Buying a home is a complicated process that largely hinges on insights from real estate agents, financial representatives and other parties. As younger generations enter the housing market, DwellWell wants to equip them with the knowledge they need to take the reins of their homebuying journey, rather than depend solely on others’ input.
“The most rewarding part of building DwellWell is when we help someone who’s coming from what I would say is an information disadvantage,” Matt Canzoneri, DwellWell’s CEO and co-founder, told Built In. “The ability to create a new homebuyer class, making sure that this younger generation entering the homebuying market is armed with the information to know how the process should go … and creating the process that makes homeownership not only attainable but understandable to the masses is wildly exciting.”
The company is growing its solution with a $4.5 million seed round from lead investor MaC Venture Capital. With the money, DwellWell plans to expand its geographic reach, grow its 12-person team and add new platform features.
These days, more than 65 percent of American adults own a home, though only about 38 percent of individuals under the age of 35 are part of that group. DwellWell’s platform was made for the next generation of homebuyers that grew up with the internet at their fingertips.
DwellWell serves to guide users, especially first-generation homebuyers, through the seven stages of the homebuying process in an equitable way. The platform offers tools to help with the loan pre-approval process, setting preferences for a home and connecting with an agent.
Instead of locking in an agent based on a weak referral, DwellWell’s tech connects a user to three agents in their area and within their price specifications. From there, it lets them choose which agent will best help them along the rest of their homebuying journey.
“We teach the homebuyer how to interview an agent, and then we schedule the call between [them] so that the homebuyer is not just going with the first person they met and relying on serendipity,” Canzoneri said. “We are a tech company, but we don’t plan on removing the agent from the process like a lot of tech platforms are trying to do. We think that buying a home is a wildly emotional, wildly human process.”
After a buyer has connected with their agent, DwellWell supports them through finding a home. Then it provides educational content once they’re ready to make an offer and later close the deal. The seventh stage of the process is one of the most important, according to the company, and that’s helping the buyer celebrate successfully closing on their new home.
Canzoneri and his co-founder Sam Carow spoke with numerous homebuyers and agents when they first started DwellWell. During those conversations, the pair found that most people after closing on a home were relieved the ordeal was over.
“When you’re making the biggest purchase of your life, something that you’re going to live in and build a family in and build friendships and build memories [in], you should be absolutely ecstatic that you have just made this transaction happen,” Canzoneri said. “But the process is so onerous right now that nobody does that. And so our goal was to make homebuying a celebration at the end of the day.”
DwellWell will enhance its existing product capabilities to further ease key aspects of the homebuying process.
With its latest injection of capital, DwellWell plans to expand its partner ecosystem of proptech solutions, offering users tools for things like getting homeowners insurance, finding an inspector and moving furniture. It’s also looking to deepen collaboration between everyone involved in the buyer’s transaction, such as agents and loan officers.
As for its expansion plans, DwellWell currently services users in California, Texas and Florida. It’s looking to add agents in North Carolina, Arizona, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, New York and Washington to its network.
DwellWell also plans to expand its team and is actively hiring with a focus on engineering and marketing talent.
