SoRealProp seeking up to S$5m to fund growth

Singapore

DIGITAL platform SoRealProp - which is backed by top real estate brokers ERA, Huttons and PropNex - is looking to raise up to S$5 million for its next stage of growth to expand to the consumer market and partner with more banks and agencies.

Started in 2018, SoRealProp allows agents using the portal to generate for their clients reports on market and price trends to compare individual houses as well as projects.

It now seeks to raise capital from strategic investors, said SoRealProp acting CEO Leong Si Ngah on Friday. Capital raised will be used for research and development of products to broaden its market reach within Singapore and Southeast Asia, said Ms Leong.

"This investment round will enable SoRealProp to further capitalise on its emerging position in the proptech scene, where the power of big data is increasingly transforming this brick-and-mortar industry," she said. "New product innovation is a key area of focus for the company, which will enable its penetration into new market segments and unlock value to benefit its ecosystem of subscribers and partners - developers, banks, search engines and government alike."

The portal will also be cheaper for agents to use. One report last year said other portals charge from S$599 to S$4,000 for reports. The usual price of the products cost S$500, said Ms Leong. "As we build up scale and develop the platform, there will be new offerings we will launch in the market to help and better partner with players across the industry."

Founded by ERA, Huttons and PropNex, SoRealProp has also found another partner in Savills, a global real estate services provider listed on the London Stock Exchange. It recently took on an equity role in the firm and and will assume a strategic advisory position.

Chris Marriott, Savills CEO for Southeast Asia and strategic adviser to SoRealProp, said "real estate technology is a growth sector and live time data is the oil that powers the industry".

The partners in SoRealProp also include the Singapore Estate Agencies Associate (SEAA) as a minority shareholder. ERA Realty Network, H Investments, PropNex Realty own more than 90 per cent of the firm. The three founders, which have a network of 18,236 agents, provided seed funding of about S$2 million.

Ms Leong said the next step is to go beyond the agent market to consumers, banking partners and other advisory firms.

The digital platform has since partnered with DBS and OCBC to support agents and property buyers on valuation and mortgage services, she said. Last year, SoReal tied up with UOB to allow small and medium-sized enterprises to get commercial loans quickly.

Ismail Gafoor, PropNex CEO, said raising capital would help the platform deepen its partnership with strategic industry players.

Jack Chua, ERA CEO, said: "Digitalisation has a huge role to play in how the industry and its partners deliver services more efficiently in an integrated manner so customers get to benefit from it."

Added Goh Kee Nguan, Huttons CEO: "Now it is the time to continue strengthening our real estate ecosystem and step up new innovation while we explore business opportunities in new market segments and the region."