Frequently asked questions

Planet Smart City was founded in 2015 by Italian real estate experts, Giovanni Savio and Susanna Marchionni, and is chaired by physicist and entrepreneur, Stefano Buono. With over 45 years of experience between them, Giovanni and Susanna wanted to use their expertise to transform the affordable housing market worldwide and offer everyone the opportunity to live in a better home.

To do this, they created a future-proof model, combining the power of technology and social innovation to empower residents and increase standards of living compared with the traditional affordable housing model. Since its foundation, Planet has launched large-scale residential projects which will house more than 65,000 residents in countries with large housing deficits.

Planet Smart City has five projects in Brazil: Smart City Laguna, Smart City Natal, Smart City Aquiraz, Smart City Bahia and Viva!Smart. In India, Planet will start building 1,000 apartments with Life Republic from October 2020. The company also has advisory projects in Italy, including REDO, SeiMilano, and Quartiere Giardino. We have launched our advisory business in India this year too.

To date, Planet Smart City has raised more than €100 million from investors, which is being used to execute an ambitious growth plan consisting of the launch of 30 projects by 2023. All projects are funded with equity and do not rely on public funding.

Our vision is to offer everyone the opportunity to live in a better home and to do so in areas with large housing deficits. Brazil and India are two nations with some of the largest housing deficits globally, which is why they have been a core focus for us. We have created a model that can be replicated globally, both in mature and developing countries.

We benefit from economies of scale and have developed processes and systems that optimise construction. We employ local workforces who we train to apply our unique know-how, ensuring there are no delays and that we are cost-efficient.

Smart solutions in each neighbourhood vary from community to community. We have a unique model which factors in the needs and desires of each local community before applying smart solutions across four key areas: planning and architecture, technological systems, social innovation, and environment. In Smart City Laguna, for instance, solutions include a Library of Things, free communal Wi-Fi, shared public spaces and an Innovation Hub – developed to provide a foundation for shared living and host free educational courses for residents and the surrounding community.

Our communities are unique. Enhanced by smart solutions, the Planet App, and the ongoing support from Community Managers, our projects empower residents by enabling them to access services and facilities they wouldn’t otherwise have. Our residents co-create their communities and have a say in what goes on in their neighbourhood.

We often refer to the Planet App as the management panel of each of our communities. The app allows residents to access many of the services on offer in their neighbourhood. Residents can book community spaces and organise online meetings, manage their day-to-day consumption of utilities, and access security and safety tools.

Our communities are supported by a range of social and community-led smart solutions that vary from development to development. In Smart City Laguna, residents can make the most of shared kitchens which provide a social space to learn new skills and interact with other residents, an Innovation Hub which hosts a library and cinema, and a Library of Things which enables residents to borrow tools and equipment without having to purchase them.

A key part of creating each of our communities is hiring a Community Manager. Community Managers work alongside residents, helping them settle in and collaborate with existing households to find solutions to everyday problems and improve quality of life in their district. They serve as a crucial link between Planet Smart City and our residents, allowing us to better tailor our solutions to the needs of the local people. We believe this is really important as it helps to drive community engagement and ultimately leads to more fulfilling, enriched lives.

To buy a house, land plot or flat in one of our projects in Brazil, please visit our Brazilian website. Sales of homes from our project in the Life Republic township in Pune, India, will start in October 2020.