What Tempo Flat does

Tempo Flat (brand: tempoFLAT) is the German and Austrian operating brand of UMS AG, a privately held Swiss public limited company (Aktiengesellschaft) founded in 1994 and headquartered in Bern, Switzerland. The company operates an online marketplace that connects individual apartment providers seeking to sublet their furnished homes temporarily with apartment seekers (expats, consultants, international assignees, and professionals on 3–12 month assignments) looking for mid-term furnished housing. The platform covers three DACH geographies through country-specific portals: tempoFLAT.de (Germany, 21 cities), tempoFLAT.at (Austria, including Vienna), and ums.ch (Switzerland, the original portal with 30+ years of operating history).

The core technology is a self-serve web portal combining marketplace listing/search functionality with optional agency-style service modules. Providers list apartments for free and seekers browse and contact them directly, with no intermediary required for the basic transaction flow. The platform monetizes through two optional paid packages — a Basic Package (publication across tempoFLAT/Expatica/Justlanded, advisory support, online contract tool, troubleshooting) and a Security Package that adds subtenant screening and managed rental payment transfer. Supporting proprietary features include an Online Contract Tool for creating legally valid sublease contracts, a Sub-tenant Security Check, a Rental Payment Service, a Consent to Sublet assistance module, and a Search Dossier for personalized matching. Marketing relies on SEO, Google AdWords/Analytics, social login (Facebook, Google), and cross-listing partnerships with Expatica and Justlanded, supplemented by an insurance partnership with GetSafe.

The business model is freemium at the listing layer with transaction-fee-style monetization on optional paid add-on packages. Customer segments are entirely consumer/small-individual on both sides of the marketplace (private subletters and individual temporary-housing seekers), with no enterprise or B2B customers disclosed. Tempo Flat is bootstrapped (no external funding indicated), self-sustaining, and operates with 11–50 employees under the direction of Niklaus Kleiner (Commercial/Editorial) and Daniel Schweizer (IT), with an EU representative office in Vienna (Fussenegger & Partner) supporting GDPR compliance for the German and Austrian expansion.

Name

Tempo Flat

Legal name

UMS AG

Website

https://tempoflat.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Tempo Flat (tempoFLAT), operated by Swiss UMS AG, is a self-serve online marketplace connecting private apartment providers subletting furnished homes with expats, consultants, and assignees seeking temporary furnished housing across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, monetizing via optional Basic and Security service packages.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Temporary Furnished Housing Marketplace

SIC

Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531)

akta.pro primary industry

Extended-Stay & Monthly Rental Marketplaces (30+ Nights) (THAMALAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Metasearch & Aggregator Platforms for Vacation Rentals (THAMALAC), Temporary Housing & Serviced Accommodation Coordination (HSAKACAG), Digital Nomad & Remote-Work Monthly Stays (THAMAFAI)

Keywords

• Temporary housing
• Furnished apartments
• Apartment subletting
• Mid-term rentals
• Housing marketplace

Headquarters

HQ city

Berne

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Service Package Fees: Providers and seekers can purchase optional service packages. Basic package (publication, support, contract tool, troubleshooting) and Security package (additional security checks and rental payment service). No specific pricing amounts are publicly disclosed.
2. Listing Fees: Housing providers can advertise their apartments for free on the platform, but premium promotion packages are available as paid add-ons.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Tempo Flat operates online portals (tempoFLAT.de, tempoFLAT.at, and UMS.ch) that connect private individuals seeking to sublet their furnished apartments temporarily with professionals and individuals looking for mid-term furnished housing across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. The platform combines self-serve marketplace listings with optional paid support services such as tenant screening, online contract creation, rental payment handling, and landlord consent assistance.

