Why is it so &^%$ing hard to find a parking spot? Parxit is the go-to application for parking in mixed-used neighborhoods
ParXit was created to assist in solving the parking problem/struggle/grind for hyper growth cities, areas and neighborhoods. We give the population the ability to monetize unused real estate while simultaneously helping the community with an immediate need.
COMMENTARY
Herman: Ready to rent your driveway?
By Ken Herman - American-Statesman Staff
Looks like your driveway could be the Next Big Thing in what the kids call the “sharing economy.” And please understand that when the kids say “sharing” they mean “renting.”
Meet ParXit, a service and app that went live in recent days.
The concept is simple. Parking’s a big giant pain in some parts of Austin. Some Austinites in those parts have driveways that are vacant at times. ParXit’s path to profit is putting those two demographics together and taking a 15 percent cut.
I’ve seen lesser ideas succeed. Who’d have thought you could make money by getting people to pay to get into strangers’ cars, something your mother warned you against?
New Jersey native (please, let’s not profile) and 1994 University of Texas grad Jonathan Kanarek is running ParXit, a service he says “is really all about ‘I need a parking spot right now’ or ‘I need a parking spot because I’m going shopping on South Congress’ or ‘I’m coming here.’”
“Here,” in that quote was Bouldin Creek Café, where Kanarek recently explained ParXit to me. And the “I” in that quote could be you, especially an exasperated version of you as you try to find parking in some parts of town.
“Parking is a nightmare around here,” Kanarek said. “And to some extent the city drove that with the residents with the parking permit so all of these streets in this area are permit only for the residents. But that drove a business model, which is ‘Now I can rent out my driveway.’”
The idea germinated from one, originally about valet parking, born in the head of UT student Mason Hunt of Houston. The idea evolved into ParXit that generated between $100,000 and $500,000 in what Kanarek called “seed money” from Hunt’s “friends and family.” (You have friends and family like that, don’t you?) A venture capital push will soon follow.
“This is not amateur hour,” Kanarek said.
ParXit initially is targeting the South Congress Avenue, Bouldin Creek, Clarksville and Zilker Park areas.
The goal is simplicity. The ParXit app asks if you want to be a parker or somebody who wants to rent their driveway to a parker. Job one for ParXit is to get an inventory of driveways. Parking is by the hour, and the price is set by the driveway owner. On Tuesday afternoon, prices for a spot near South Congress ranged from $3 to $6 an hour. ParXit takes a 15 percent cut.
There are, of course, some caveats, some of which, of course, involve insurance and laws. Kanarek said most homeowners’ policies should cover you if you opt to rent out your driveway. Check with Flo or whoever sells you your homeowners insurance.
And, Kanarek advises, you might want to check with Austin city officials, though he said, “within Austin this is perfectly legal, and you’re able to do this today. It doesn’t require special permits.”
But, aware of the ways of this city, Kanarek is expecting the city might hear from folks who are not happy about their neighbors turning their driveways into profit-making ventures. And ParXit, he said, might in turn hear from the city.
“The reality is the city hasn’t thought of this yet, so eventually it might require those things,” he said of permits, etc. “As the city gets into regulating this, we’re looking forward to working with the city of Austin.”
We then shared a good laugh about a City Council discussion of ParXit at about 1 a.m. sometime about eight months from now.
ParXit’s rollout featured 1,200 balloons and pamphlets recently left at Bouldin Creek neighborhood homes, an area including streets reserved for parking by residents. The pitch produced “overwhelming positive response,” Kanarek said, noting about a third of the balloons led to folks expressing interest and submitting email addresses, the holy grail for many startups.
“We’ve also gotten a series of emails from people who don’t love us,” he said. “They think we’re going to turn the neighborhood into commercial parking. That’s not what we want to do. What we really want to do is give homeowners the ability to generate a little bit of income off that driveway that’s costing them money today.”
Here’s one potential line of anti-ParXit reasoning we could hear: Street parking for residents with permits could become scarcer if more neighborhood residents opt to park on the street so they can monetize their driveways.
As with all startups, success is not inevitable. In this one, the immediate obstacle is supply.
“The nightmare is that people don’t list their driveways,” Kanarek said. “I think there’s plenty of people who want to find parking.”
The goal is 500-1,000 driveways within 30 days. We’ll see. And success here could lead to expansion to other cities.
Hey, I’ve got a bed that’s unused at times. Maybe I should see how much cash my friends and family would pitch in for NapXit.
http://www.mystatesman.com/news/news/local/herman-ready-to-rent-your-driveway/npkNf/#