Real Estate Platform Oyssey Generates Buzz Before Launch

Oyssey has been the talk of the residential real estate scene in recent weeks, but only because of a moment of serendipity.

Huw Nierenberg, chief executive officer of the emerging platform, told The Real Deal that a reporter for a regional outlet came across Oyssey as a customer, proceeding to pound out a story on it. From there, publications across the country have picked up on the platform, which even became a topic of discussion on “The View.”

“I think that is not a good idea,” Whoopi Goldberg said. Sunny Hostin was on the other side of the conversation, seeing the value of the app, which was not specifically named in the segment.

Nierenberg, who is also a managing partner with Dansk Real Estate Advisors in Boston, described the flurry of attention in recent weeks as “incredibly humbling.”

So what exactly is Oyssey? The tech startup was founded in 2022, designed to use social data to garner better insights on homebuyers. Nierenberg describes Oyssey as a “customer purchasing management platform,” where brokerages can support buyers with data, manage compliance and securely organize documents.

But one aspect in particular is what’s receiving the most attention — and criticism from the likes of Goldberg — is its potential to scour neighborhoods block-by-block to see the political affiliations of those who live in the area. Goldberg said the feature “fosters more division.”

Oyssey says the political insights are based on publicly accessible data, such as election results and campaign contributions. The consumer data, meanwhile, is licensable commercial data. Nierenberg expressed confidence in the accuracy of the information.

Right now, the platform is accessible by invitation only.

This month, Oyssey is holding a soft launch in New York and South Florida. Real estate agents and multiple listing services will be able to access data, from demographic information to political leanings.To start, users will pay $99 per month.

One feature Nierenberg emphasized in multiple interviews was the platform’s ability to create custom buyer-broker agreements, which could prove invaluable after the National Association of Realtors ushered in new rules over the summer.

“It’s about time buyers have control of how their own contracts work, and that can mean more commission opportunities for savvy agents,” Nierenberg said.

Nierenberg has lofty goals and wants his product to be perceived as the king of the listings platforms.

He’s even setting his sights on the competition and said, “We’re raising our seed round to take the industry by storm and to replace Zillow, who, in our opinion, has missed every opportunity to provide real value for buyers.”