Uber announces first involvement with private rental sector

Uber and a Build To Rent developer have announced a PropTech deal which will see the transport company getting involved in the private rental sector for the first time. 

Tenants at schemes operated by BTR firm Moda Living will receive up to £100 in Uber credits per month if they agree not to have a car parking space in the building. Using a bespoke app, residents will hire an Uber when they wish. 

Moda Living is currently building some 6,000 rental-only homes in major cities across England and Scotland, coinciding with locations where Uber operates.

By partnering with Uber, Moda Living claims it will “create more sustainable developments as city leaders tackle the challenge of building millions of homes while also reducing emissions.”

Moda proposes to have schemes in in London, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, and Birmingham; its first scheme, Angel Gardens in Manchester, is currently under construction and will house close to 900 residents when it completes in 2019.

Moda Living’s buildings are created only for rent, and include shared areas that - in the firm’s words - “mimic a high-end hotel.” 

The company plans to offer tenants a bespoke app to connect with each other, control heating and entertainment, as well as order food and other services, such as booking a ride through Uber. Uber integration will offer Moda Living customers a frictionless city centre renting experience.

“Cars are one of the most expensive assets most people own, but they’re used just five per cent of the time. Our mission is for everybody to have a reliable ride at the touch of a button so they don’t need their own car. These plans for what will be a unique partnership with Moda Living is a big step forward in making that a reality. By getting more people to ditch their own vehicles we can put some of the space wasted on parking to much better use” says Jo Bertram, regional general manager of Uber in the UK. 

Johnny Caddick of Moda Living says: “Our apartments are for rent rather than for sale so we need to consider how our customers will live in cities in the future. A partnership with Uber would not only give our customers an affordable ride at the touch of a button - it would also enable us to design better buildings with more space for social interaction.”