We interviewed Justin Fichelson from Avenue 8 in the second real estate tech entrepreneur interview of 2021.
Let’s get to it!
Who are you and what do you do?
I’m the CEO and co-founder of Avenue 8, the only mobile-first real estate brokerage built expressly for modern agents. Our platform gives agents all the tools and support they need to be successful and entrepreneurial, to close from anywhere, and to keep substantially more of their income.
Just like how you would order dinner from Postmates or a car from Uber – we’re making real estate transactions for agents as simple as buying something online. Entrepreneurial agents can run their entire business from Avenue 8’s digital platform, from listing on multiple MLS data feeds, to generating real-time market insights, automating omni-channel marketing tasks, to digital stagings and closings.
What problem does your product/service solve?
Avenue 8’s been thoughtfully designed from the ground up to be the most efficient and user-friendly digital real estate platform for agents. Agents are a critically important part of the home buying/selling process, yet they are radically underserved – many are beholden to an age-old brokerage model that elevates infrastructure over individuals.
If you look at the industry, there are some 90K brokerages that exist today essentially as an office for agents to print materials. On the VC side, there’s been a ton of interest in companies trying to be solutions for buyers and sellers – even attempting to cut out the go-between of the agent.
Today, our world is very different- agents don’t need an office, they are doing everything at home or on the go and they are critical to the real estate process. We believe there’s a gap in innovation in terms of how they function and become more successful. Because when agents do their job better – everyone wins.
What are you most excited about right now?
Right now I’m most excited about Avenue 8 having a significant impact on reshaping the real estate industry from the brokerage level up. We just closed our seed round and the next steps are to expand the team, further develop the product, and launch in new markets. We’re setting out to make it easier for agents to provide the best service to their customers by providing an easy-to-use and thoughtfully-designed platform that also saves them time and money.
What’s next for you?
We’re really looking forward to expanding our footprint over the next 6 months! Right now Avenue 8 is live in the Bay Area and Southern California and we’ve already started thinking about our next launch locations for this coming year. Beyond that, we’re looking to expand agents, our team, and product offerings.
What’s a cause you’re passionate about and why?
I’ve always loved art and design, and in many ways, real estate is a form of art. Real estate as a medium works directly with the visual form, it’s art, design and architecture all in one. I’m personally involved with several arts organizations within music education and architectural preservation. These include the Board of Trustees of Orchestra Europa and past involvement with the Fine Arts Museums of SF.
Thanks to Justin for sharing his story. If you’d like to connect, find him on LinkedIn here.
We’re constantly looking for great real estate tech entrepreneurs to feature. If that’s you, please read this post — then drop us a line (Community @ geekestatelabs dot com).
Source: geekestateblog.com