Jonathan Kushner, president of KRE Group — Photo by Jeffrey Vock for Real Estate NJ
By Joshua Burd
KRE Group has partnered with a mobile platform to provide home hospitality services at more than 2,000 apartments in Jersey City, starting with its high-profile Journal Squared project.
The firm and the app-based service, Hello Alfred, said Monday that the platform will be available at all KRE residential buildings in the city, offering services such as home cleanings, errands, laundry and many others. Journal Squared, whose 538-unit first phase opened earlier this year, will be the first building in New Jersey to offer the platform.
The service will be available across KRE Group’s portfolio of 2,200 residential units in Jersey City, giving the firm the exclusive rights to the technology in the area for one year.
“We’re very excited to offer the residents of Journal Squared the opportunity to experience Hello Alfred,” said Jonathan Kushner, president of KRE Group. “As a landlord, our focus is to improve tenants’ livelihoods with service, convenience, and community.
“This innovative, service-based amenity will support renters with routine tasks, freeing up more time to focus on the things they enjoy most and to get out and explore their new neighborhood.”
Residents can request the services via a mobile app, which calls on dedicated Alfred home managers to visit the apartment each week and learns to anticipate their needs over time, according to a news release. Other Alfred services include digital move-in coordination, in which home managers will assist with sourcing movers’ quotes, arranging telecom services set-up, packing and unpacking and other services.
The partnership also touted the platform’s ability to provide last-minute planning and errand assistance, plus daily in-home package delivery. For a premium membership, residents can receive a weekly Alfred visit, which includes apartment tidying, grocery shopping, laundry, dry cleaning, clothing/shoe repairs, prescription pick-ups and shipping packages or outgoing mail.
“The way we live in cities is fundamentally changing. Service needs to be built into the home,” said Marcela Sapone, co-founder and CEO of Hello Alfred. “And it’s firms like KRE Group who are inspired to truly elevate the residential living experience that are ahead in the industry. The detail and care they put into Journal Squared is unique and we couldn’t think of a better partner to launch the New Jersey market with.”
Hello Alfred is the creation of Sapone and fellow Harvard Business School graduate Jessica Beck, who established the business in 2014 to help manage household services and to-do items, the news release said. Since then, Hello Alfred has expanded into New York, Boston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington D.C.
Journal Squared, which KRE developed with National Real Estate Advisors, is now more than 90 percent leased after opening earlier this year. Designed by Hollwich Kushner and Handel Architects, the 53-story tower rises to 563 feet, making it Journal Square’s tallest building to date and the third-tallest building in Jersey City.
The building features 538 apartments and more than 12,500 square feet of amenities, including an outdoor swimming pool and 53rd-floor sky lounge with views of the Manhattan skyline. The development, the first piece of a three-phase project, also offers direct access to the Journal Square Transportation Center.
