From Lighthouse Labs to Claim the Key: How VroomBrick Is Helping Hampton Roads Renters Become Homeowners

When Navy veteran Leland Remias crossed the stage for his William & Mary MBA, he was already carrying the idea that would become VroomBrick. Military families in the 757 move every two to three years on Permanent Change of Station orders — and each move meant thousands of dollars in real estate commission leaving with the sale, money families needed on the other end. In a region built around the military, that added up to a real, repeated cost to local families' equity.

"Frequent moves through the military mean disproportionate fees. I kept thinking there had to be a better way to do this," Leland says.

That frustration became a company and now, a free tool aimed at getting Hampton Roads renters on the path to owning a home in the first place.

A different way to buy and sell

VroomBrick is a real estate technology platform that connects buyers and sellers with independent licensed closing attorneys, showing agents, and lenders for a flat 1% technology fee, instead of the traditional 3% agent commission. It's not a brokerage, and it doesn't represent buyers or sellers — it provides a step-by-step dashboard guiding a transaction from listing to closing, connecting people with the same licensed professionals they'd hire anyway.

The savings add up fast: on a $500,000 home, a traditional 3% seller's commission runs $15,000, compared to VroomBrick's $5,000 fee. (Commissions are negotiable and actual savings vary by transaction.)

Leland and co-founder Justin Richardson, VroomBrick's COO, both worked as licensed agents with Sotheby's before starting the company, so they know exactly where that commission goes.

"I knew exactly which parts of that commission paid for real work and which parts could use automation to make the process more efficient," Leland says.

That's why VroomBrick isn't a do-it-yourself gamble. A licensed closing attorney still handles the contract, title, and settlement. Independent showing agents still provide property access. Lender partners still handle financing.

"VroomBrick is built to be the TurboTax of real estate," says Tim Piatt, Head of Partnerships. "It gives people the tools to handle what they can, and the expert help for what they cannot."

As Tim puts it: "We are not trying to talk anyone out of professional help. You still need a closing attorney, you still need showing agents. We just do not think the price of that help should climb every time home values go up."

Built through the founder ecosystem

VroomBrick's path runs straight through the programs built to support founders like Leland and his team. The company came out of William & Mary's Veteran Startup Challenge and won the Entrepreneurship Hub's Rocket Pitch Faceoff. Tim, an Army veteran, earned his own William & Mary MBA in 2025. From there, VroomBrick was selected for Lighthouse Labs Batch 18, joined the 757 Accelerate 2025 cohort as a REaKTOR portfolio company, and completed the CAFE accelerator focused on financial equity. This summer, three William & Mary students are interning with the team.

It's the kind of trajectory we love seeing from founders — an idea shaped by lived experience, tested and sharpened through the right programs, and now reaching real people.

A free tool to help renters get there

This summer, VroomBrick launched Claim the Key, a free homeownership readiness tool built for renters across Hampton Roads. In under two minutes, with no credit pull, renters answer a short set of questions and get a Key Score, a personalized plan with next steps for their timeline, the grants and down-payment programs they may qualify for, and check-ins to keep them moving.

It's free, and the company says it always will be. The goal is local and specific: help 757 renters get on track to buy — extending the same mission that built VroomBrick to the very start of the homeownership journey. Check it out at claimthekey.com.