Alex Norman, co-founder and CEO of MyCoop Technologies
NEW YORK CITY— “I found most of the technology in the real estate space that focuses on property management really targets the large luxury complexes,” says Alex Norman, the co-founder and CEO of the proptech startup MyCoop Technologies. “Actually there are none for the most part that service smaller buildings that are run by mom and pops or individuals who can be hard to reach.”
He notes smaller walkup buildings seldom have onsite management and maintenance staff. “Residents are pretty much left to their own devices. Communications are left to periodic emails or paper posted in foyers, in the elevators or slipped underneath your door in your apartment.” And Norman says that's not enough, especially when things go wrong such as when there's a problem with the heat or a flood or hurricane hits. Those are times when communication is needed the most but these smaller buildings are generally underserved, he adds.
So, in January 2018, Norman and his college friend, Kristi Prigmore, invested $300,000 in starting MyCoop, based in New York City. Adams is the COO. Together they created a low cost, cloud-based online software solution where buildings can easily sign up on the company website. It handles basic residential building communications. It allows messages, direct messages, building notifications to texts and feeds to document storage, digital filings and PDFs. It addresses routine communications about task management and maintenance requests.
In the US, the product is used in multifamily buildings in 28 states and 107 cites. Internationally, it's in 38 countries and 64 cities. Norman says the company valuation is $3 million which they are currently raising in their first round based on original investment and growth.
He distinguishes MyCoop as a service which targets buildings with 50 units or less. Through aggregation of these buildings, they are a mass player focused on the small market.
Norman previously worked for GTB as the head of mobility partnerships & innovation and head of agency growth. The marketing and advertising firm teamed up with five WPP companies and works for Ford Motor Company in Detroit, MI. Norman also was a lead mentor for Techstars, an American seed accelerator headquartered in Boulder, CO.
He points out that property management data and communications are all moving to the cloud. Unlike group emails, with MyCoop communications are more efficient. For example, in one building with 24 residents, sending emails to alert residents when the electricity would be turned off took about 20 minutes. On the MyCoop platform, it took less than a minute. Unlike a Facebook page, the technology allows uploading PDFs to keep residents informed on matters like building codes, leases and billing.
People can easily go online and sign up their buildings or themselves as residents, using the company website. There is a free version, a $49 per month option (which will be reduced to $40 in August) and a customized plan where pricing is available upon request.
The MyCoop CEO sees his company eventually expanding in its applications. As cities are increasing their technology capabilities, he predicts buildings will become more connected to talk with other buildings. Norman sees the data as improving communications on a larger more collective scale, assisting with the use of infrastructure, energy consumption and in public emergencies.
Norman is one of the mentors in ALM Media's Young Professionals Network LinkedIn group.
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Betsy Kim
Betsy Kim was the bureau chief, East Coast, and New York City reporter for Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com. As a lawyer and journalist, Betsy has worked as the director of editorial and content for LexisNexis Lawyers.com, a TV/multi-media journalist for NBC and CBS affiliated TV stations in the Midwest, and an associate producer at Court TV.
