainly focuses on Thane and has over 7,000 sellers, 500 onboarded properties, and sold 350 properties in the last 12 months. It has received support from investors such as Dua's Luas, DLA family office, and Bloom's founder fund. Zapkey's future plans include becoming a consumer brand in resale and integrating fintech to make buying homes easier. The platform offers pre-approval for properties, making the loan process faster and easier for buyers. Teams for seller transactions, home loan valuations and pricing, property inspections, and buyer visits ensure a top-notch customer experience. The speaker expresses gratitude towards the interviewer for providing a platform for entrepreneurs and encourages engagement with Zapkey.
13) In this section of the transcript, the speaker discusses Zapkey's success in delivering a good experience for both buyers and sellers through brokers by structurally delivering good service. The platform focuses on Thane and has over 7,000 sellers, 500 onboarded properties, and sold 350 properties in the last 12 months. Although small, the speaker believes that the platform's growth will increase through word of mouth and the understanding of the value it brings by making it standardized. When it comes to funding, Zapkey has been fortunate enough to have investors such as Dua's Luas, a sector-oriented fund, and support from the DLA family office and Bloom's founder fund.
14) In this section, the founder of Zapkey discusses the opportunity for disruption in the real estate industry. While there have been a few breakouts in the sector, it has yet to see large-scale disruption, presenting a significant opportunity. The founder also acknowledges the struggle of fundraising, advising that entrepreneurs should focus on finding the one investor they need rather than counting how many they pitch to. As for Zapkey's future plans, the focus is on becoming a consumer brand in resale, with aspirations to be the go-to choice for homebuyers. The company is also considering fintech integration in resale to make buying homes easier, with a focus on the documentation process and delivering a top-notch customer experience.
15) In this section of the video, the speaker discusses the challenges of the post-closing process in real estate transactions, which can take up to 45 days and involves the lender checking the legitimacy of the property and its pricing. They explain that lenders cannot do this for resale properties as it is difficult to aggregate the information, so it is easier for them to wait for the buyer to identify a property and then do the process. The speaker introduces Zapkey's solution of doing a pre-approval of these properties through an API so that buyers can get a home loan faster, making Zapkey a full-stack marketplace. The ultimate goal is to provide a full end-to-end service, starting with resale and moving towards primary in the future. The speaker also answers the signature question of recommending two startups in the property space of India.
16) In this section, the speaker answers a question about what a day in the life of Zapkey would look like if it were an individual. The speaker explains that Zapkey is a full-stack operations company focused on real estate resale, with teams for seller transactions, home loan valuations and pricing, property inspections, and buyer visits. There are also broker interactions to market the properties, a post-closing documentation process, and a standardization process that captures the delight of buyers when they receive their properties. The company celebrates every successful delivery. Overall, the discussion provides insights for property enthusiasts and entrepreneurs trying to solve problems in real estate.
17) In this section, the speaker expresses gratitude towards the interviewer for providing a platform to discuss the work being done by entrepreneurs. The speaker believes that it is important for more people to understand the initiatives being taken in the industry. They express happiness and pride in the success of entrepreneurs who have benefited from the platform. The audience is encouraged to ask questions and engage with the speaker's work. Lastly, the speaker thanks the viewers and signs off, looking forward to the next entrepreneur's journey.
