India’s CommonFloor gets into new property area with acquisition of student accommodation startup

Indian property listings site CommonFloor got $10 million in fresh funds at the start of this year. Some of that cash has just been put to good use to acquire the student accommodation marketplace Flat.io.

The deal – for an unknown sum – sees CommonFloor venture into a new real estate area, covering rental flats and hostel rooms aimed at students and bachelors. It’s a growing sector as more Indians venture away from their hometowns to attend college or seek a first job. CommonFloor cites a UN-HABITAT survey that estimates 3.7 million Indians migrate within the country on account of education, while more than 10 million do so in search of a job.

(See: INFOGRAPHIC: How do India’s major startup hubs measure up to those in the US?)

Startup just 10 months old

Flat.io covers rentals in Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Kota, Jaipur, and Delhi. The site – which started up just 10 months ago – will continue to operate independently. Today’s announcement says the site is now getting 25,000 visits a month.

CommonFloor, which focuses on brand-new property developments, has over 250,000 million property listings right now in about 120 Indian cities.