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Summer, a startup that combines a rent-to-own program with
short-term rentals, has raised $18 million in Series A funding and secured an
additional debt facility of $50 million.
Two former Airbnb employees founded Summer in 2021 – CEO Paul Kromidas
had been a product and strategy lead, and Woods Buckley, who had been in partnerships and was
also vice president of operations at OYO and Landing. Buckley is no longer involved with Summer.
Along with traditional property management for existing homeowners,
Summer offers “gradual ownership” options whereby it buys the home and its
customers – what it calls “members” – make an initial payment of as little as
15% and then a monthly “membership” fee that is credited toward their stays at
the property or any home in the Summer portfolio.
The latest funding was led by QED Investors and Viola FinTech
with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners, 1Sharpe Ventures and
several others. The debt facility is from Setpoint Capital.
“Summer
removes the barriers and risk around buying and owning a vacation home,” Kromidas
said.
“With
this fundraise, we’ll be expanding nationally, enabling more customers than
ever before to make a purchase that makes sense for them – a smart investment
that they love to spend time in. I’m excited to lead Summer on its mission to
democratize vacation home ownership.”
Along
with market expansion, the company said the funding will be used to “accelerate
technological development, focusing on the advancement of proprietary
acquisitions and the platform’s underwriting engine.”
“Summer
has a unique value proposition for families looking to buy a second home,” said
Frank Rotman, founding partner of QED Investors.
“They
remove the unknowns and angst from the process by guiding prospective buyers
through the process and managing the major rental work streams post-purchase.
The flexibility of their product is unmatched in the market and home buyers
love it.”
Since
its founding, Summer has raised $30 million.
Just
last week, a venture
led by Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia – Samara – raised $41 million in Series
A funding.
*Correction: The original version of this article stated that Woods Buckley was still chief operating officer.
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