Bengaluru-based home rental startup NewstAway has raised $50 million from UC-RNT, an alternative investment fund that partners RNT Associates (Ratan Tata) and the University of California. Existing investors Tiger Global and IDG Ventures India also participated in the round.
The home rental startup is estimated to be valued at about $180-200 million in the round. This is the fourth funding from $250 million UC-RNT fund.
According to a Times of India report, the company is also talking to other investors including China’s Fosun Group for another $30 million.
NestAway turns unbranded, unfurnished houses into fully furnished and managed apartments and provide them at affordable prices to verified tenants.
With this round, NestAway had secured over $83 million in total risk capital. In April 2016, it raised $30 million (Rs 200 crore) from Tiger Global, Russian billionaire Yuri Milner-backed fund Apoletto Asia, Flipkart official Sujeet Kumar and IDG Ventures.
Prior to this, the company had secured an undisclosed round from Ratan Tata, the chairman emeritus of Tata Group in January 2016.
NestAway manages the end-to-end requirements of a rental property throughout its rental life cycle. The company charges a small percentage (10-12%) of monthly rent it generates from the house as commission.
Importantly, it doesn’t charge any brokerage or upfront fees to either the owner or the tenant. At present, NestAway operates 15,000 properties across eight cities on its platform, generating Rs 350 crore in gross rentals.
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Founded by Amarendra Sahu, Smruti Parida, Deepak Dhar, and Jitendra Jagadev NestAway had acquired residential rental management company Zenify for an undisclosed amount in May this year.
On the lines of Oyo Townhouse, NestAway recently launched One by NestAway. It offers private and shared accommodation inclusive of utility services and maintenance. NestAway competes with real estate developers as well as startups like CoHo, Homigo, and Zelo amongst others.
