Ten Questions with Eduardo Garbayo, CEO at Spotahome

Isn't it funny how life turns out sometimes? You travel to Spain on a whim for a three-month summer internship and, nearly ten years later, you interview the CEO at the very same company as part of your new career.

Spotahome is a core piece of my personal and professional journey. And with news emerging that founder and long-term CEO Alejandro Artacho has stepped down from the company after 12 years of highs and lows, I reached out to the incumbent, Eduardo Garbayo (pictured), to paint an updated picture of Spotahome's rentals marketplace, from monetisation and customer service to scaling across borders, his big vision for the business, and the future of rentals in the age of AI...

What problem does Spotahome solve?

Spotahome brings trust, transparency and security to mid- and long-term rentals. Our value proposition is security-first renting, becoming the best platform to rent online.

For tenants, we offer flexible monthly and long-term stays, professionally verified properties, fraud prevention, secure payments, and deposit protection. If a landlord unfairly withholds a deposit, Spotahome refunds the tenant and manages the resolution directly. From booking through the entire stay, tenants are supported by a dedicated team, ensuring peace of mind when renting remotely.

For landlords, we provide a secure, profitable and efficient way to maximise occupancy without viewings or operational friction. Through Spotahome Plus, landlords benefit from tenant verification, payment guarantees, and damage protection. The result is one of the most secure rental experiences available in the market.

Where does the business operate, and who are its main customers?

Spotahome operates in more than 500 cities across Europe, including major markets such as Madrid, Barcelona, Milan, Rome, Lisbon, Berlin, Paris, Brussels, Dublin and London.

Our core demand comes from international students and mobile professionals aged 18 to 35 relocating for work, studies, or temporary projects. On the supply side, we work with individual landlords, agencies, and professional investors looking for reliable tenants and hassle-free rental management.

How has Spotahome’s structure changed since the COVID-19 pandemic?

The pandemic marked a turning point for the company. Since then, Spotahome has evolved into a leaner, more resilient organisation with a strong focus on sustainable unit economics. We moved from aggressive expansion to disciplined growth, prioritising markets with clear product-market fit.

Today, the company is more automated, more data-driven, and more focused on long-term profitability while preserving what defines us: trust, security and a high-quality customer experience.

How is the business funded, and how does it generate revenue on both the tenant and the landlord side?

Spotahome has always been venture-backed, but over the past few years, we've become less dependent on external capital by driving toward profitability. Our revenue model is straightforward: we charge tenants a service fee at booking and landlords a commission on successful bookings tied to rent value.

Under my leadership, the two fundamental shifts are toward prioritising tenant and landlord experience and security above all else and leveraging the new opportunities enabled by artificial intelligence.

What numbers can you share about the business?

In 2025, Spotahome closed around 40,000 rentals across more than 160 European cities, generating €17 million in net revenue.

What is your strategic priority as the incumbent CEO? What is the biggest need for the company today?

My strategic priority as CEO is to build on the position Spotahome has reached and guide the company through its next phase of sustainable growth. Today, the biggest opportunity for the company is to scale what already works well. Spotahome has established itself as a leading platform in mid and long-term rentals across Europe, and the focus now is to grow in a disciplined and sustainable way while continuing to improve the experience for both tenants and landlords.

We operate in a market that is evolving quickly, and that creates an opportunity to keep raising the bar in terms of trust, transparency and service. By continuing to invest in technology and data, we can make the rental journey simpler, safer and more intuitive, while preserving the human approach that has always been central to our model.

My goal is to ensure Spotahome continues to grow with ambition, clarity and long-term vision.

Spotahome was one step ahead of the curve with the ‘zero-visit’ model. How do you see visitless rentals being impacted by AI in the coming years?

AI is already transforming visitless rentals across security, efficiency and personalisation. At Spotahome, AI helps detect fraud across more than 110,000 listings, improves matching between tenants and homes, and accelerates customer support.

Automation of customer-facing rental interactions has increased from 30% to over 85%, while response times have dropped from hours to seconds in many cases.

The future is hybrid: AI provides speed and scale, while humans deliver empathy, judgment and trust. Together, they define the next generation of remote renting.

What lessons have you learned about scaling a business domestically and abroad?

We learned that being in 20 cities doesn't matter if you're not profitable in any of them. Early on, Spotahome expanded aggressively into new markets without always ensuring product-market fit or sustainable unit economics.

Today, our approach is disciplined expansion. Before entering a new market, we ask: Do we have local supply? Is there organic demand? Can we provide excellent service? Can we be profitable here within 12-18 months? If the answer to any of these is no, we don't go.

How does Spotahome address tenant protection issues for cash-poor tenants relying on the good faith of landlords they haven’t met?

Tenant protection is central to our model. We have strengthened deposit protection, introduced transparent landlord ratings, revamped listings to ensure full clarity on fees and policies, and implemented proactive communication throughout the rental journey.

Our goal is simple: tenants should feel protected before, during and after their stay. The results speak for themselves: tenant satisfaction has improved significantly in 2025, and we're just getting started. Our mission is to be Europe's most trusted rental platform.

What are your short, medium and long-term goals for the business?

In the short term, our goal is to achieve full-year EBITDA profitability while continuing to grow responsibly.

In the medium term, we aim to expand beyond Europe and explore adjacent services around rentals.

Long term, our vision is to become the world’s most trusted rental experience: a platform where tenants, landlords and investors can manage their rental journey securely and transparently.

What is something the real estate industry should spend more time talking about?

The industry should focus far more on trust, transparency and security.

When landlords feel protected, supply increases. When tenants feel safe, mobility grows. Artificial intelligence can play a powerful role in enabling both; improving efficiency while strengthening protection on both sides of the marketplace.

The winners in PropTech over the next decade will be the platforms that build lasting trust, not just transactions.