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Super — Home ownership, reinvented
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Kelly Kuhn-Wallace
I can see home sellers including a year's subscription to Super with their homes as a buyer incentive.
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@kkdub Totally agree. It's great for new homeowners, and it’s great for experienced homeowners, in particular those moving to a new neighborhood. Thanks for the comment!
Do americans not have home insurance? I'm British, just bought my first house and to get a mortgage its a requirement to have home insurance. It seems to me that this product, if I understand it correctly, is something that we have as a bit of a standard here.
If that is true it's pretty surprising this hasn't happened sooner. Looks like the makers have executed this really well.
Hi @samcambridge,
I’m glad you asked! Home insurance covers things that happen to the home like fire, wind, hail, lightning, and theft. These things may never happen to your home. Mortgage companies require home insurance to protect the value of your home in case of default.
We cover things not protected by home insurance, like breakdowns in systems and appliances. These things will absolutely happen to your home.
Many thanks for your comment!
@joreyramer ah I see! I have accidental cover which helps incase of accidental damage but If my cooker dies I'm screwed :)! Perhaps you should make the differences between your service + insurance a little more obvious?
I'm not sure this'd work in NYC. I just bought a coop in Brooklyn and everything is more complicated. @joreyramer have you investigated denser markets with shared walls, etc?
@nealrs Hi Neal, Buildings above a certain size commonly have commercial management of the property. For those buildings that do not have commercial management, we cover shared systems (e.g., heating, hot water heater) when all units are concurrently covered. I think this is great for condo associations that would otherwise have to build up larger capital reserves. Please submit your email and zipcode on our website (see "Live elsewhere?") to be notified when we come to your neighborhood! Thanks!
This is a super (see what I did there) interesting product. I have owned many a home, and have never been satisfied by the home warranty companies. That said, they've typically come with purchase (seller purchases one for the buyer), and I have made claims against them.
One of the things I like about them (perhaps the only?) is that most will offer to just cut you a check instead of having to use them to actually fix the service. Meaning, I had a broken A/C unit. Unfortunately I had to call the home warranty company 3 different times, because after putting duct-tape on it twice they finally realized it was a gonner. But instead of having to wait a week and a half for them to provide the lowest quality replacement, they cut me a check which I put towards something better.
Perhaps some detail on those types of issues would be helpful... do you replace like for like. Is getting a service-person out there a complete hassle? How do you vet the service people? Are they likely to try and continually fix something that is likely past its useful life, or past the typical point where one would decide the benefit of new, maintenance free is nicer than having to continually have folks out to keep fixing?
The coverages are also a bit confusing. Though less-so than a 50 page home warranty terms contract. But it isn't 100% obvious to me. So are the things on the "maintenance schedule" page basically not covered? You note: "We regularly send you information on how to maintain your home to prevent disruptive or dangerous problems from happening. We make it easy to understand how to do it yourself or ask us to do it for you for an additional fee.". So these maintenance items aren't covered... but you potentially make it easier by going through Super to get it fixed? And there's some kind of point or reward system? Things like gutter cleaning, dry vent exhaust cleaning, chimney sweep, etc. are definitely some of those pesky little maintenance items that are in many ways more of a headache then the "big break" type things. On the quarterly service reward, do those accumulate, or is it use-it or lose-it?
I understand why you're doing the co-pay plans... but would just note, including co-pays in the plans makes it feel a lot more old-school, confusing, insurance. As a consumer, now I'm trying to do math in my head. And worse, when my wife is calling for repairs, but isn't clear what plan we're on, whether there is a co-pay or not, etc. it just seems like a hassle. You start thinking "I'm paying $x per month, and then another $y per co-pay, and have had this many breaks... is this really a better way, or am I paying more??"
With a big family, this is the type of service we'd love... i wouldn't even mind the premium plan, if some of those maintenance things were included... I recognize there's a quarterly reward.. but it's hard to understand how much service that will get you... it's not easy to say "I have a $100 reward this quarter, I'm going to use exactly that $100" ... I'd rather have 1 free maintenance procedure per quarter.
Sorry for all the stream of consciousness questions and comments!
@jeremyz123 Jeremy, LOTS of questions. Love it. Let me summarize and answer your questions:
Q: Do we replace like-for-like and/or cut checks?
