Shedding fresh new light on rental market
TRANSPARENCY and accountability. Not two words always associated with the rental market.
Indeed, many people can find the experience a negative one. With a tight vacancy rate it is also hard to get into the market and can be difficult to prove your value as a tenant.
But two Gold Coast entrepreneurs believe their start-up – Nestler – provides a platform to reward good tenants and enable investors to find the best property managers.
Nestler co-founders Jack Murphy and Jordan Hrovat believe their start-up can do for the real estate market what Uber did for raising standards within the taxi industry.
Uber drivers are rated by their customers on a scale of one to five stars. If a driver’s rating slips below 4.6, Uber considers kicking that driver out of the system.
Similarly, riders are also rated out of five stars, with their rating based on courtesy, safety, and making sure they are ready to go at the pick-up location.
“What Uber did was use today’s technology and created
accountability at both ends, from the consumer and provider,” Mr Hrovat said.
“People know when they get an Uber, it is generally going to be a positive experience because of the rating review platform, they foster these positive relationships.
“Why isn’t there the same type of accountability for where you rent?”
Mr Murphy studied civil engineering at Griffith University but after a few years in the workforce decided to try something else.
Mr Hrovat, who worked in the real estate industry, last year collaborated with Mr Murphy on a business renting out cars for students to use as Uber drivers.
But they soon found the business reached a tipping point where they needed to invest in buying a number of cars to keep the operation growing.
“The main takeaway we got from that is we wanted to start a business that was not attached to tangible products or assets and we wanted to solve a big problem for a lot of people,” Mr Murphy said.
The pair decided to work on a new business – this time in the real estate industry.
Mr Hrovat said he saw, while working in the industry, that negative experiences were common, whether the customer was a homebuyer, renter or investor.
Likewise, Mr Murphy said he experienced poor service from property managers as a renter including once waiting three months for a key.
The pair say that the problem became, how do you improve service levels in the real estate industry and ensure there is accountability and transparency?
The solution they have created is Nestler.
The platform, to undergo Beta testing (last stage of testing) early this year, works by providing a forum for renters to collect periodic reviews from property managers.
They can then build a renting history to show managers when applying for their next property, and therefore improve their chances of being successful.
In the same way, investors can search for property managers, in their area, who have excellent service levels based on tenant reviews.
Mr Murphy said the current system worked on a broad level.
“Right now if you’re a bad renter then you get blacklisted,” he said. “If you’re good you get nothing. So there is no incentive to be good.
“We want to reward renters, and property managers, who go above and beyond.”
Once the business is up and running, they plan to raise revenue through expanding into other areas, such as agent reviews, and charge fees based on lead generation.
Mr Hrovat said he believed some competitor sites were flawed because they worked on the basis of “invite-only” reviews, meaning the agent gets to ask the client for a review.
Therefore if someone wants to leave a negative review, chances are they won’t get the opportunity.
Mr Hrovat and Mr Murphy said their platform would be free and open to everyone whether they have something positive to say or not.