A REAL FIXER-APPER

early 2019 brought customary winter-storm home damage around the u.s. That means filing an insurance claim and then waiting days for an adjuster to inspect the premises before things can be fixed. san Francisco– based hover aims to change that. The company has raised $62 million in venture backing for its free app, which instructs homeowners to take photos of their house from key spots. It then uses those pics to create a 3-d model of the structure and send a damage report to insurance companies such as American Family, no inspector required. The software is increasingly popular among contractors, too, including those doing work for home depot. Its models offer precise measurements, so bob the builder no longer has to rely on rougher estimates (squinting with a thumb in the air, say) of materials needed to complete a project. “It makes them more efficient,” says hover founder and Ceo A.J. Altman, “ensuring they don’t order too much or too little product, and don’t under- or overquote.”