Vacation rental investment platform Here raises $5M in seed funding

Fractional vacation rental investment platform Here Investments Inc. has announced raising $5 million in a seed funding round led by Fiat Ventures.

Liquid 2 Ventures, Mucker Capital, Basecamp Ventures, and Daffy co-founder and former Wealthfront CEO Adam Nash also participated in the round.

The company aims to use the money to expand its product offering to more than 20 top vacation rental destinations in the U.S., beyond the three existing markets it has served since launching its platform in February.

Here has hit on the idea of giving both accredited and non-accredited investors the opportunity to take part in fractional investments in vacation rentals. Through its platform, investors can peruse the available listings it has and choose to obtain partial ownership of one of those properties. Investors then choose how much they’d like to invest, review the terms of that investment, then sign electronically to fund the deal. With that, Here takes care of the day-to-day running of the property, marketing it and ensuring its upkeep, with investors earning a share of the monthly income it earns, proportional to their investment.

Through its portfolio of homes, Here said it aims to unlock the $1.8 trillion short-term rental market for everyday investors.

Investing in Here is easy, but sometimes investors may also want to make an exit. To that end, Here will use some of the funding from today’s round to create a secondary market that investors can use to sell their shares at any time.

Here co-founder and Chief Executive Core Ashton Walters said he launched Here to democratize access to high-quality real estate investments.

“We’re bringing the top destination markets with the highest returns to investors of all sizes,” he explained. “Between a 20% down payment, inflation and higher interest rates, purchasing a second home is out of reach for most young Americans. At the same time, data shows that 75% of all U.S. travel spend will be made by millennials and Gen Z by 2025. The opportunity has never been hotter.”

Here said that it has already accumulated more than 30,000 members. It argues that because it pays out quarterly dividends on rental income, investments made through its platform provide less risk than other vested interests.

Daffy CEO Nash said the vacation rentals market has historically only been accessible by wealthy individuals. “Here has created a seamless and simple way for everyday investors to participate in this market, and supporting their mission to open up this opportunity to everyone was an easy decision,” he added.