How Egyptian prop-tech startup Partment enables hassle-free 2nd home ownership

Egyptian prop-tech startup Partment is working to redefine second-home ownership and real estate investment via its “invest and experience” co-ownership platform.

Founded in 2022, Partment offers users the chance to part-invest in meticulously curated properties, enabling personalised and diversified real estate portfolios. Through fractional ownership, co-owners access a set number of nights for personal use or rentals, managed by Partment’s Smart Booking System.

“Vacation homes are a dream for many people; real estate ownership in general is an aspiration for a lot of people. However, it requires strong guidance, a large investment ticket, and time to decide what to buy and prepare it accordingly. Resulting in only one per cent of the population being able to afford them,” said Nadim Nagui, co-founder of Partment.

“Also, these vacation homes, or second homes, are only used for 10-20 per cent of the year. This efficiency gap is the core problem that inspired the co-founders to solve today. Our mission is to allow more people to invest in second homes seamlessly, so we have created a new real estate category, which is co-ownership.”

Co-ownership, Nagui says, is the “missing link” between the traditional options of complete ownership and rental arrangements for second homes.

“This gap became apparent due to the high costs associated with complete ownership and the limited use of second homes,” he said.

Partment closed a pre-seed round of US$1.5 million n September 2022, led by Nclude and Plus Venture Capital, but Nagui said one of its most remarkable landmarks thus far was establishing a partnership with ValU, a prominent financing solution in the region, renowned as a leader in the “buy now pay later” market.

“This collaboration has enabled us to introduce a smoother and more seamless experience when co-owning vacation homes,” he said.

“The response has been incredible. We initially began with just 2-3 properties, but the market’s positive reaction spurred us on, and now we offer 10+ properties. Remarkably, 25 per cent of our customers join us through referrals, and 15 per cent own more than one share with us. These statistics solidly demonstrate that our solution not only works but fulfills a genuine need for many individuals.”

Partment began its journey in Gouna, delving into the vibrant Red Sea locale.

“Within just one year, we spread our wings to the North Coast, Egypt’s beloved summer hotspot, and Somabay, an exciting extension of our presence along the Red Sea shores. Now, we’re thrilled to announce our very first international expansion into Athens, Greece , marking the start of our global journey with more exciting destinations on the horizon,” Nagui said.