About Spotahome
This digital platform is a solution specially designed for professionals in the real estate sector and homeowners who come to residential rental (medium and long term) a solution to monetize their real estate assets. The startup is changing the rental market thanks to a differentiated business model that eliminates visits to the property in person , which saves time and money. The company checks the houses one by one and is in charge of creating explanatory videos, 360º photographs, plans and information about the neighborhood where the property is located, all completely free of charge for the owner. In addition, it offers additional guarantees to cover contract cancellations, possible house failures and protection against non-payment.
Since its inception in 2014, Spotahome has accumulated $ 75 million in investment and has generated over $ 120 million for landlords who rent their properties through its platform . In a short time, Spotahome positioned itself as one of the preferred companies in Silicon Valley, thanks to the recent investment of the venture capital fund Kleiner Perkins and the solidity of its results: in 4 years, the company was able to extend its operations 17 countries in the European Union and the Middle East and through it you can rent an apartment in 33 cities around the world.
The Spotahome Group , a PropTech holding company formed by the merger of Erasmusu and Spotahome, is currently the European leader in online residential rentals, with more than 130,000 properties in 450 cities in 65 countries .
Created in 2014, Spotahome is a Spanish startup that prides itself on having an absolutely radical model that seeks to revolutionize the real estate sector worldwide. Its platform has the most comprehensive list of apartments, rooms, studios and student residences, intended for non-tourist leases of more than 30 days, which can be booked through a 100% online process, without the need for personal visits to properties . This saves time and money for both tenants and landlords. Spotahome Homecheckers (inspectors) personally visit the properties to verify the information that is published on the website and in the application. They take professional photographs, prepare house plans, record HD videos of properties and the neighborhood,
Currently, the Spotahome Group is the European leader in PropTech in the student rental segment and is comprised of Spanish startups Spotahome and Erasmusu. The holding company employs 270 people from 30 nationalities and has a global offering of more than 130,000 properties in more than 450 cities in 65 countries, which can be rented through both platforms.
Inspired by their own experience living abroad, Alejandro Artacho, Bruno Bianchi, Bryan McEire and Hugo Monteiro came together to create Spotahome with the objective of overcoming the hurdles and pitfalls of trying to find a suitable rental wherever you are.
The Spotahome removes the need for in-person viewings, saving both tenants and landlords the time and expense. It creates a listing at no cost to the landlord, sends a professional photographer ('Homechecker') to visit the property and creates the audio-visual materials including high quality photos, HD video tours, detailed floor plans and honest property and neighborhood descriptions. It also offers guarantees against default payments and damages.
The company plays a pivotal role in eliminating communication and language barriers between local landlords and foreign tenants, offering excellent customer support in several languages on both ends of the negotiation.
This year, the company introduced the concept of 'Instant Booking', which allows a booking request to be automatically accepted, if the tenant's profile matches the requirements set by the landlord.
Spotahome also puts several guarantees in place to ensure the platform is scam free for all users, including transferring funds to landlords after 48 hours of a tenant has moved in, to make sure tenants find no issues with the property while simultaneously safeguarding landlords against defaulted payments or property damage. Spotahome charges a percentage of the total contract value for the rental.
Spotahome is one of several property websites that allow you to find monthly rentals in Lisbon as well as in other cities around the world like Barcelona, Berlin, Dublin, and Rome. Think of it as an Airbnb for monthly rentals (30 days or more). Like Airbnb, you can scroll through thousands of properties, but with Spotahome the prices and setup are more geared towards medium and long-term rentals rather than short-term rentals. Spotahome are aiming to make the whole process of moving to another city easier (and it's definitely a part of life that needs a startup to revamp things). Properties have video tours, floor plans so you can get a feel for the layout, and 360° photo tours of the rooms. Previous guests can leave reviews, and Spotahome's team visit many of the properties to verify them. You can also really filter down your results to find what you're looking for e.g. somewhere with a double bed or a private bathroom, or properties that allow students, pets, or that are only for women. One other useful feature is that you can see how many rooms each property has. In Lisbon, it's not unusual for a houseshare to have five or more bedrooms. Sometimes you even see properties with as many as fifteen or sixteen bedrooms. If you're looking for something smaller, knowing how many rooms the property has is a great little feature.
Spotahome charge a one-off booking fee (called a Spotahome fee), which covers all those nifty features, and this will be the main difference between renting a room or apartment through Spotahome rather than directly with the landlord. This booking fee is a percentage of the total monthly rent and costs between €100 and €300 on average. Unlike other platforms like Airbnb and NomadX which charge a monthly fee, this is a one-off booking fee. Obviously, you have to pay rent and a deposit as well. Landlords can decide whether to include bills or not, so be sure to check the 'Pricing & Availabilities' tab to see what's included.