DS News

DS News May 2017

DSNews delivers stories, ideas, links, companies, people, events, and videos impacting the mortgage default servicing industry.

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» VISIT US ONLINE @ DSNEWS.COM 61 COVER STORY INDUSTRY INSIGHT INDUSTRY INSIGHT INDUSTRY INSIGHT PwC and the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation in New York found technology risk and quality of risk management to be in the top six banking challenges of last year, according to their survey of 672 top bankers, regulators, and analysts around the world. But one man's problem continues to be another man's opportunity, and startups are the proof. Finding new, innovative ways to make operations faster, more efficient, and more economical, startup companies are giving the mortgage and housing industry the tools it needs to succeed. DS News spoke with several mortgage and real estate entrepreneurs to tap into their vision and learn about their startup mission. While some were motivated by a specific business problem, community concerns, lessons from public service or simply the answer no, all were very passionate about problem-solving and innovation. LEVERAGING PERSONAL EXPERIENCE Ken Davis is not only TaskEasy's president and CEO, he's also a client. It takes one to know one or, better yet, it takes a person who has dealt with the immense hassle of managing lawn care and snow removal for properties across multiple cities to truly understand the customer's problem and create the best solution for them. On-demand and A to Z, TaskEasy provides services to both lawn care consumers and property managers, handling the scheduling, contracting, billing, accounting, and marketing of jobs while also saving contractors money because of reduced travel and the time normally spent on bidding. Since launching four years ago, TaskEasy has mowed lawns, plowed snow, and cleaned swimming pools in more than 5,000 cities across every state. "We're kind of a rare bird in this industry," Davis said. "When you talk about small yard- care services, like lawn-mowing, there's really not a lot of people applying the data to how you make things more efficient. It's about rapid assignment and rapid performance. is is a whole data field that has never been explored before." TaskEasy's big-picture approach is a unique one—and one that Davis was able to take thanks to his personal experience in the industry. As an owner of as many as 88 rental units, Davis knows quite well the challenge of spending countless hours vetting contractors and then verifying their performance. As a skilled entrepreneur versed in tech startups, he was quite prepared to do something about it. And while Davis' past experience certainly helps, continuing to understand the customer and their concerns—even as the business grows—is also paramount. Right now? Davis said they're concerned with marketing issues. "ey're particularly anxious about curb appeal when marketing properties," said Davis, who believes the substantial upward pricing pressure on homes right now is causing similar pressure on rents, which means more expectations from renters. "When vacant, they need to get that curb appeal up high fast." Knowing these concerns helps Davis and TaskEasy better serve its customers—and that's exactly what it has done. According to Davis, one customer reported a 9 percent degradation per year due to exterior maintenance issues. Under TaskEasy's care, those properties actually increased in value over time. Another large customer employed more than 60 people to recruit and vet property maintenance contractors, issue purchase orders, etc. With TaskEasy taking on that burden, the company was able to reallocate that workforce for better efficiencies. TaskEasy has also reduced the time required to mow the lawns of its customers' portfolio properties by 2.5 to 2.6 days on average. POWERFUL PERSPECTIVES REVOLUTIONARY IDEAS TO THE INDUSTRY. THIS MONTH WE START-UPS WHO HAVE READY TO SHARE WHAT THEY'VE ALONG THE WAY. "It was the realization that corporate America struggles to foster significant innovation and the only really industry-changing innovation would come from taking risks that corporations are adverse to supporting." – Jason Nadeau, EVP, Factom 61

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