Cohabit Raises $1.2 Million to Become Truth Source for Housing Blocks

Sydney-based proptech startup Cohabit has raised $1.2 million in funding from key stakeholders and prominent Australian business leaders, just six months after its soft launch. The data and benchmarking platform for strata and residential buildings attracted high-profile investors including Qantas chairman John Mullen, DigiDirect and Booktopia CEO Shant Kradjian, Sentia founder Michael Cindric, and KerinBenson Lawyers principal Christopher Kerin.

Founded in 2023 by CEO Thom Richards, Cohabit uses AI to analyze strata records, building information, pricing data, and benchmarked industry data to create digital profiles and health scores for buildings. The platform serves as an independent source of truth for housing blocks across Australia, providing insights to different stakeholders throughout the property ecosystem.

“We allow the digital profile to be accessed by different stakeholders, such as owners, if they want to understand the health of their block and drive change,” Richards explained. “Strata managers can access it if they want to understand benchmark data for their portfolio, and buyers can access it if they want to do due diligence on a building before they purchase an apartment within that scheme.”

Richards, a serial founder who previously co-founded payment platform Managed App with Nick Bouris, took a strategic approach to the capital raise. Rather than pursuing venture capital, he leveraged his network to attract investors with both corporate credentials and specific expertise in strata fields. He had already invested $500,000 of his own funds into the company.

“We went quite strategic with it,” Richards said. “It wasn’t a public round. We didn’t go through venture capital. I’m very much someone who likes to work within my own network and people that really understand the space, because I feel that delivers the best product at the end of the day.”

Cohabit has accumulated approximately 50,000 building profiles across Australia and employs 10 people across development, product, customer service, and go-to-market teams. Chief technology officer Michael Cindric leads a software engineering team based in Sydney and Ukraine. The company is developing several new products, including risk ratings for insurance companies, an expert portal SaaS product for inspection reporting services, and a levy payment system for strata buildings.

The startup has attracted interest from 15 leading strata inspection companies that have signed on to the platform, along with inquiries from Australian listing portals, strata insurers, and adjacent strata services exploring distribution partnerships. The funding will support product development acceleration and team expansion as Cohabit works to drive consumer confidence in the strata space.

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