Proptech platform Homebase bags additional $30 million

Phillip An and JunYuan Tan, co-founders of Homebase

Leading global investors participating in the round include Y Combinator, Partech Partners, Goodwater Capital, Ace and Company, Emles Advisors and Foundamental, alongside Michael Seibel, CEO of Y Combinator, and operators and executives from SoFi, Opendoor, Republic, Microsoft, Instacart, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Binance, and more.

The new investors join previous strategic investors including VinaCapital Ventures (the venture capital arm of Vietnam’s largest fund management company), Brian Ma (co-founder and ex-CEO of Divvy Homes); Troy Steckenrider III (ex-COO of Zerodown); and Darius Cheung (founder and CEO of 99.co, the largest property portal in Singapore and Indonesia).

Southeast Asia is the world’s fastest-growing real estate market, yet becoming one of the least affordable – it takes longer than two decades for the average millennial to save up for their first home in Vietnam. Even during COVID-19 lockdowns in the third quarter of 2021, average landed property prices grew between three per cent to 17 per cent on-year, according to global real estate consultancy CBRE.

The COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated the need for more innovative, empathetic pathways to homeownership, as traditional bank mortgage options now requiring LTVs up to 50 per cent with 13 per cent yearly interest rates coupled with growing property prices have increasingly placed homeownership out of reach for anyone other than high-net-worth individuals with stable incomes.

Homebase makes homeownership accessible to underserved market segments who may be turned away by strict traditional mortgage underwriting criteria by buying the home upfront for clients so they can move in today. Clients deposit each month towards their home savings, and have the option to fully buy out the home anytime, or walk away.

“Rising prices, and strict mortgage criteria make buying a home extremely difficult in Southeast Asia – Homebase is creating a new financial path and for the first time, giving underserved consumers a new way to own a home. We've seen many innovative proptech companies at Y Combinator from around the world, and Homebase is among those leading towards a significantly better and more customer-centric solution than current options, and radically transforms accessibility for aspiring homeowners,” comments Michael Siebel, CEO of Y Combinator and Homebase investor.

In the coming months, Homebase is set to further develop its proprietary technology, launch additional partnerships with real estate developers and agents, and increase its talent base. With the recent funding, Homebase expands its market leadership in Southeast Asia’s proptech industry and comes one step closer in its mission of empowering homeownership for 100,000 families across Southeast Asia, including Vietnam.