Product overview

Tempo Flat operates a dual-model platform combining an online marketplace with agency-style service modules. The core product is the tempoFLAT Platform, a web portal for temporary furnished apartments that connects apartment seekers with housing providers who want to sublet. The platform is complemented by six optional add-on services: Promotion Package (listing on tempoFLAT, Expatica, and Justlanded), Expert Advice & Support, Online Contract Tool, Sub-tenant Security Check, Rental Payment Service, and Consent to Sublet assistance. The company operates three country-specific portals: tempoFLAT.de for Germany, tempoFLAT.at for Austria, and UMS.ch for Switzerland (the original portal with 30+ years of experience).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• tempoFLAT Platform Online marketplace portal connecting housing providers who want to sublet furnished apartments temporarily with seekers looking for temporary furnished housing across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Combines internet platform benefits with agency-style support and security services.
• Promotion Package Enhanced advertising service for housing providers to increase visibility of their listed properties. Includes listing on tempoFLAT, Expatica, and Justlanded partner platforms for broader reach.
• Expert Advice and Support Consultation and support service for housing providers before, during, and after the sublease process, providing expert guidance on subletting arrangements.
• Online Contract Tool Proprietary digital tool enabling users to create and conclude legally valid sublease contracts online through the platform.
• Sub-tenant Security Check Security verification service for checking potential sub-tenants before finalizing rental agreements, screening for reliability and trustworthiness.
• Rental Payment Service Service facilitating the secure transfer of rental payments between sub-tenants and providers through managed payment processing.
• Consent to Sublet Assistance service helping providers obtain proper consent from their main landlords for subletting arrangements, addressing legal sublease authorization requirements.
• Search Dossier Personalized search service for apartment seekers to create profiles and receive matching temporary furnished apartment listings based on their requirements.

Quantifiable outcome

• Three out of four seekers find their ideal place after viewing no more than two properties
• +2 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• GetSafe (hellogetsafe.com)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerInsurance partner allowing tempoFLAT users to conveniently obtain insurance coverage through GetSafe's mobile app. Recommended to users for renter's insurance and related coverage needs.
• JustlandedcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCross-listing partnership where tempoFLAT listings are published on Justlanded's international housing portal. Provides additional visibility and traffic for tempoFLAT apartment listings to international seekers.
• ExpaticacoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCross-listing partnership where tempoFLAT listings are published on Expatica's international housing portal. Expands reach to expats and international professionals seeking housing in Germany.
• Fussenegger & PartnerminorOthersEU representative appointed for GDPR compliance purposes. Dr. Rainer Fussenegger serves as the official EU representative for data protection matters under EU regulations.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Airbnb: Global short-term and increasingly mid-term rental marketplace. Overlaps with tempoFLAT in monthly-stay and furnished rental demand, especially for expats; offers vastly larger supply and brand awareness.

Direct peers

• Spotahome: Online marketplace for mid-to-long-term furnished rentals across Europe, with strong DACH coverage. Competes with tempoFLAT on cross-border relocation flows, online booking, and verified listings for international assignees and students.
• HousingAnywhere: Rotterdam-based platform for student and young-professional mid-term rentals across Europe. Overlaps with tempoFLAT's expat/assignee seeker persona and offers a comparable payment-protection and booking product for international movers.
• Wunderflats: Berlin-based marketplace for furnished mid-term apartment rentals in Germany and select European cities. Directly competes with tempoFLAT's German portal in cities like Berlin, Munich, and Hamburg with similar seeker personas (expats, consultants, assignees).
• Homelike: Cologne-based online platform for long-stay furnished apartments across Europe, with corporate relocation and serviced-stay positioning. Directly comparable business model and DACH focus.
• Nestpick: Furnished mid-term apartment marketplace with verification and booking services for expats, students, and professionals in European cities. Direct competitor in the furnished mid-term subletting niche.

Others

• Expatica: International expat information and housing portal that distributes tempoFLAT listings via partnership. Functions as both a demand-generation channel and a partial competitor in housing lead generation.

Regional players

• WG-Gesucht: Leading German shared-apartment and student housing marketplace. Overlaps with tempoFLAT's expat and furnished-rental demand pool in German cities, particularly among younger and student segments.
• Immoscout24: Largest German real estate marketplace, primarily long-term unfurnished rentals but increasingly featuring furnished and temporary listings. Strong brand in Germany, constrains tempoFLAT's SEO and direct-listing competition.

Emerging players

• Blueground: Operator of fully furnished, serviced apartments for 30+ day stays, expanding into European cities including DACH. Adjacent operator-model competitor to the marketplace model that tempoFLAT runs.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tempoflat

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tempo Flat