The product of many years’ worth of industry study, Zain Jaffer announces the launch of The PropTech VC, a new podcast that interviews the innovators, disruptors, and mavericks of the real estate industry, bringing listeners the latest conversations, trends, and opportunities in the market. PropTech’ refers to the application of information technology and platform economics to any aspect of the real estate market. The acronym can span software that streamlines workflows, smart tech that protects or perfects payments, hardware that pushes performance capacity, or manufacturing that advances building structures, functions, and efficiencies.
Jaffer hosts the show, delighting in discussions that explore the many applications for technological breakthroughs that are transforming the real estate market in real time. After years of hands-on experience, he’s observed the major gaps in data management and developed a keen eye for the huge returns that await the right entrepreneur who can bring new perspectives and technological creativity to the sector as it stands.
“I’ve been involved in tech starts up since I was 14. When I started my professional real estate career, I was shocked at the lack of sophisticated, analytical tools being used in the industry. There seemed to be an absence of innovation, and yet, there was clearly much to gain from the logical analysis of any property — from the largest warehouse or apartment complex to the smallest investment a newcomer might make.”
In The PropTech VC, Jaffer launches into the specifics regarding the need and opportunity that awaits the PropTech sector. “Information is critical for success. The industry is unbelievably data heavy, and up until recently, the data have been crunched and re-crunched in laborious and resource-intensive ways. It creates an environment that’s ripe for improvements and technological transformations.”
“And in the current moment,” Jaffer continues, “the crazy coronavirus-induced market forces are adding another layer of uncertainty and (strangely enough) opportunity. The PropTech VC looks to identify trends, chronicle emerging issues, and highlight the fresh perspectives that are arising in the industry in real time — the bouts of creativity that are streamlining, improving, and innovating the real estate sector in front of our eyes.”
On the matter of building disruptive technology companies, Zain Jaffer has a career’s worth of experience. Having been a serial entrepreneur since he was a teenager and having built a tech company from the ground-up that sold in 2019 for $780 million, Jaffer knows exactly what change and innovation look like. A prolific real estate investor, Jaffer engages in direct investments, joint ventures, and limited partnerships in both the United States and overseas.
The PropTechVC podcast features a new guest each week, and new episodes are posted almost every day. Video versions of the episodes can be viewed on Zain Jaffer’s YouTube channel, or on the podcast’s home website, proptechvc.com. Audio versions can be downloaded on Spotify, Apple, Google, or Podbean for the listener’s convenience.