Founder Friday: Amar Šehić, Co-Founder & CEO of Rubik 🏠
Founder Friday is a content series from SuperAngel.Fund highlighting companies in our portfolio and the inspiring founders behind them.
In our 28th edition we are featuring Amar Šehić, Co-Founder & CEO of Rubik, which allows real estate investors to build Single-Family Rental (SFR) portfolios with just a couple of clicks.
Who ever said that going into business with your best friends never works out? As soon as co-founders Amar Šehić (middle above), Krenar Roka, and Tommaso Montagni met at Colby College’s international student orientation, they instantly became best friends, roommates, and then business partners.
Rubik helps institutional investors, such as REITs, hedge funds, and family offices, buy single-family rental (SFR) portfolios in the most efficient manner. SFRs have become one of the most attractive real estate asset classes given their return potential, attracting billions of dollars annually with no signs of slowing down. However, unlike with other commercial real estate, it’s extremely hard to deploy institutional capital into SFRs due to difficulties sourcing, underwriting and closing on enough properties at scale. Add to that, when transactions happen on-market, via agent listings, it creates a more competitive process and expensive purchase price.
Rubik’s technology identifies “off market” homes that match the specific criteria of each buyer and provides a fully digital acquisition process for institutional investors. Since launching in 2021, Rubik has facilitated the sale of more than 80 properties totaling nearly $20,000,000 in transaction volume, with plans to scale massively from here. A graduate of ERA, one of NYC’s leading accelerators, Rubik recently announced an additional $3.5m in funding, led by Ulu Ventures. With these funds, Rubik is well on its way to redefine the SFR industry, a $172B market!
Describe your company in 5 words or less.
Amar: Marketplace for single family rentals.
What was your primary motivation for starting your business?
Amar: As an immigrant from a family of entrepreneurs, I wanted to take a shot at the American Dream.
What piece of advice would you give an entrepreneur starting a business today?
Amar: When starting, optimize for fast learning. Test every assumption you have about your business in a rigorous way through small experiments. The tools for doing this are so abundant today, that there's no reason not to. Not only will you validate/invalidate your assumptions, but you will learn a tremendous amount along the way.
What do you love to do in your free time?
Amar: Read (fiction and non-fiction), explore NYC, play the electric guitar and work out.
What is the most interesting place you’ve visited recently and why?
Amar: Kosovo, since part of our team is based there. Every time I visit, I learn something new about this country. One of the most fascinating things about it is the fact that it's the youngest country in Europe with also a very young, educated and extremely entrepreneurial population.
What is your favorite app or tool in your work life and in your personal life?
Amar: Gmail in my work life, it's very simple and old school but it's still an incredibly useful tool to do business, you can reach anyone via email. In my personal life, it would be the Chess.com app. I like playing Chess and the UX along with all the features (puzzles, lessons, etc.) is fantastic.
What do you believe is the most important skill or attribute of a successful founder?
Amar: Resilience.
SuperAngel.Fund is an early stage fund that invests in Consumer, PropTech & Future of Work. You can learn more at SuperAngel.Fund.
