# Step one: skip college. Step two: launch a tech startup - Host: [tech.mn](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/hosts/tech.mn/) - Saved: July 18, 2011 (2011-07-19T00:36:08Z) - Record: https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/1444a2b73fc5/ - JSON: https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/1444a2b73fc5.json ## From the page (probably an excerpt, not Jamie's words) At the ripe age of 18 and while still in high school, entrepreneur Nathan Reimnitz picked up a copy of “Freakonomics” and made a conscious decision to skip the traditional college path. Instead, he (politely) passed on MIT, curtailed his skateboarding business, and went to work full steam on tackling a much bigger industry in dire need of innovation — Real Estate. Reimnitz, now 22,  initially started his business in 2007 as a ‘for sale by owner (FSBO)’ concept that would allow property renters and sellers to leverage the marketing capabilities of technology without the need of a realtor. “The book had a chapter about agents…a middleman whose interests were actually their own, first and foremost,” he recalls.  Initially named and modeled after CarSoup, VillaSoup reached revenue within two weeks by automating FSBO listings across a network of dozens of classified sites for a flat fee. “Our goal at the time, as it remains today, is to help as many rent or sell their homes by having access to others who are searching for real estate,” he says. “Although nowadays, we work with agents much more than we do against them,” he admits, testifying to the degree that services like his have leveled the playing field for the customer over the years.  “…and getting our start during the real estate crash was actually a good thing for a company like ours who assist sellers with maximizing their profits.” Today, the newly re-branded SyncMyAd is a SaaS built on that same simple premise — uniting sellers and renters (whether individual, agency, or managers) — with potential buyers via automation tools.  The firm has continued to thrive with the kind of results that come from years of learning, venture capital investment via Space Center Ventures, and a business marriage with partner Dustin Griess (left). Proving to be successful is a control panel which allows property managers to maintain a consistent message for their property across multiple online websites on their own. Here, an interface allows customers to manage property descriptions, photos, amenities, floor plans, and rent prices. Once a new customer has signed up and the property data is loaded into the system, it is automatically shared with up to 1,500 websites through classifieds, search engines, social networking sites, and ILS listing services (multi-services). While never too specific on what the secret sauce is, Reimnitz notes that “…with a high level of syndication, our customers can be confident that their listings receive maximum exposure across the web.” SyncMyAd customers are able to select from one of two subscription-based models: ‘single family’ or ‘multi-unit’, both of which currently run $39.95 per month. For $79/month, they can upgrade to a Pro versions and obtain additional features like premium placement, a phone tracking tool and an ILS updater tool. While competition exists in this space, SyncMyAd cites many advantages, including being one of the first to market in the space as well as “uniquely robust syndication capabilities” through strong partnerships with companies like Cazoodle.com. “I have never been the type of person to sit down and listen to someone teach me,” says Reimnitz, “I would rather go out and start my own thing and learn from my mistakes in the real world.” Perhaps other young and aspiring local entrepreneurs can find inspiration and confidence in Remnitz’s success. ## Facts - Kind: [Page](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/kinds/page/) ## Same host - [Registration Opens for Minnesota’s Seminal Tech unConference](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/a9232b3f8d5d/) (tech.mn, April 23, 2011) - [Minnesota Welcomes Serial Tech Entrepreneur John Tedesco](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/21c8bb398cb8/) (tech.mn, July 29, 2011) - [TST Media banks $3.5m second round led by El Dorado Ventures](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/065db5327248/) (tech.mn, August 22, 2011) - [TECHdotMN – TECHdotMN TV Debut Interview with Naiku](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/93fedf6da7a5/) (tech.mn, September 2, 2011) - [TECHdotMN TV #5: MinneDemo](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/fb1444e84aca/) (tech.mn, October 7, 2011) ## Saved the same week - [Special Report: Inside Rebekah Brooks' News of the World | Reuters](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/5ac9a676bb1e/) (reuters.com, July 18, 2011) - [When Your E-Mail Goes Unanswered - NYTimes.com](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/5b3b4c8b5662/) (nytimes.com, July 18, 2011) - [Les Twins](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/534ed2bcbd69/) (kottke.org, July 18, 2011) - [Six weeks after World IPv6 Day, what have we learned?](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/a89c7d03e01f/) (arstechnica.com, July 18, 2011) - [Thirty Minutes](https://links.thingelstad.xyz/links/3679b9c3c0fc/) (laynekennedy.blogspot.com, July 18, 2011) ## Elsewhere - Wayback Machine: https://web.archive.org/web/*/http://tech.mn/news/2011/07/18/syncmyad-nathan-reimnitz/