Uppie deposit solution targets Airbnb generation
by Startacus Admin
The PropTech startup that's helping first time buyers and renters in a pretty innovative way...
It’s no secret that becoming a homeowner is a harder thing for many people these days than ever before. Wages aren’t keeping up with rising house prices and high rent swallows up the pennies being put away for a deposit. We have written before about some property tech startups looking to make things easier for first-time buyers (and renters), and we have another good one today.
Cheltenham-based Uppie wants to help first time homeowners own a home for the first time by, in a way, paying the deposit for them. It won’t be too shocking to hear that there is a give as well as a take for the buyer: sharing their new home with an ever-varying array of strangers! Yay! Uppie will guarantee up to 90 days of Airbnb bookings and pay at the start of the service, thereby covering the deposit. 
Now all the brand new homeowner needs to do is make sure there’s a bed in the spare room. Uppie does recommend that the house have at least one spare room, and we agree that this is probably a good idea, as we’ve found that strangers don’t like to sleep across the end of the bed like the family dog. Maybe because the family dog takes up too much room for them to fit comfortably.
Uppie is responsible for filling the bookings and takes on the risk of the room not performing as well as expected, meaning that the bookings they buy from the homeowner are non-refundable and said owner does not lose out. Conversely, if the room does better than expected, it will shorten the length of the agreement with Uppie.
Currently, Uppie is only available in Cheltenham, but Bristol, Edinburgh, Bath, and Southampton are set to join this year. Given the popularity of Airbnb and of having a home to live in, we think Uppie is a promising solution to the deposit problem.
Subscribe to our newsletter
If you would like to receive our startup themed newsletter, full of the latest startup opportunities, events, news, stories, tips and advice, then sign up here.
Bring! is a digital grocery tool that simplifies grocery shopping for you and anyone you are shopping for.
In a bid to help brands during the current pandemic, the GreenJinn grocery app makes some rapid changes to its service
Coronavirus & furloughing employees. Nichola Hailes of Payfit looks to answer some of the most frequently asked questions about the job retention scheme.
For startups entering the food industry, here's why accurate labelling on ready-to-eat food products is important.
Whether you’re looking to create a frugal startup, or it’s already up and running, here are 4 tips to reduce costs while keeping the work environment pleasant.
The Belfast-based startup that provides a fully managed 24/7 Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) for securely storing and sharing assets, packages and containers.
The insolvency technology startup secures funding to help support the UK's most vulnerable consumers to avoid bankruptcy
Darren Hockley, MD of Delta International on how millennials may be helping businesses face the current COVID-19 pandemic
The innovative startup that's enabling businesses to connect with their customers via personalised handwritten communication
The lowdown on the Estonian startup that has created a multiplayer game to help kids practice math facts in a fun way...
Published on: 17th January 2018
.png)
If you would like to enable commenting via your Startacus account, please enable Disqus functionality in your Account Settings.
- Cerebreon the Irish deep learning startup raises £1.5m in seed funding 31st Mar 2020 The insolvency technology startup secures funding to help support the UK's most vulnerable consumers to avoid bankruptcy
- Chivas Venture divides this year's $1m Venture Fund between 26 global Startups 23rd Mar 2020 In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Chivas Divides its $1m No-Strings Venture Fund Between 26 Startups
- The open-source design of emergency ventilators for COVID-19 patients 20th Mar 2020 World Wide Community of over 500 designers engineers & medics finalising prototypes for safe scalable manufacture & rapid field deployment..
- Positive-ish reaction from small business and startup community to UK Chancellor’s Corona budget 11th Mar 2020 New UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak just delivered his first UK Budget. We took a look at first reactions from small business and startup leaders.
