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I saw a bright lightbulb above my head for a moment: a paid service for $99 per month (or whatever!) and we will daily/weekly monitor if any of your properties/

I saw a bright lightbulb above my head for a moment: a paid service for $99 per month (or whatever!) and we will daily/weekly monitor if any of your properties/tenants are listed on BnB. Optional service for extra buck: we will mail them C&D letter (with Realtor logo on it, of course) to violators. I can see a brilliant marketing campaign and can imagine many Realtors signing up! Does something like that already exist?

npguy 13y ago
Posted this on firespotting - there is definitely a small profitable business in your idea -
reneherse 13y ago
Whether it exists or not, someone should apply to YC with this idea just to give PG & co a good laugh.
nostromo 13y ago
Instead of a C&D, have it track how much your tenants are Airbnbing their place for, then raise rent to that exact amount, minus a 5% cleaning & management fee that is theirs to keep.
- bcoates 13y ago
  I'm gonna guess the correlation between profitable airbnb and rent control is strong.
  - nostromo 13y ago
    If you have a rent controlled tenant, catching them subletting is a dream come true.
  - deleted 13y ago
    [deleted]
  - ipince 13y ago
    nostromo can you elaborate on why its a dream come true? what could the landlord do?
    - rdouble 13y ago
      Kick them out for breaking the terms of the lease and raise the rent up to current market rate for the next tenant.
deleted 13y ago
[deleted]
jmtame 13y ago
Why would you want to be a force for something like that? Spend your energy doing something productive. I think Airbnb has an honest mission and the legality will hopefully work itself out. I guess if you're just looking to make a quick buck, maybe. But then why not go into finance or something, rather than build a startup that aims to hurt startups?
- yabbadabbadoo 13y ago
  Just FYI, the first url in your profile is spelled wrong. Great idea btw :)
  - jmtame 13y ago
    Thanks, fixed that
- beambot 13y ago
  Force for what? For preventing contractually-prohibited uses of my property? That sounds like a fine application, even if it doesn't match your worldview. I own a home (remote, long story). I hope my property manager monitors my realestate in this fashion. Legally, I'm on the hook for all sorts of eventualities and insurance related to the property (eg. fire and perhaps even injury). I'm not willing to foot the extra risk (or bills!) of having a tenant inviting itinerant AirBnB visitors -- that's why subleasing is not permitted by my contract with the leasee. Would I be happy with an alternative that yields higher net returns than a property manager? Absolutely. Do I want it done on my property against my permission? Hell no.
  - muzz 13y ago
    Agreed. I really don't understand the sense of entitlement that people have when it comes to doing things that are specifically against the lease they signed upon renting and apartment (or against the CC&Rs of the HOA they willing bought into).
rdl 13y ago
This is actually a great idea. (obviously don't check JUST airbnb; vrbo, homeaway, craigslist, etc.) Potentially also watch the news/police for mentions of crime or restraining orders or convictions with tenants, too. As long as the terms of your lease or HOA clearly state what's prohibited, making it easier to enforce this seems like a useful service.
- rquantz 13y ago
  We do not need a company that makes it easier for landlords to wield power over their tenants, or to harass or expel tenants with a checkered past. This idea is a great example of the kind of "efficiency" that the internet produces that gives more power to the powerful.
  - prostoalex 13y ago
    In California it can take up to 6 months to evict a problematic (and frequently non-paying) tenant, so any kind of efficiency would boost the availability of properties to tenants who have no such problems.
    - rquantz 13y ago
      Yes, evictions have been made difficult because of the enormous power difference between a landlord and a tenant. You really think that's a bad thing? edit: typo
      - prostoalex 13y ago
        End of the day it's all priced in - other renters pay inflated prices to compensate for a few bad apples. So yeah, it's kinda a bad deal for those who always pay on time - they're measured against the same risk as a rando off the street, which is why a rental application today can involve a background check and employment reference.
        rdl 13y ago

npguy 13y ago

Posted this on firespotting - there is definitely a small profitable business in your idea -

reneherse 13y ago

Whether it exists or not, someone should apply to YC with this idea just to give PG & co a good laugh.

nostromo 13y ago

Instead of a C&D, have it track how much your tenants are Airbnbing their place for, then raise rent to that exact amount, minus a 5% cleaning & management fee that is theirs to keep.

bcoates 13y ago
I'm gonna guess the correlation between profitable airbnb and rent control is strong.
- nostromo 13y ago
  If you have a rent controlled tenant, catching them subletting is a dream come true.
- deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
- ipince 13y ago
  nostromo can you elaborate on why its a dream come true? what could the landlord do?
  - rdouble 13y ago
    Kick them out for breaking the terms of the lease and raise the rent up to current market rate for the next tenant.

deleted 13y ago

[deleted]

jmtame 13y ago

Why would you want to be a force for something like that? Spend your energy doing something productive. I think Airbnb has an honest mission and the legality will hopefully work itself out. I guess if you're just looking to make a quick buck, maybe. But then why not go into finance or something, rather than build a startup that aims to hurt startups?

yabbadabbadoo 13y ago
Just FYI, the first url in your profile is spelled wrong. Great idea btw :)
- jmtame 13y ago
  Thanks, fixed that
beambot 13y ago
Force for what? For preventing contractually-prohibited uses of my property? That sounds like a fine application, even if it doesn't match your worldview. I own a home (remote, long story). I hope my property manager monitors my realestate in this fashion. Legally, I'm on the hook for all sorts of eventualities and insurance related to the property (eg. fire and perhaps even injury). I'm not willing to foot the extra risk (or bills!) of having a tenant inviting itinerant AirBnB visitors -- that's why subleasing is not permitted by my contract with the leasee. Would I be happy with an alternative that yields higher net returns than a property manager? Absolutely. Do I want it done on my property against my permission? Hell no.
- muzz 13y ago
  Agreed. I really don't understand the sense of entitlement that people have when it comes to doing things that are specifically against the lease they signed upon renting and apartment (or against the CC&Rs of the HOA they willing bought into).

rdl 13y ago

This is actually a great idea. (obviously don't check JUST airbnb; vrbo, homeaway, craigslist, etc.) Potentially also watch the news/police for mentions of crime or restraining orders or convictions with tenants, too. As long as the terms of your lease or HOA clearly state what's prohibited, making it easier to enforce this seems like a useful service.

rquantz 13y ago
We do not need a company that makes it easier for landlords to wield power over their tenants, or to harass or expel tenants with a checkered past. This idea is a great example of the kind of "efficiency" that the internet produces that gives more power to the powerful.
- prostoalex 13y ago
  In California it can take up to 6 months to evict a problematic (and frequently non-paying) tenant, so any kind of efficiency would boost the availability of properties to tenants who have no such problems.
  - rquantz 13y ago
    Yes, evictions have been made difficult because of the enormous power difference between a landlord and a tenant. You really think that's a bad thing? edit: typo
    - prostoalex 13y ago
      End of the day it's all priced in - other renters pay inflated prices to compensate for a few bad apples. So yeah, it's kinda a bad deal for those who always pay on time - they're measured against the same risk as a rando off the street, which is why a rental application today can involve a background check and employment reference.
      - rdl 13y ago