Obligo
Obligo is a U.S. fintech that replaces residential security deposits with AI-qualified payment authorizations and Wells Fargo-backed Letters of Credit, embedded inside major property management software systems and serving renters and property managers across all 50 states.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Obligo does
Obligo is a U.S. fintech founded in 2017 and headquartered in New York that replaces traditional residential security deposits with payment authorizations and bank-issued Letters of Credit, serving renters and property managers across all 50 states. The company qualifies renters through open banking data integrated via Plaid and applies AI/ML-driven risk models to determine eligibility and personalized pricing, then backs approved plans with Letters of Credit from Wells Fargo covering 100% of renter non-payment risk. At move-out, Obligo advances funds to property managers immediately via ACH and collects from residents, supporting transparent digital refunds and installment-based repayment.
The platform's core product is Deposit-Free Living, offered through four renter-selectable options: No Deposit, Reduced Deposit, Installments, or Full Deposit (with up to 2% APY earned on secured funds). Distribution runs primarily through embedded integrations with the six largest U.S. property management software systems — Yardi (RentCafe Living), AppFolio, Buildium, Entrata, MRI Software, and RealPage (OneSite) — augmented by a public Developer API, direct enterprise sales, and a self-serve renter portal. The company has scaled coverage to more than one million homes and reports property-level adoption rates as high as 80% when Obligo is offered.
Revenue is generated primarily from a non-refundable service fee charged as a percentage of the renter's deposit requirement, plus a transaction-based spread on interest earned on Full Deposit balances held by Obligo. Additional revenue layers are emerging from the October 2025 End-to-End Deposit Management Solution (outsourced deposit administration) and the June 2026 Deposit Agent autonomous AI for property managers. Total disclosed funding exceeds $90 million across rounds led by 83North and True Global Ventures, and the company has a 51–100-person team led by co-founders Roey Dor (CEO) and Omri Dor (COO).
Obligo firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Obligo
- Legal name
- Obligo Inc.
- Website
- https://myobligo.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Obligo is a U.S. fintech that replaces residential security deposits with AI-qualified payment authorizations and Wells Fargo-backed Letters of Credit, embedded inside major property management software systems and serving renters and property managers across all 50 states.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Obligo industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Rental Deposit Management Software
- NAICS
- Sales Financing (52222), Sales Financing (522220)
- SIC
- Personal Credit Institutions (6141), Surety Insurance (6351)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Collateral-Based Lines of Credit (Secured Revolving) (FSAKALAH)
Keywords
Where Obligo is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Obligo business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Obligo Service Fee: Obligo charges a non-refundable service fee for deposit-free plans. The fee is a percentage of the security deposit requirement, determined by each renter's individual profile including geography, property type, bank account balance, and security to rent ratio. Typically paid upfront for the initial lease term (up to 12 months). Renters who choose Installments option pay the fee over time and do not pay a fee in their second year upon renewal.
- Interest on Full Deposits: When renters choose the Full Deposit option, their secured funds earn up to 2% APY interest. This creates a revenue stream from the interest earned on deposited funds held by Obligo.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | No Deposit Option - Pay only the Obligo service fee |
| Subscription | Annual | Reduced Deposit Option - Lower upfront payment |
| Subscription | Monthly | Installments Option - Pay fee over time |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Annual | Full Deposit with Interest - Earn up to 2% APY |
Go-to-market motion4 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels9 records
Obligo product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Obligo replaces traditional cash security deposits with flexible payment authorizations for residential rentals. Renters qualify through open banking verification and select from options including No Deposit, Reduced Deposit, Installments, or Full Deposit earning up to 2% APY. Property managers receive guaranteed payment via Wells Fargo Letters of Credit, while renters connect a payment method on file that Obligo uses to advance move-out charges digitally and manage the full deposit lifecycle from move-in to move-out.
Product overview
Obligo is a fintech company offering a holistic suite of deposit solutions that replaces traditional security deposits with flexible payment methods on file. The core product, Deposit-Free Living, enables renters to qualify using open banking data and AI-driven assessment, choosing from options including No Deposit, Reduced Deposit, Installments, or Full Deposit. At move-out, Obligo advances funds to property managers immediately via ACH while collecting from residents. The platform integrates with leading property management systems (Yardi, AppFolio, Buildium, Entrata, MRI, RealPage) and offers an open API for custom integrations. Additional offerings include an End-to-End Deposit Management Solution for outsourced operations and the autonomous Deposit Agent AI for automating deposit administration. The annual Renter's Trust Awards program recognizes property managers for fair deposit practices.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Deposit-Free Living
- End-to-End Deposit Management Solution
- Deposit Agent
- Obligo Developer API
Quantifiable outcome
- Trusted in over 1 million homes across the U.S.
- +6 more outcomes
Companies that use Obligo
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Obligo technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration7 records
AI capability3 records
Feature6 records
Obligo partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.