A: Yes!
Q: Is getting a service-person a complete hassle?
A: NO! We want to make this as easy as possible for you. You can contact us via desktop, tablet, or mobile. You can email, text, or call. Whatever you’d like!
Q: How do you vet the service people?
A: See response to @corleyh above!
Q: Are you likely to try and continually fix something?
A: No, we won’t beat a dead horse. :) We’re working to re-imagine the service experience. It’s expensive to roll a truck, and it’s annoying for a homeowner to have more visits. So obviously, you and I both want to avoid that. BTW, when you get a higher quality service provider, they have better metrics when it comes to the number of visits and the total time to get something fixed.
Q: So are the things on the "maintenance schedule" page basically not covered? Do you make it easier by going through Super? Is there some kind of point or reward system?
A: Maintenance items are not “covered”, but all product levels come with “service rewards”. Service rewards are money you can spend on any home service coordinated by our concierge, but we’d LOVE to see you apply it towards maintenance. We will be launching programs that give you even more service rewards. On a first version of the product, it’s tough to know who needs which maintenance components. But since everyone has breakdowns, we cover breakdowns for everyone.
Q: On the quarterly service reward, do those accumulate, or is it use-it or lose-it?
A: The quarterly service rewards are use-it-or-lose it. As we launch additional service reward programs, we may extend service rewards.
Q: What’s up with co-pays?
A: Yeah, I hate the old-school sounding stuff too, but we wanted to use a term that people instantly understood. As for why we did it, different people have different preferences. Hate co-pays? Our premium home subscription comes with a $0 co-pay. Want a lower monthly subscription? Go with a co-pay. Up to you!
Q: Service rewards vs a free maintenance procedure.
A: I hear you. On a first version of the product, it’s tough to know who needs what. I need gutter cleaning right now, but I wouldn’t as much if I had a gutter guard. But stay tuned! There will be more and more of what you’re asking for as we progress!
Thanks!!
Looks great! an aspect you might thought about but could be helpful - I think the majority of pains of owning a home occur in the first few months after moving in. A service specialised in helping set up everything and making a house a home is something potential users might be interested in.
Hi @ohadisohad, I like your idea! While we haven’t included anything like that explicitly in the first version of the product, we do include a concierge to coordinate any of your home service needs, which would include your example. Thanks!
This is REALLY cool. As a huge home warranty advocate, I love the idea of a monthly subscription vs. being invoiced annually for something that's continually increasing, especially if there's a focus on quality service.
Jorey, I'm the co-founder of Casamatic, and we're simplifying home search by matching buyers to homes based on things they truly care about, like proximity to great activities, foods, and friends and family, and styles, etc. We're only in a handful of markets today but I'd love to see if there's an opportunity to work together.
Hi @joreyramer! How is your coverage (especially the appliance warranty piece) guaranteed/underwritten? Do you work with a third party insurance partner? If not, how do I know my year-long subscription fee is a safe investment?
@jgulden Hi Josiah! We are not affiliated with an third party insurance partner. We’re looking to change the home ownership experience by creating a new way, and we have great investors backing the business. If folks have concerns, we’re happy to start them with a monthly plan. Thanks!
Would love to hear what made you go towards subscription vs. transaction fee? Very cool service, much needed in the market.
@ashish__walia Hi Ashish, Thanks! I talked more about that question in my Medium post (see above), but for me, it’s all about the consumer experience. You need to address all the pain points for a homeowner to truly make it feel different. It’s about the time, the cost, and the unpredictability of home ownership. A subscription can make costs more predictable and reduce/remove the pain of unbudgeted expenses. Glad you like it!
I'd love to hear how Super compares to Home Warranty Services like AHS (https://www.ahs.com/) . My gut says its convenience (self-serve, app based) and quality of service (traditional home warranty companies are not looked at in high regard), which would make this a true contender in the space. Would love to hear your thoughts @joreyramer!
@trever: I love this question, so please excuse me if I answer it passionately. :)
The home warranty industry has been around for 40 years and for the past ten years have had the highest percentage of poor grades among Angie’s List categories. (http://www.angieslist.com/news-r...)
