In our latest real estate tech entrepreneur interview, we’re speaking with Raj Dosanjh from Rent Round.
Who are you and what do you do?
I’m Raj Dosanjh, founder of property manager comparison site Rent Round that saves landlords & property owners money. I began the business in 2019 and growth has been amazing since (at times hard to keep up with!)
I also run a regulatory consultancy that works with banks such as Bank of New York & Deutsche Bank. Somehow, I find time to also manage my own Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu martial arts club as well.
What problem does your product/service solve?
Finding a property manager is often difficult for property owners & landlords. There’s a lot of ambiguity on costs, services and regulations the property managers adhere to. It’s sad to say there’s also a lot of jargon used that can be extremely confusing for those not experts in the rental market.
This is the actual reason I started the business. I was looking for property managers for my own properties in the U.K. I was perplexed at how hard it was to find a well-rated property manager and a reasonable price.
Landlords use our platform to scan property manager fees and ratings in their local area. This enables them to pick the property manager that’s right for them and at a fair price.
On the flip side, Rent round helps property managers get leads, i.e. people who need their services. The property manager market is highly saturated so, for the best property managers, we increase their income substantially.
What are you most excited about right now?
I’m excited about the current levels of growth, even during the current covid-19 pandemic.
It’s difficult in the current environment for property managers to take on new business. People aren’t buying property and tenants aren’t moving. This gives them a lot of time to look into how to grow the business and get ready for the post-pandemic future.
We’ve seen a large uptick in property managers joining our platform which is amazing to see.
We’ve got a host of new functionality just released that makes it easier for landlords to find their property manager. For example, we’ve reduced the time it takes to run a comparison and contact a property manager to 30 seconds. Aside from the benefits this brings to the business, I get excited about creating ‘nice’ things. RentRound’s polished and seamless platform is for sure one of those.
What’s next for you?
When I started the business, I set myself two growth areas for when the current model sees success. Now we have over 300 property managers listed in the UK, the ball is now rolling for the expansion of Rent Round.
First, we are expanding our service into the U.S. It’s obviously a larger market than the U.K and will have a different set of challenges, but I’m confident it will be successful.
The second area the business will grow into is the real estate selling market. The problems that resulted in me starting Rent Round are also apparent when people are looking to sell their property.
Separately, I’m also excited to be onboarding a new director into the businesses. My time is spread across many ventures so the extra support will no doubt provide more focus on the areas we need to grow into.
What’s a cause you’re passionate about and why?
As mentioned previously, I run my own Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu club. This martial art has been a great passion of mine for over 8 years and I’ve competed many times. I’m ecstatic that my passion has become a business.
My daughter is now 4 years old and as that’s the earliest stage to start, she cooercing me to start kids classes. We’re going to be doing them differently and not part of income generating businesses. Classes will be offered to underprivileged children for free.
Martial arts develops great focus & discipline. I hope that with the mindset children get from my classes, they’re able to implement that in the studies & future career.
I’m also passionate about animal rights (yes, I’m an annoying vegan). I’m proud of my contributions to animal welfare societies and attendance at various organised protests. With the covid-19 pandemic linked to animal farming, it’s a crucial time for the world to look at sustainability and our future as a species.
Thanks to Raj 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 me a line (drew @ geekestatelabs dot com).
Source: geekestateblog.com