Investing in real estate is a dream for many, but limited resources and the fear of another real estate bubble keep many from following through on that dream. Cedar Rapids-based startup AssetRover is hoping to simplify the process for on-the-fence investors with its Rental Property Analyzer.
The idea for AssetRover came from co-founders Jeri Frank and Uriel Barillas. The couple had recently gotten married and both already owned their own condo. Neither wanted to sell, and Barillas had been doing research into property investments. They started investing into more properties, but found estimating ROI on properties to be a time consuming activity.
“We felt there was a better, simpler way to do it, and that’s when we had our ‘Eureka!’ moment,” said Frank, CEO of AssetRover. “It takes a lot of time to find a property and evaluate it to make sure it’s a wise, profitable investment. As a result of our struggles, we felt something like AssetRover needed to be created.”
How AssetRover works
Frank and Barillas teamed up with CFO Bill Kearney to created the Rental Property Analyzer. Potential investors enter the expenses and desired cashflow for a property and the RPA calculates what the offer price should be on a desired property.
Thanks to our sponsor
“We provide a figure you can provide to the seller of what the property’s value is,” Kearney said. “You can also use it when talking to your bank to show you have an understanding of the financials, expenses and ROI of a property.”
For now, Frank, Barillas and Kearney are entering a lot of data about properties manually, but they’re working toward automating the process so they can provide more data in a quicker and simpler way for users.
AssetRover also hosts blogs, articles and videos on real estate investing, with the goal of answering almost any question would-be investors might have. The site attracts over 10,000 unique visitors a month.
An accelerated approach
In April, AssetRover won the Information Technology division for Dream Big Grow Here, a competition with cash prizes for Iowa entrepreneurs. Over the summer the company was named as one of six Iowa teams in the 2016 class at the Iowa Startup Accelerator.
“Our biggest reason for wanting to be in the accelerator is [that] we were interested in the vast network of mentors and being able to cultivate those strong relationships,” Frank said. “For a new company, it would be devastatingly expensive to purchase these services. We never would have been able to make all these connections.”
Investing in the future
The founders of AssetRover hope that their company can become a brand name that real estate investors will turn to down the road.
“Our focus is on new investors, they’re the early adopters,” Barillas said. “Real estate doesn’t have to be a second job, and if we have the tools in place, we can be the one to help them manage their portfolio.”
This fall AssetRover will be releasing a paid subscription version of its Rental Property Analyzer, providing more tools for users and an added revenue stream for the company.
“We want to improve the decision making process, eliminate errors and reduce the time commitment of investing,” Kearney said. “We’re taking data that is already out there and turning it into information so that people can make data-driven decisions to improve the investment process.”
—
Joe Lawler is a freelance reporter based in Des Moines.
