16 ms·

Ask HN: Feedback needed for myRentr.com, a universal rental application

2 points by samp615 14y ago

Hey guys. Long time lurker and first time poster. I currently have a San Francisco roommate matching site (think Grouper but for housing) called BunkSF.com. While working on Bunk I have noticed that people searching for housing are having to fill out multiple rental applications at $30 bucks a piece. It seemed crazy to me because each application is asking for the same info. Because of this, I created myRentr.com. The idea of myRentr.com is like the common college application but for apartments. Users buy our application for $30 (this may change) and we do the background check, employment check and credit check. Afterwards we put all the info in a nice little document (also includes photo, social media links, and personal blurp) so the user can give the application to whoever they choose. We have also created a Craigslist Widget, so people who have spare rooms and are posting on CL can ask that their potential applications bring a completed app. It seems crazy to me that property companies spend the time to run their tenant's credit when it would be much easier to ask the tenant to bring a completed app to the showing. Any feedback/criticism would be wonderful! Thanks for you time

impendia 14y ago
This looks fantastic. I live in a duplex, and I would most definitely consider using this when my tenants move out and I have to find new ones. How do you plan to make a good profit? It seems like you not only have to maintain a website, but also do a bunch of schlepping for each $30. So much so, that I'd happily spend $30 to avoid it.
- samp615 14y ago
  We are still tinkering with the price. As of now our cost per application are around 16 bucks...but once we hit a certain amount of orders that will be reduced to about 12 bucks. We have considered charging around 50 bucks for the product...but again, we are still tinkering. Our product is not completely finalized but I expect it to be ready to go in a week or so. I expect the majority of our users will be small time landlords...we really think the Craigslist Widget is an amazing tool for marketing. Yes, it is a lot of work now per user but very scalable. As of now, our main problem, like every startup, is attracting users and possibly UX. Thanks for the feedback!! I am looking for any type of feedback I can get. If anyone is interested in helping out or contacting me, feel free to email me: my username (samp615) then at me dot com.
  - ashwinl 14y ago
    Exactly what I need right now. I can't find a service that matches roommates/housemates outside of Craigslist. I just registered and completed the form. Wrt your website, it was easy to understand what you did and how I engage. I'm glad I didn't have to register anywhere.

2 points by samp615 14y ago

impendia 14y ago

This looks fantastic. I live in a duplex, and I would most definitely consider using this when my tenants move out and I have to find new ones. How do you plan to make a good profit? It seems like you not only have to maintain a website, but also do a bunch of schlepping for each $30. So much so, that I'd happily spend $30 to avoid it.

samp615 14y ago
We are still tinkering with the price. As of now our cost per application are around 16 bucks...but once we hit a certain amount of orders that will be reduced to about 12 bucks. We have considered charging around 50 bucks for the product...but again, we are still tinkering. Our product is not completely finalized but I expect it to be ready to go in a week or so. I expect the majority of our users will be small time landlords...we really think the Craigslist Widget is an amazing tool for marketing. Yes, it is a lot of work now per user but very scalable. As of now, our main problem, like every startup, is attracting users and possibly UX. Thanks for the feedback!! I am looking for any type of feedback I can get. If anyone is interested in helping out or contacting me, feel free to email me: my username (samp615) then at me dot com.
- ashwinl 14y ago
  Exactly what I need right now. I can't find a service that matches roommates/housemates outside of Craigslist. I just registered and completed the form. Wrt your website, it was easy to understand what you did and how I engage. I'm glad I didn't have to register anywhere.