Entrepreneur Helen Chen took a leap of faith when she cofounded property technology start-up Nomad Homes at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic.
Ms Chen says she was so passionate about the market opportunity that she dropped out of her MBA course at Stanford University, California, to start the company.
Her bet paid off. Started in 2020, Nomad, which caters to clients in the UAE and Europe, has attracted strong investor interest amid the boom in the real estate market.
The company offers property buyers a single point of contact for representation by pairing technology with local customer service experts who assist clients in buying homes.
It provides a customised home-buying process, from the initial search to financing to signing the final agreement and grants access to an extensive pool of off-market listings, all without additional costs.
“Having lived in the US where both sellers and buyers have separate agent representation, I have seen the benefits,” Ms Chen, 32, says.
“So, when I saw in EMEA [Europe, Middle East and Africa] agents typically only represent the seller, and the buyers are left with no support, I had to start a company to fix that problem … I believe, buyers deserve expert advocacy just like sellers do … that’s just fair,” says Ms Chen, who previously worked with the world’s largest alternative asset investment firm Blackstone.
Nomad represents itself as the sole real estate agency in Dubai dedicated exclusively to serving buyers by offering them specialised support that is separate from the seller.
“We give buyers skilled assistance just like sellers, helping them find a property and supporting [them] until the day they get the keys,” says Ms Chen.
She says her vision is to rectify the real estate industry’s discrepancies by providing buyers with a fair chance at expert representation, aligning with the principles seen in professional sports where separate coaches represent opposing teams.
She cofounded Nomad with Damien Drap, 38, and Dan Piehler, 33, who are chief operating officer and chief product officer of the company, respectively.
Prior to Nomad, Mr Drap worked as general manager with Uber Eats for the GCC, while Mr Piehler was associated with American wealth management platform Addepar.
Ms Chen says the company’s founders bonded over their common frustrations of finding a home in a new city.
“We connected through friends and friends of friends and immediately bonded over the fact that real estate has to change. It is the largest most antiquated industry in the world.
“Customers are shelling out huge chunks of money to build their real estate assets and they certainly deserve better deals and a fair representation … and we are on a mission to make things better,” Ms Chen says.
Property technology, commonly known as PropTech, is the application of technology into the real estate industry, creating an ecosystem that encompasses everything from property management and bookings to construction and analytics, all largely accessible using a mobile app.
The global PropTech market is projected to grow to $86.5 billion in 2032, from $18.2 billion in 2022, at a compound annual rate of almost 17 per cent, data from Future Market Insights showed.
In October, Nomad raised $20 million in a series A extension round that was led by California-based Acrew Capital, a multi-stage venture fund.
A mix of new and existing investors also participated in the round, including 01 Advisors – an investment fund cofounded by former Twitter executives Dick Costolo and Adam Bain – HighSage Ventures, Abstract Ventures, Partech, Precursor Ventures, Potluck Ventures, Knollwood and several undisclosed hedge funds, among others.
Operating in the UAE, France, Spain and Portugal, the company previously raised $20 million in September 2021 in its series A round. Since then, it says it has grown more than 24 times.
The start-up says the new capital will be used to fuel growth, build artificial intelligence-driven new capabilities for buyers, and launch Nomad Homes Private Client.
Nomad Homes Private Client is a service for clients purchasing a single property or a portfolio of assets over Dh10 million ($2.7 million).
It is similar to high-end private banking solutions, in which advisers provide expert guidance, develop data-led negotiation strategies and ensure privacy for buyers.
“We have raised $44 million to date. We are not raising any fresh capital right now and are focused on building new capabilities and offering more customised solutions to our clients,” Ms Chen says.
Although the company is not planning immediate expansion, it remains open to opportunities, Ms Chen says.
“We are always assessing new market opportunities. I measure every opportunity based on the potential return on investment and depending on the scale, we make investments both for short-term and long-term projects.
“We are investing heavily in the Dubai market. In addition, we are investing in our new B2B [business-to-business] product Nomad Agent, expanding our mortgage capabilities, and further buildout of our AI driven co-pilot for buyers,” Mr Chen says.
Despite launching during a pandemic, Nomad managed to navigate through initial setbacks caused by lockdown restrictions due to its tech-centric approach.
However, Ms Chen says still there is a long way to go as the region's real estate market suffers from many inefficiencies.
Despite the real estate market representing more than $20 trillion across the region, the industry is still riddled with fake and duplicate listings and no pricing data to understand the true value of a home, she adds.
“EMEA's residential real estate suffers from inefficiencies due to the absence of an MLS [multiple listings service]-like platform where agents can collaborate to sell homes.
"Despite an estimated $2 trillion transactions per year, this lack of cohesion and infrastructure hampers collaboration among agents, leaves buyers unrepresented, and increases transaction friction, limiting liquidity and market growth,” Ms Chen says.
Nomad, which is not yet profitable, says it has helped customers transact on properties worth billions of dollars, without disclosing any figures.
Ms Chen expects the company to become profitable by the second quarter of next year.
“We are here for a long innings. Our vision is to make home ownership simple and efficient because agents are empowered to collaborate with one another through our solutions. I am committed to making this vision a long-lasting reality,” Ms Chen says.
Q&A with Helen Chen, chief executive and co-founder of Nomad Homes
Who is your role model?
My parents are my ultimate role models. They arrived in the US with next to nothing and have raised a daughter to believe she can achieve anything. Isn’t that remarkable?
Are you a risk-taker or a cautious entrepreneur?
As an entrepreneur you are naturally a risk-taker … no one takes this route unless you are risk-seeking because you are disrupting the status quo.
If you could change one thing in your entrepreneurial journey, what would it be?
I am always thinking about how we can move faster. Speed is a start-up’s greatest competitive advantage, and it is something that we always want to be better at.
Are you on a hiring spree?
We are hiring for select roles, but we are not on a hiring spree. We are investing in Dubai and are doubling the sales team in the emirate over the next quarter.
What is your vision for the company?
Our vision is to make home ownership simple and efficient because we are empowering agents to collaborate freely with one another.
What successful start-ups do you wish you could have started and why?
I admire many companies that have changed the way we think about technology and start-ups, but there is no other company that I would rather start than Nomad Homes.
What new skills have you learnt in the process of launching your start-up?
Speed is a founder and chief executive’s greatest tool … it is also a start-up’s greatest competitive advantage. You learn how to make decisions and to move the company forward at a very fast pace.
What is your mantra for success?
Today is a great day. I say this every morning because I believe having a positive attitude drives positive outcomes.