Home warranties have a good value proposition, but I’ve spoken with many consumers who are incredibly frustrated with the quality of the service delivery. Fundamentally, if you sell a one year warranty, quality service is less important. We are a subscription business designed for you to take throughout the lifespan of your home; quality is absolutely critical.
Further, their value proposition is incomplete (lacking maintenance and other home service categories), and it does not deliver the experience that I’m looking for (see Medium post above).
I look at the home warranty industry and say that it’s time to use what many technology-focused companies have already done: use mobile to gain more visibility into service processes, track more comprehensive metrics to determine who can best serve a customer, and personalize a service offering for the specifics of the customer, in this case a homeowner, their home, and their needs.
Thanks!
@joreyramer @trever sorry, but I don't buy it.
We are a subscription business designed for you to take throughout the lifespan of your home; quality is absolutely critical. -> Actually in order for your business to succeed in the long term, quality is not critical....margins are. You are not commercially incentivized to supply the highest quality (highest cost) in your cost model when you decide you want to turn a profit. During a growth phase, I can see how quality is key, but given what appears to be an easy cancellation from a customer, how do you expect to maintain your customers (i.e. eliminate churn), provide 5-star service providers and still create healthy enough margins? I'm curious to understand how software here is aligning every involved party to that aim.
use mobile to gain more visibility into service processes -> how is a mobile app going to determine whether an air duct repairman knows what he is talking about when fixing my air duct? This seems to be the biggest issue as a homeowner - I have no idea whether the person on the other side is telling the truth or is knowledgable. Their processes, as it relates to the overall cost of delivery are usually not the issue.
track more comprehensive metrics to determine who can best serve a customer -> which metrics precisely?
personalize a service offering for the specifics of the customer, in this case a homeowner, their home, and their needs -> given the complexities of customer needs and varieties of households, this sounds incredibly manual (and don't foresee it being automated away with software)
Your home page looks wonderful, easy to use, and the service *appears* to be a joy to consume, but with things like this, the devil is in the details.
@mbesto @trever Hi Mike! Let me summarize and answer your questions one by one:
Q: How do you balance margins and customer quality, and how does software help?
A: This is a complex topic, but things work differently for us as a commercial entity than they do for a consumer. A service provider is not simply a single entity. We work with one of the highest rated service providers in one particular region. Within their organization, they have many technicians with different skills and quality work. A consumer will pay the highest retail rate regardless of the technician onsite. We are a commercial entity and may pay different amounts based on the type of engagement. With greater visibility into these aspects, technology helps match the need with the required work and cost.
Q: How is a mobile app going to determine whether an air duct repairman knows what he is talking about when fixing my air duct?
A: The mobile app doesn’t, but we do. Going back to the previous example, only one technician within that service provider is trained to repair a sealed system. We know who. If you call and get a different technician for a broken refrigerator, he may need to send his co-worker back for a second visit if you need that type of repair.
Q: Which metrics precisely?
A: Well we can’t give away all our secrets on Product Hunt! :) But some things are obvious. Was a servicer on-time? How long did a repair take? Which technician performed the service? What were the symptoms, solution, and costs? And more.
Q: How can we personalize a service offering with technology?
A: Some things are simple. Do you have gutter guards? That makes a big difference on gutter cleaning frequency. Some things are difficult. The point is that there has never been a technology company in market aggregating this data for the purposes of building a subscription model for consumers. Now there is.
I totally agree the devil is in the details. We love those details! Thanks!
The critical question. Distribution. How do you get this in front of home owners in a way that doesn't cost a fortune? I talk to real estate tech entrepreneurs regularly, and reaching consumers is an insanely challenging proposition for all. Are you thinking through having agents/brokers distribute this to their clients, and give them either branding or money?
@drewmeyers Here’s the good news. If you read the @passingnotes thread above, there’s already precedent. Existing incumbents distribute product through both direct and indirect channels. If we achieve our vision of a higher NPS, that would mean we should have lower churn, higher LTV, and therefore larger CAC to play with. Further, there are many companies that refuse to distribute product from the incumbents because of their poor service quality. This means we have distribution opportunities available to us that are not available to them. Thanks!
@joreyramer A great product is necessary in any case. But I still don't really buy the "build it and they will come". Strategically partnering somehow with those servicing the transaction would seem to make a lot of sense for you.
