Accommodations provider Zeus Living has raised $55 million to support what it calls “Flexliving,” a category of housing that promises ease and flexibility.
SIG led the Series C round, with participation from Initialized Capital, CEAS, TI Platform, NFX, Opendoor’s Eric Wu and Miras.
Notably, Airbnb participated in Zeus Living’s last funding round, also for $55 million, in December 2019, prior to COVID-19 placing a spotlight on remote working.
Founded in 2015, Zeus Living offers extended-stay housing for a minimum of 30 days in 96 cities across the United States.
Initially targeted at business travelers, the platform now offers furnished accommodations to anyone looking to find housing without the commitment of signing a lease.
According to the company, Zeus Living reached 87% occupancy in 2021 year-to-date, its highest ever and up from 82% in 2020 and 84% in 2019.
Residents have spent more than 1.4 million nights with Zeus, and 811,562 of those were during the pandemic. The San Francisco-based company says it saw a sixfold increase in residents booking leases with no predetermined end date, for an average stay of 129 nights, and 25% of its residents intend to spend more than 10 months in furnished housing over the next 12 months.
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The company says that for owners on the Zeus platform, it has 97% partner renewal rate. In total, Zeus has 5,000 curated homes on its platform.
With the funding, Zeus plans to grow its owner partnerships – including single-family owners, multi-family owners and developers – to increase its portfolio of homes, as well as invest in high-quality and intentionally designed online products for residents, owners and operators.
It will also integrate a curated set of services that will position Zeus as “more than just the real estate, but as a way to live life that is customized and adapted to residents.”
“The pandemic has ushered in a new era in the rental market, where remote work has given people more flexibility on where they live, and technology has opened the door for homeowners to easily rent out their properties,” says Garry Tan, founder and managing partner of Initialized Capital.
“[Zeus CEO Kulveer Taggar] and the Zeus team are uniquely positioned to give today’s renters what they truly want: ease and flexibility, fair prices and beautiful design.”