(NEW YORK, NEW YORK)— New York real estate firm Citi Habitats has announced a new partnership with TheGuarantors, a Fintech company whose driving mission is to help qualified applicants get approved on their leases. The partnership between the two innovative companies paves the way forward for other real estate firms looking to adapt to a changing rental market in New York City.
“This initiative further advances Citi Habitats’ commitment to innovative and forward-thinking tools for agents, renters and building owners,” said Gary Malin, President of Citi Habitats. “We are excited about this new alliance and are confident it will prove beneficial to both our agents and their valued clients.”
Disruptive technology is a necessity to face the changes that are shaking up the real estate industry in New York City. In the past six months, many landlords and brokerages have grappled with the restrictions imposed by New York City’s new rental laws that were passed in June. Among many new rules, landlords and brokers are now unable to ask for multiple months of rent upfront. While the law was intended to protect the poor and most vulnerable, who often don’t have tens of thousands of dollars of cash on hand, the policy would also penalize a percentage of otherwise financially solvent tenants who might have difficulty getting approved—students and first-time renters, those moving from overseas, or those with shaky credit histories. Often, these applicants could contest a rejection and offer more rent upfront to counter perceived risk, but no longer.
Julien Bonville, founder and CEO of TheGuarantors, would know the struggle: he founded the company inspired by his own difficulty getting approval for a lease when he moved to New York from France to attend business school. “[My] experience demonstrated that perceived risks and real risks in the real estate markets can be significantly out of whack,” Bonville told TDG Real Estate. TheGuarantors was founded to more accurately calibrate that risk. The service helps qualified applicants get approved while respecting new rental laws andleveling the playing field for those who can’t pay multiple months of rent upfront.
In addition to lease guarantee services, TheGuarantors offers a host of other services like renter’s insurance and security deposit alternatives. While services are marketed towards tenants, Citi Habitats saw that landlords and brokers had a lot to gain. The less difficulty tenants have getting approved, the easier it is for agents to close more rental deals. Landlords, too, benefit: with more qualified applicants to choose from, landlords can fill vacant units faster. The alliance between the two companies will help Citi Habitats support apartment hunters and expose more potential clients to TheGuarantors’ service. Look out for events in the city hosted by the two companies as they embark on their new strategic alliance.
