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An Australian real estate giant has backed a property portal that’s gearing up to go head to head with the likes of REA Group and Domain.
Zango, a Canberra-based property portal start-up, “was built to provide a transparent platform for the real estate industry to come together and collaborate for the benefit of the consumer, and their local communities”, according to the start-up’s director, Ben Faulks.
Its aim is to disrupt the sector on cost, while also providing “a cleaner and more intuitive property search experience for consumers”, according to a statement.
It has now been revealed that the owners of Ray White have taken a stake in the property portal.
According to Ray White’s managing director, Dan White, “there has been a strong desire to evolve the relationships that agencies have with the major property portals, and to retain more of the value created by moving house in the pockets of consumers and their local communities” across the network.
“My great-grandfather Ray White founded the company in 1902 in a tin shed in rural Queensland,” Mr White noted.
“He was an integral part of his local community, and we have strived to maintain that connection as our business has grown.”
Mr Faulks expressed that the White family “has taken a generational view on the real estate industry and see the potential in what we’ve built to date”.
He said: “Getting a majority of local agencies to support a start-up that’s going head to head with the media giants of our time has created a unique footing for us to drive meaningful change.”
Despite the investment, the White family has not requested a board seat.
“What’s great about the White family’s investment is that they’re happy to take a small stake in the company, but make a large contribution,” Mr Faulks explained.
“They see the need for local industry ownership, but we also benefit from their reach and experience.”
With Mr Faulks calling the latest investment “a huge win for Zango and our communities”, the White family will join tech entrepreneurs Peter and Andrea Blackshaw, Region Media owner Tim White, and 80-plus local real estate agencies on the Zango share registry.
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