Ownwell Raises $50M for Property Tax Appeal Service
Ownwell, a company that helps property owners appeal their tax assessments, announced it has raised $50 million in funding and is launching its service nationwide. The company reports it has already saved property owners more than $400 million by modernizing the tax appeal process.
- The $50 million financing consists of a $30 million Series B equity round co-led by Alpha Edison and Mercato Partners, with an additional $20 million in debt. - The Austin-based company was founded in 2020 by Colton Pace, Joseph Noor, and Frank DiZenzo. CEO Colton Pace previously worked as an investor in companies like Redfin and Uber, where he identified inequities between sophisticated real estate investors and everyday property owners. - Ownwell operates on a contingency fee model, charging clients a percentage (typically 25%) of the tax savings they achieve, with no upfront costs. If the company fails to save the property owner money, the service is free. - The service joins a growing property tax services market projected to grow from $3.5 billion in 2024 to over $6.4 billion by 2032, driven by rising property values and complex tax regulations. - Prior to this round, Ownwell had raised a total of $7.5 million, including a $5.75 million seed round in May 2022, which was led by First Round Capital. - The company claims that nine out of ten of its protests are successful, with residential customers saving an average of $1,457. - Ownwell's strategy involves using AI to analyze property data to identify over-assessed properties, after which its team of local tax experts handles the appeals process. - The increase in property tax appeals is a national trend, with cities like San Francisco seeing the number of commercial and residential appeals more than triple between 2020 and 2023.
