What TRiO Plus does

TRiO Plus, operating under the brand Rooted, is a California-based nonprofit organization headquartered at 5493 Bancroft Avenue in Oakland. It addresses the educator housing affordability crisis by operating the Rooted Housing Marketplace, a digital platform that connects K-12 teachers and school staff in partner districts with rental housing offered at educator-specific discounts by collaborating housing providers. The organization reports that educators using the platform achieve average annual rent savings exceeding $2,000 and benefit from reduced commute times.

The company's product surface consists of three integrated components: the Rooted Housing Marketplace (a self-service web portal at marketplace.rooted-housing.org), wraparound financial services (security deposit assistance and refunded application fees with participating landlords), and free one-on-one financial coaching and wellness services delivered in partnership with TrustPlus, covering credit, student loan management, and budgeting. Access is gated through partner school districts, which serve as the primary distribution channel and refer educators to the platform as an employee benefit.

Rooted's business model combines a marketplace commission/fee structure with collaborating housing providers and likely grant/donation funding consistent with its nonprofit status. There is no disclosed pricing to educators, no disclosed take rate, and no disclosed revenue, headcount, or funding history. The organization rebranded from TRiO to Rooted to reflect its expanded mission around equity and community representation in the schools it serves. Geographic operations are currently concentrated in Oakland, California, with no documented expansion beyond that market.

Name

TRiO Plus

Legal name

Rooted

Website

https://trioplus.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

TRiO Plus, operating as Rooted, is an Oakland-based nonprofit that runs a digital housing marketplace connecting K-12 educators in partner school districts with discounted rental housing, wraparound financial services, and free coaching via TrustPlus.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educator Housing Marketplace

NAICS

Educational Support Services (61171), Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers (5312)

SIC

Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744)

akta.pro primary industry

Off-Campus Housing Support & Landlord Relations (EDALACAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Student Housing Marketplaces & Booking Platforms (THAMAGAJ)

Keywords

• Educator housing marketplace
• Affordable rental housing
• Workforce housing solutions
• Teacher housing assistance
• Financial coaching services

Headquarters

HQ city

Oakland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Marketplace Commission/Platform Fees: The organization operates as a housing marketplace, connecting educators with collaborating housing providers. Revenue appears to be generated through partnerships with housing providers who offer discounted rates to educators, potentially with the organization serving as an intermediary or platform facilitator.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

TRiO Plus, operating under the brand Rooted, runs the Rooted Housing Marketplace, an online platform that connects K-12 public school educators with collaborating housing providers offering discounted rental apartments. The marketplace is complemented by wraparound financial services, including security deposit assistance, refunded application fees, and free one-on-one financial coaching delivered through a partnership with TrustPlus.

Product overview

TRiO Plus (now branded as Rooted) operates as a unified affordable housing platform for educators. The core offering is the Rooted Housing Marketplace, which provides educators with access to discounted rental housing through collaborating housing providers. This core platform is complemented by wraparound financial services including security deposit assistance, refunded application fees, and free one-on-one financial coaching delivered via partnership with TrustPlus. The three components work together to address the housing affordability challenge educators face, enabling them to live and teach in the communities they serve.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rooted Housing Marketplace Digital marketplace platform that connects K-12 educators with collaborating housing providers offering discounted rental apartments, enabling average annual rent savings of over $2,000 per educator.
• Wraparound Financial Services Financial support services available to educators using the Rooted Housing Marketplace, including assistance with security deposits and refunded application fees when renting with participating landlords.
• Free 1:1 Financial Coaching Free one-on-one financial coaching and wellness services delivered through a partnership with TrustPlus to educators in partner districts, covering credit score improvement, student loan management, and budgeting.

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• TrustPluscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrustPlus provides free one-on-one financial coaching and wellness services to educators who access housing through the Rooted marketplace. This partnership enables wraparound financial support including credit score improvement guidance, student loan management, and budget building services. The partnership directly addresses the financial literacy needs of educators navigating housing transitions.
• Partner School DistrictscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSchool districts partner with Rooted to provide their educators with access to affordable housing benefits. Districts refer teachers and staff to the platform, making the housing marketplace available as an employee benefit. This partnership is essential for reaching the target educator customer base.
• Collaborating Housing ProviderscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHousing providers and landlords offer discounted apartment rentals to educators through the Rooted marketplace. Providers benefit from reduced vacancies and access to reliable educator tenants, while Rooted facilitates the connection and provides additional services like security deposit assistance.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Zillow: Zillow is the dominant U.S. residential real estate marketplace with massive scale in rental listings; a broad incumbent whose generalist platform competes for the same housing-search demand that Rooted targets, though without educator-specific discounts.
• Apartments.com: Apartments.com is one of the largest national rental marketplaces; broad incumbent serving overlapping renter demand without vertical specialization, but with vastly larger inventory and marketing reach.

Emerging players

• Common: Common runs a co-living marketplace with professionally managed shared housing; adjacent operating model (marketplace of curated rental inventory) though oriented to urban professionals rather than educators.
• Nesterly: Nesterly is a home-sharing platform connecting older homeowners with younger renters to address affordability; comparable mission-driven marketplace model serving affordability-vulnerable populations, though focused on inter-generational matching rather than educators.
• PadSplit: PadSplit operates an affordable housing marketplace that matches workforce tenants with shared housing providers; comparable marketplace mechanics and affordability-focused value proposition, but broader workforce and not educator-specific.

Regional players

• Blueground: Blueground operates a furnished-rental marketplace primarily in urban markets; comparable curated-rental marketplace model with employer-facing distribution, though focused on premium furnished stays rather than affordability.

Direct peers

• Landed: Landed helps educators buy homes in the communities they serve via down payment assistance partnerships, sharing the educator-housing mission with Rooted and competing for the same K-12 teacher segment.
• Furnished Finder: Furnished Finder is a housing marketplace serving traveling healthcare professionals with discounted short-term rentals; highly comparable two-sided marketplace structure serving a specific professional cohort with affordability and convenience benefits.

Others

• Habitable (formerly NESD): Mission-driven affordable housing initiatives working with employers and school districts to expand workforce housing access; adjacent ecosystem participant focused on the same employer-housing intersection.
• TrustPlus: TrustPlus is Rooted's actual financial-coaching partner; included here as an adjacent ecosystem enabler providing the wraparound wellness services integrated into the Rooted offering.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 TRiO Plus