Bryan Young successfully launched four companies before he co-founded Home Lending Pal Inc. in 2017.
The Orlando-based tech startup, however, is the first time Young has gone after outside capital to grow a business. On top of that, the founders consist of CEO Young, who is black, and Chief Operating Officer Steven Better, who is Latino.
Just 1% of founders backed by venture capital in the past five years were black, according to a 2019 study published by RateMyInvestor and DiversityVC. At the same time, just under 25% of startups in the professional, scientific and tech sector are minority-owned, according to a 2019 analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data by Austin-based software firm Volusion LLC.
It’s a fact Young was well aware of when he began raising money for the artificial intelligence-powered mortgage adviser, he told Orlando Business Journal. “I knew it was going to be tough for us.”
Still, the company raised $200,000 from an assortment of funding sources to get to the point it could soft-launch in August. Now, the company is closing in on a $750,000 seed round of fundraising, Young said.
About Home Lending Pal Top executive: Bryan Young, CEO
What it is: Website for simulating searches for home mortgage loan
Founded: 2017
Employees: 12
Next step: Raising $750,000 seed round
Funding sources
Local Angel investors: $150,000
Young’s money from previous businesses: $100,000
Grant from entrepreneurship foundation NC Idea: $50,000