Zero Deposit: A Multifamily Story
We got lucky.
In 2014 my co-founder, Reichen, slipped into the NAA conference (the Super Bowl event of multifamily) and caught the attention of two Greystar senior executives.
“I was going to build that,” snapped one of the executives.
“But I’m too busy building this business, so let’s continue talking.”
From there, Reichen and I began a journey across America over a three year period from 2016–18 to sit across the table from leading multifamily operators — in charge of large chunks of America’s rental housing stock. We listened. We took notes. We asked naive questions.
We asked “Why?”
We learned what the industries leading executives — felt deep down in the pit of their stomach. It was frustration, struggle, and desperation for a deposit replacement solution that did not exist.
We learned of incredible disdain for existing deposit solutions that had failed them (read: surety bonds) and confusion around new! solutions that were simply cleverly disguised surety bonds. Ugh.
We went back to our engineering, insurance, and risk teams to design the world’s first lease insurance product that could meet the needs of modern operators and finally rid them of deposits — for good.
The pandemic has created clarity for many operators in-the-know, finally asking the right questions around math, adoption, and sustainability.
It looks like it’s finally happening.
#RIPdeposits #RIPbonds
Derek Merrill — CEO & Founder, LeaseLock
MFE: Changing Tides — Why Multifamily is Moving Away from Surety Bonds