- AppFolioflagshipPartnership to launch flexible deposit alternatives tailored to meet the needs of today's renters. Embedded solution within AppFolio's property management platform.
- Yardi (RentCafe Living)flagshipNew security deposit option unveiled within Yardi's RentCafe Living platform, expanding the embedded deposit solution for Yardi customers.
- YardiflagshipStrategic partnership to launch embedded security deposit alternative. Integration into Yardi's RentCafe Living platform enables property managers to offer deposit-free living directly within their existing Yardi workflows.
- BuildiumcoreEmbedded solution available through Buildium Marketplace. Integration frees up time for property managers by simplifying the security deposit process.
- EntratacoreEmbedded solution coming soon, currently available via API integration for Entrata customers.
- MRI SoftwarecoreAvailable through MRI Software Partner Connect Program, providing deposit solutions to MRI's property management customer base.
- RealPagecoreIntegration brings deposit solutions directly into RealPage's existing OneSite workflows, simplifying deposit management for OneSite users.
- PlaidcoreThird-party technology vendor enabling secure sharing of bank account data. Plaid connects Obligo to 11,000+ financial institutions worldwide, powering the open banking qualification process.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Obligo competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- LeaseLock: LeaseLock is a direct competitor offering a deposit-replacement product for the multifamily rental market using a similar surety-backed model, targeting the same property managers and renters with an enterprise SaaS+insurance bundle.
- Rhino: Rhino provides security deposit insurance (a low-cost monthly alternative to cash deposits) directly to renters and through property manager partnerships — the closest direct deposit-alternative competitor in product, target customer, and pricing structure.
- TheGuarantors: TheGuarantors offers surety bonds and lease guarantee products for renters, competing with Obligo in providing risk-transfer products to property managers and landlords — overlapping significantly on the guarantee/surety economics.
- Jetty: Jetty provides deposit alternatives, lease guarantees, and renters insurance products aimed at property managers and renters, overlapping with Obligo's deposit-replacement and move-out charge offerings.
- Sure: Sure (formerly Sure Bonds / SureConnect) underwrites and distributes surety bonds and deposit alternatives, often through renter-facing insurance products, overlapping with Obligo's surety-style guarantee model.
Others
- Plaid: Plaid is Obligo's open banking infrastructure partner, connecting to 11,000+ financial institutions for tenant bank-data verification. While not a direct competitor, it is a critical enabler of Obligo's qualification model.
Emerging players
- Esusu: Esusu reports rent payments to credit bureaus and offers financial services to renters — adjacent to Obligo's renter-focused financial product suite, with overlapping property-manager distribution.
- Snappt: Snappt provides tenant screening and income/identity verification with document fraud detection, competing for a slice of the property-manager renter-onboarding workflow where Obligo also operates.
Broad incumbents
- TransUnion SmartMove: TransUnion's SmartMove is a tenant screening and credit product for landlords; it competes for the same property-manager wallet with adjacent rental risk and credit decisioning capabilities.
- AppFolio: AppFolio is one of Obligo's flagship PMS distribution partners but also a broad incumbent property management platform that could, over time, build or re-distribute competing deposit-alternative features.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Obligo social profiles
Digital presenceObligo financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Obligo leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles11 records
Obligo funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds6 records
Investors11 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Obligo M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Obligo
What does Obligo do?
Obligo replaces traditional cash security deposits with flexible payment authorizations for residential rentals. Renters qualify through open banking verification and select from options including No Deposit, Reduced Deposit, Installments, or Full Deposit earning up to 2% APY. Property managers receive guaranteed payment via Wells Fargo Letters of Credit, while renters connect a payment method on file that Obligo uses to advance move-out charges digitally and manage the full deposit lifecycle from move-in to move-out.
Is Obligo a public or private company?
Obligo is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Obligo founded?
Obligo was founded in 2017. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Obligo based?
Obligo is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Obligo make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Obligo Service Fee is the primary driver. The others are interest on Full Deposits.
Who are Obligo's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are LeaseLock, Rhino, TheGuarantors, Jetty and Sure. Plaid is listed as an others. Emerging players are Esusu and Snappt. Broad incumbents are TransUnion SmartMove and AppFolio.
Does Obligo have an API?
Yes. Obligo offers an open API that allows integration into any PMS or proprietary leasing software. The API enables property managers to send invitations automatically via integration, customize workflows, and access Obligo's deposit solutions programmatically. The developer portal at developer.myobligo.com provides API documentation for partners and developers. Developer documentation is at developer.myobligo.com/reference/introduction.
What industry is Obligo in?
Obligo's product category is Rental Deposit Management Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAKALAH, Collateral-Based Lines of Credit (Secured Revolving). Its NAICS code is 52222 and its SIC code is 6141.