Podcast 311: Adena Hefets of Divvy Homes

With real estate prices at record highs all across the country, owning a home is becoming more out of reach for first-time homebuyers.

For millennials and Gen-Z, saving enough money for a downpayment has become a huge challenge, much harder than it was for their parents or grandparents. A huge problem like this calls for a creative solution.

Our next guest on the Fintech One•On•One podcast is Adena Hefets, the CEO and co-founder of Divvy Homes. They have created a unique pathway to homeownership by rethinking the much-maligned rent-to-own model.

With Divvy, people can search for their dream home, and when they find it, make a compelling, all-cash offer on behalf of Divvy. Divvy will buy the home and then rent it back to them, with a portion of the rent payments being used to build equity.

(Since recording this episode Divvy announced their Series D funding round that brings their valuation to $2 billion).

In this podcast you will learn:

  • The idea that led to the founding of Divvy.
  • Adena’s take on the unusual housing market we have today.
  • How Divvy works for people looking for a new home.
  • The typical profile of a Divvy customer.
  • Why the mortgage loan is essentially unchanged since the 1940s.
  • What they focus on in their underwriting process.
  • How Divvy makes money.
  • Why customers in some markets can buy their house off Divvy for less than the market price.
  • How they calculate the appropriate price for rent.
  • How demand has changed since the start of the pandemic.
  • How they are getting the word out and educating the market about their product.
  • What the economics looks like from a realtor’s perspective.
  • The different markets they operate in today and how they choose new markets.
  • The number of homes a month they are bidding on today.
  • How they approach the capital markets.
  • Their biggest obstacle for growth today.
  • Adena’s vision for Divvy Homes.

Download a PDF of the transcription of Podcast 311 – Adena Hefets.

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  • Peter Renton

    Peter Renton is the chairman and co-founder of Fintech Nexus, the world’s largest digital media company focused on fintech. Peter has been writing about fintech since 2010 and he is the author and creator of the Fintech One-on-One Podcast, the first and longest-running fintech interview series.