Nine Four Ventures

The real estate rules are changing on August 17th, as the NAR settlement policy changes kick into effect. Nine Four Ventures's Kurt Ramirez breaks down the changes - and their impacts - in today's Thesis Driven. Notably, August 17th markets the end of the “cooperative compensation” structure in which buyers' agents are offered compensation by listing agents via the MLS. This means buyers' agents must find another way to get paid, and nobody is quite sure what that will look like. This is happening at a time when agents are increasingly under pressure from technology as well as relatively low transaction volume. It seems likely that added commission pressure will drive some of the 1.6 million licensed agents out of the business, particularly the part-timers and hobbyists. Full analysis in today's Thesis Driven linked in the comments!

Nine Four Ventures MBA Intern Megan Shkolyar shares insights from her latest analysis on how startups can successfully run a win/loss analysis, which can be an impactful tool founders can utilize to gain a deeper understanding of how they can improve their market positioning.   Here are some of the key takeaways:   • Defining Objectives and Scope: Establish the goals and boundaries of the win/loss analysis to focus on understanding why clients chose or didn't choose your product. • Collecting Data: Conduct comprehensive interviews with key decision-makers to capture and structure detailed perspectives on their decision-making process. • Creating Actionable Recommendations: Offer clear recommendations that translate into prioritized concrete actions for teams to improve sales strategies and product offerings (such as customizing the sales process, involving engineering teams early, etc.).   You can read the full post, along with links to templates and tools on our site, Substack, or by clicking the link below to learn more. Please reach out with any questions or comments on trends, companies, or anything else. https://lnkd.in/gQ3RPUPb Cc Jeffrey Elowe, Kurt Ramirez, Paul La Londe, Sophia Ghadamian Kier, Avi Pradhan #Startups #VentureCapital #Insights #Data #Sales

Following up on his previous blog post, Nine Four Ventures MBA Associate Intern Juan Pablo Villafuerte shares insights from his latest analysis on the nearshoring trend within the US construction industry, presenting exciting opportunities for innovation and growth for players in the LatAm supply chain process like Latii. Here are some of the key takeaways: 1. Shift from China to North America: From trade wars and geopolitical tensions, there's been a significant move of manufacturing closer to the US. 2. LatAm Emergence: Mexico has become the primary beneficiary of this shift, with substantial economic growth and increased manufacturing exports. Other countries such as Thailand, India, Vietnam, and Korea are also filling the gap. 3. Impact on Construction-related Imports: Key categories such as electrical panels, structural steel, and ventilation components are now primarily sourced from North America. However, there are other categories where US imports have declined, presenting unique opportunities to meet growing demand. You can read the full post on our site, Substack, or by clicking the link below to learn more. Please reach out with any questions or comments on trends, companies, or anything else. https://lnkd.in/gkwbkDVw CC Jeffrey Elowe, Kurt Ramirez, Paul La Londe, Sophia Ghadamian Kier, Avi Pradhan #Proptech #LatAm #Procurement #SupplyChain #Construction #VentureCapital

Last week, Nine Four Ventures co-hosted a CRE x PropTech event with Valley Bank in Miami. This gathering brought together innovative startups—including our portfolio companies Built , Inspectify, and Pronto Housing—alongside Valley Bank team members and clients. The event was a great opportunity to discuss PropTech trends and industry challenges, highlighting how startups are addressing these pain points with their products and services. We were thrilled with the excellent turnout from the banking, startup, and commercial real estate communities, which fostered diverse perspectives and a valuable relationship-building opportunity for everyone involved. Cc Jeffrey Elowe, Kurt Ramirez, Paul La Londe, Sophia Ghadamian Kier, Avi Pradhan, Chase Gilbert, Denis Bellavance, KC Crosby, Jeff Allen, Jeff Watts, Neal Kapur, Alan G Randolph

In our newest blog post, Nine Four Ventures General Partner Kurt Ramirez shares some of his thoughts on the current environment of startup shutdowns and valuation resets, and if these are natural consequences of an earlier period of frothy investment and easy money. Some key points are around how:  ·        Startup failures are common and expected, especially after a period of high funding.  ·        The recent increase in shutdowns should be viewed relative to the outsized number of startups funded in the boom years of 2020 and 2021 and reaching their make-or-break moment now.  ·        Some of these startups may have been funded based on unrealistic expectations of future growth, leading to valuation drops. Read the full post on our site, Substack, or by clicking below to learn more. Please reach out with any questions or comments on trends, companies, or anything else. https://lnkd.in/dZm6vfis Cc Jeffrey Elowe, Kurt Ramirez, Paul La Londe, Sophia Ghadamian Kier, Avi Pradhan #VentureCapital #Startup #Valuation #Tech

