PropTech Innovator Rook Capital Partners with Keller Williams Northern Colorado and First Bank to Expand Home Ownership and Solve Home Affordability

Boulder, CO  Oct 18, 2022 – PropTech innovator Rook Capital partners with Keller Williams Northern Colorado and First Bank to expand home ownership and solve the home affordability problem. Leveraging the power of its Shared Value Investment™, Rook Capital brings together homebuyers and community-based investors to accelerate home ownership and build communities.

“The last decade has seen a consistent upward trend in house prices. Combine that with higher interest rates and you get a really difficult situation for first time homebuyers and young families looking to establish community and generate wealth. Rook Capital has tailor-made a solution for this scenario and we are grateful to partner with Keller Williams Northern Colorado and First Bank to bring it to market and get families in homes,” said Rook Capital CEO Ed Messman.

Rook Capital’s Shared Value Investment™ creates a partnership between homebuyers and community-based investors to purchase a house with shared equity, shared risk and shared reward. The Shared Value Investment™ combines the power and protection of traditional home financing to offer homebuyers the ability to get into the right house with lower payments.

“We are proud to work alongside great partners to help get people in the right homes and build community,” said Messman. Keller Williams Northern Colorado’s David Rusaw added, “We have many prospective customers who just need a little help to be able to buy a house. Rook’s solution helps us expand the footprint of people we are able to help. It’s truly a winning partnership.”

John Ricotta of First Bank added, “One of our primary charters is to give back to the community that supports us. The housing situation in cities like Boulder, Colorado and other hotspots in the country are dire for young families. In partnership with Rook, we are opening new vistas of possibility for these prospective home buyers who are looking to live their American Dream.”

In this scenario, First Bank provides the 1st mortgage on the house while Rook brings up to 25% to help homeowners purchase and close. The homeowner makes no payments on Rook’s portion and can thus save or re-invest the money saved.

Rook leverages advanced data-science and modeling to identify locales and properties that offer the best prospects for return.

Rook is an innovative PropTech company focused on widening home ownership and solving home affordability. Rook’s Shared Value Investment brings homebuyers, investors, and the housing ecosystem into partnership with full life-cycle alignment. Rook is backed by a diverse set of investors, including LL Funds, First Mile Ventures, Kickstart Fund, Service Provider Capital, and Tango Ventures.

Keller Williams Northern Colorado is a leading brokerage and real estate firm serving the vibrant communities in Colorado. Keller Williams, the world’s largest real estate franchise by agent count, has more than 1,100 offices and 200,000 associates. They are also No. 1 in units and sales volume in the United States.

FirstBank began providing banking services in 1963. Today, it’s known as an industry leader in digital banking and has grown to be one of the largest privately held banks in the United States, maintaining more than $25 billion in assets and 110 branch locations across Colorado, Arizona and California. FirstBank has been recognized as a top corporate philanthropist, contributing nearly $75 million and thousands of volunteer hours to charitable organizations. MEMBER FDIC

Contact: Romi Mahajan | KKM Group | [email protected]

Written by Paul Dunay
Paul Dunay is an award-winning B2B marketing expert with more than 20 years’ success in generating demand and creating awareness for leading technology, consumer products, financial services and professional services organizations. Paul is the global vice president of marketing for Maxymiser a leading web optimization firm, and author of four “Dummies” books: Facebook Marketing for Dummies (Wiley 2009), Social Media and the Contact Center for Dummies (Wiley Custom Publishing 2010), Facebook Advertising for Dummies (Wiley 2010) and Facebook Marketing for Dummies 2nd Edition (Wiley 2011). His unique approach to marketing has led to recognition of Paul as a BtoB Magazine Top 25 B2B Marketer of the Year for 2010 and 2009 and winner of the DemandGen Award for Utilizing Marketing Automation to Fuel Corporate Growth in 2008. He is also a finalist for the last six years in a row in the Marketing Excellence Awards competition of the Information Technology Services Marketing Association (ITSMA), and is a 2010 and 2005 gold award winner in Driving Demand. Buzz Marketing for Technology, Paul’s blog, has been recognized as a Top 20 Marketing Blog for 2009 and 2008, a Top Blog to Watch for 2009 and 2008, and an Advertising Age Power 150 blog in the “Daily Ranking of Marketing Blogs.” Paul has shared his marketing thought leadership as a featured speaker for the American Marketing Association, BtoB Magazine, CMO Club, MarketingProfs, Marketing Sherpa, Marketing Executives Networking Group (MENG), and ITSMA. He has appeared on Fox News, and his articles have been featured in BusinessWeek, The New York Times, BtoB Magazine, MarketingProfs and MarketingSherpa. Paul holds an Executive Certificate in Strategy and Innovation from MIT’s Sloan School of Management and a bachelor’s degree in Marketing and Computer Science from Ithaca College.