BlocHome is a new way for anyone to access the real estate market. The startup enables people to buy slices of property in just a few clicks. Interview with Raphaël Scheuren and Maroun Altekly, two of the five co-founders.
How did the journey start?
R.S. We wanted to quit mom’s hotel but faced a harsh market reality in Luxembourg. Rents are high and becoming an owner seemed to be the best option. But here market prices seemed even less accessible. We were looking for a solution and that was the starting point of Bloc Home.
The launch of BlocHome is imminent, what are the stages of that launch?
M.A. Yes, we’re super excited about it. We worked hard during the last year alongside our partners to ensure a safe, fast, and user-friendly experience. We decided to launch our platform BlocHome step by step, starting first with a hundred early adopters, to opening it up progressively to our community, and then to the public in November.
What are the next steps?
M.A. After the launch, we will focus on listening to our early adopters. As we want to focus on building a great community, we need to learn from their feedback to improve our platform and services. We aim to fix the priorities in respect of the requests of the BlocHome community.
How does innovation make real estate acquisition more accessible?
R.S. Innovative business models can solve long-existing problems in real estate. We want to act on 3 issues: easy access through fractional ownership, reduce transfer and process costs and increase liquidity to enter and exit, and all sustained by digitalizing all processes.
How do you see the real estate market in 10 years in Luxembourg?
R.S. The real estate market will continue its growth. We want it to be accessible to democratically organized communities. We strongly believe that housing-as-a-service will become a standard, that ownership and usage will be separated thus banning the dichotomy of tenants and owners.
This article was first published in Silicon Luxembourg magazine. Get your copy.