In our newest blog post, Nine Four Ventures MBA Intern Juan Pablo Villafuerte shares some highlights from his recent trip to Texas with Latii, to see the intricacies of local dealer dynamics and Latii’s strategic hands-on approach. By initially developing this network of dealers in Texas, Latii will work to build upon the trust and momentum they need to rapidly scale their managed marketplace of quality LATAM-manufactured windows and doors. As its marketplace expands, Latii aims to raise the bar in trust and reliability among dealers, manufacturers, and suppliers by developing a suite of technological solutions that solve the logistical complexities that arise in areas like quoting cycles. Read the full post on our site, Substack, or by clicking below to learn more. Please reach out with any questions or comments on trends, companies, or anything else. https://lnkd.in/gTW4TKQH Cc Jeffrey Elowe, Kurt Ramirez, Paul La Londe, Sophia Ghadamian Kier, Avi Pradhan #PropTech #LATAM #Construction #VentureCapital

In our newest blog post, the Nine Four team shares some observations on the history behind single-family rentals, the current market, and what’s in store for this growing asset class. Single-family rentals have traditionally been seen as a niche market, mainly managed by smaller owners. However, institutional investors are increasingly entering this space, which has spurred the development of technology-driven solutions to efficiently deploy capital and manage assets. As institutional interest continues to rise, there's a parallel need for scalable technologies and increased attention from founders and investors. Read the full post on our site, Substack, or by clicking below to learn more. Please reach out with any questions or comments on trends, companies, or anything else. https://lnkd.in/ewdiN7fu Cc Jeffrey Elowe, Kurt Ramirez, Paul La Londe, Sophia Ghadamian, Avi Pradhan #PropTech #SFR #RealEstate #VentureCapital 

In our newest blog post, the Nine Four team shares some observations about where the ESG investing market has been, where it is now, and where it is potentially going. Climate change is a timely and important global issue that deserves much of the attention it is receiving. However, there are insights we can glean from the past that we can apply in the future about how to match appropriate capital with the right models, use cases, and outcomes to ensure more tech startups are successful. Read the full post on our site, Substack, or by clicking below to learn more. Please reach out with any questions or comments on trends, companies, or anything else. https://lnkd.in/gkv_85Yz Cc Jeffrey Elowe, Kurt Ramirez, Paul La Londe, Sophia Ghadamian, Avi Pradhan #PropTech #ClimateTech #ESG #ClimateChange

PropTechs are sensitive to monetary and fiscal policy and are impacted by market booms and busts. In our latest blog post, we discuss different strategies PropTechs can take to protect themselves from bigger, faster swings in the market. Read the full post on our site, Substack, or by clicking below to learn more. Please reach out with any questions or comments on trends, companies, or anything else. https://lnkd.in/dUG_jfUs Cc Jeffrey Elowe, Kurt Ramirez, Paul La Londe, Sophia Ghadamian, Avi Pradhan #PropTech #StartUps #BoomsandBusts #MarketSwings  

We’re pumped to share our latest investment in Mia Share Inc.'s $6.5M Seed round, led by TTV Capital! Mia Share is tackling the trade labor shortage starting with FinTech. Here’s a little more about the company and opportunity: Problem: Financial barriers often prevent applicants from pursuing trade and technical education given the lack of payment options and infrastructure available. Trade schools have been underinvested in and overlooked by founders and investors for a long time relative to the four-year university market leaving an opportunity for technology to create meaningful, positive change. Solution: Mia Share offers tuition payment management software for trade schools. It democratizes access by providing a menu of flexible payment options for applicants while streamlining back-office servicing for trade schools. Why We're Excited: Although Mia Share is focused on tuition payments today, it aspires to standardize the back office “plumbing” of trade school financial services and provide a full-stack, end-to-end platform from application to enrollment, paying, servicing, and recruiting. This platform could be the backbone that will enable trade schools to operate more efficiently, offer more courses, expand classes, train more students, and ultimately get more skilled trades people into the workforce faster. Big congrats from everyone at Nine Four Ventures to Joshua Haghani and the entire Mia Share team on this milestone! You can read more about why we invested here: https://lnkd.in/dqhNbEsT #PropTech #FinTech #EdTech #VentureCapital cc Jeffrey Elowe, Kurt Ramirez, Paul La Londe, Sophia Ghadamian, Avi Pradhan