A new rental website which claims to list “all available homes for young people in one place” has raised well over £3m in funding.
Hybr calls itself ”an aggregated platform for first-time renters, including students and young graduates” and boasts that it “aggregates all available homes for young people in one place, across private and institutional landlords, through a trusted platform.”
Its website takes a swipe at letting agents, claiming: “Just 3 in 10 students would recommend their lettings agents - 98% of students letting through Hybr would recommend us” although there is no source given for the figure about letting agents.
It goes on to say: “Our landlords save £1,983 on average. We never charge landlords unless they are happy with our service and we’ve found them great tenants to rent their homes. We can even advertise on Rightmove for you for free!”
A separate statement from the company says it is currently active in 10 UK cities and plans to launch in 20 “key university cities” in the coming 12 months.
Hybr says its focus is on using technology to improve relationships between landlords, agents, operators, and students and has been prompted into the sector because - it claims - 10 per cent of students drop out of higher education, largely because they can’t find a home, and because it states that 75 per cent of students never hear back after they make an enquiry online for a student property.
Hybr claims that it is rapidly becoming “the leading platform for first-time renters across the UK” with users doubling in number each quarter.
With its latest funding - of £3.24m - it has raised a total of £4.2m to date and founder and chief executive Hannah Chappatte, 26, says: “I am proud that we have secured an oversubscribed Seed Round, especially against the backdrop of this year, which has been a challenging time to raise capital. The funding marks the start of the positive impact we can have on the student rental space, and will enable us to accelerate our growth across the UK.”
New investors include start-up funders such as Blackwood Ventures and Adjuvo, plus at least two former major company chief executives.
Chappatte continues: “£3.24m is more than double our original target, which shows how ready the UK is for a solution like Hybr. This raise will allow us to expand our impact in a shorter time frame supporting millions of students across the UK to find the right housing, and support. This raise marks the beginning of our journey to improve the way young people rent.”
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Looks like it is almost entirely PBSA units on Hybr.
This year seems to be strange for student lets.
Headlines yesterday about students camping outside letting agents in Oxford but over 600 properties that would accept students are listed on Rightmove.
One of my student houses is in the process of being reserved for September 2024 by an existing tenant and his friends but another one has been listed on Rightmove for nearly a month with only one enquiry so far. I don't even know if my other student house will be available or if the current tenants are hoping to stay for another year. Realistically it's too early and things worked far better when everyone waited until the end of January.
As long as it mucks up traditional landlords Government will be happy.
What used to be Hanger Lane, Gyratory System (round about) which joins A40, North Circular Road, Ealing Rd Wembley, Park Royal slip, and in-circling Hanger La Central line Tube Stn. Site was sold at Auction for a pittance now Construction Work well on the way, multi story Porto style units something like 600 flats, probably it was supposed to be 13 stories initially for Planning purposes but kept getting amendments to add on several more story’s for Students accommodation. It also has a Basement took them a year to come out of the ground that’s an indicating of how massive it is. It over shadows 3 of my house one is Actually called Gyratory House for over 30 years but I don’t have a say in how it affects me. So they have this planked in this prime location for Students if they fall out of bed they’ll be on the Tube train and won’t be worrying of being stuck with sitting Tenants either, Ben will have an exemption for them and himself stuff the rest of us.
The new boys are making a killing at our expense and not housing Families or Benefit Families either they know the market to avoid.
Incidentally its not called the Gyratory anymore it has a new name and signs now called ‘The Square’.
This is clearly a marketing ploy by Hybr. You cannot beat known and tested local letting agents who give you good service. Hybr are new and see how they operate in all the university towns, bearing in mind it is not difficult to find student tenants for properties. They will come, where properties are available not to specific portal only. Portals have to get the landlords properties to market them for students in the first place. Institutions have their own portals.
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