Hostel and apartment rental listing startup Zocalo raises fresh capital

Brokerage free hostel and apartment rental listing platform Zocalo has secured fresh funding of Rs 1.4 Cr from Xander Group--a global real estate & investment firm.

Zocalo (a Mexican term for a public square or plaza) currently covers over 100 areas in Delhi-NCR. The Android app-based platform has seen over 1,500 downloads, however, the figure seems to old.

Founded by Uday Lakkar, an IIM-Ahmedabad alumnus, and a former McKinsey executive, Zocalo is a broker-free platform that offers listings of paying guest, hostel, shared and rental apartment accommodation.

Zocalo has tie-ups with movers and packers to assist customers who are moving houses. Besides listing, the startup also facilitates services such as preparation of rent agreements online. It sources the property details, including the photographs, by visiting the property as well as crowd-sourcing it from tenants and land owners.

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Earlier, in August 2015, it had raised an undisclosed amount from a clutch of investors in an angel round of funding, which includes Rajesh Shawney, founder of GSF Accelerator; Sachin Bhatia, co-founder of MakeMyTrip; Mahesh Parasuraman, former managing director, and other investors.

Three months after raising the angel round, Zocalo launched CoHoStayz--a tech platform that offers managed apartments and villas in the Delhi NCR region for long stays. Since then, the startup was looking to raise Series A round but it had failed to raise capital despite early backing from prominent angel investors.

Founded by Siddharth Yog in August 2005, Xander is one of the largest institutional owners of real estate in India excluding road and highway assets. The firm has invested close to Rs 13000 Cr in the real estate sector.

The development was reported by Paper.vc.