@bobsenoff There's definitely a massive opportunity to improve home ownership. I'll be curious to see who executes against it long term --> http://geekestateblog.com/super-...
Wow, this looks SUPER helpful. This solves a real problem lots of people have. Best of luck, and great work!
Was super excited for this till I figured out this will not be working for me, I live in Melbourne, Australia. All the best @joreyramer
@joreyramer I have to admit, upon first glance I was super skeptical. I've been a homeowner for a long-time now - so I've figured all of these things out. Then I took a step back and thought...wait, I would have loved this when I was a first-time homeowner.
So a few questions for you:
1. How do you plan to reach people and let them know that this service exists?
2. How do you plan to address quality? For example, I might be willing to pay more for higher quality service.
3. Is your approach to be a marketplace (find the buyers and the sellers) or operate more like an insurance product (given the scale of people paying in you would have people choose their provider and you would pay certain rates)?
Hi @corleyh,
Glad you gave us a second thought! Lots of questions. Let me respond:
1) Obviously my #1 answer is via Product Hunt! :) But we have other ways. See @drewmeyers question above.
2) Very important. Three ways: before, during, and after. “Before” means that we investigate the reputation of the service provider before we first engage with them. “During” means that we speak with them to better understand the business practices that they have in place. “After” means we track metrics after they begin work (e.g., customer service feedback, on-time arrival, time to fix). We’re not only on the hook for cost; we’re also on the hook for quality.
3) We are not a marketplace. We are a subscription, and when you subscribe, you become a member. Members benefit from having us on the hook to find the right provider for the right job at the right time. Rating sites and marketplaces depend on crowdsourced high level data to power your decision making. We’re different. We use more detailed operational data to power our decision making. This applies towards covered costs as much as it applies towards any home service we coordinate.
One last note. Even though you’ve figured it out as a long-time homeowner, we have the buying power of many homes. Consumers only have the buying power of one home. This means that we’re in the position to negotiate better pricing and better availability. That’s big.
Great job Jorey and team! It's awesome to see this launched. As a homeowner I'm excited about how much it's going to help.
@joreyramer @ryandonnelly @blue944 - can you guys tell us a bit about the development process for super please?
Hi @bentossell, I talk about my personal story in the Medium post above, which led to the initial kernel of the idea. I spent a lot of time after that researching and talking with investors before I was ready to put together the team.
@blue944 came onboard as co-founder with a unique background, having had experience in online/mobile businesses and in home service/repair operations.
@ryandonnelly joined soon after to co-found the business on the technical side. Ryan and I started our careers at Trilogy together. Trilogy was ranked last year by Founder Dating as the second most entrepreneurial alumni community. (http://founderdating.com/entrepr...). Its alumni are responsible for having started companies exiting for more than $4 billion combined.
We began servicing customers within three and a half months after funding, but we remained in stealth mode until we worked through the financial and operational complexities required to put our subscription product in place.
Thanks!
@hunterwalk was talking about this about wanting something like this over a year ago.
I just visited the site and the area now serviced (DC area) is microscopic. I couldn't find the button to sign up for notifications for my area and had to chat with Bill to find it. I'm sure you guys are losing tons of leads from this. The writing is microscopic there and there isn't a Big Ol Button for people to click and sign up for notifications.
I'm super interested in this and can't wait for it to come to the Atlanta area. My HSA warranty expires in the summer next year and would jump all over this!
@jkhallatl Hi Keith, Glad you spoke with Bill. I agree: the font is too small. :)
Regarding Washington DC, we wanted to launch a solution that applies to all homeowners, and we looked at many different criteria, including climate, density, and demographics. Washington DC was the best aligned with our business and happens to be the seventh largest DMA nationally.
Glad you’re excited! We’ll let you know when we get to Atlanta!
@coreywstone Not yet, but please enter your email on our website (see "Live elsewhere?") to get notified when we come to your town! Thanks!
I've lived these challenges myself - in fact right now I need help fixing wallpaper coming unglued, a leak in a bath that's literally gone on for months, among other annoyances. As we move towards reduced ownership of things like cars (uber) and vacation homes (Airbnb), I still believe people will own homes but want the convenience of these services for their primary residence. Great idea Jorey!