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In a nutshell, this rental app suggests you where to live 

Project Brief

As someone who has relocated internationally, one challenge I often face as a newcomer is figuring out the best place to live. It typically takes about a year before I find a neighborhood that truly fits my needs - gaining that knowledge takes time. This is a common experience, especially among immigrants.
 

This project is designed to address that need: a rental application that recommends neighborhoods based on personal preferences and connects immigrants with brokers who understand their language and cultural background.

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Highlights

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Real User Interviews

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MVP Designed

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Hi-Fi Product Mock-up

My Role

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I did everything

Project Timeline

Ideation

Sep 2022

Initial Design

Oct 2022

Data organization

Nov 2022

Pitch deck presentation

Initial User  Interview

Sep 2022

Sep 2022

Feedback Interview

1st iteration

Nov 2022

Dec 2022

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Users

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Renter

Immigrants; Newcomers
(Interviewed)

Broker

Serves immigrants; Preferably at least bilingual

Painpoints - Solutions

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Renter

uncertain on the best neighborhood to settle in after moving

Challenges with finding trustworthy brokers, often complicated by language barriers

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Broker

Difficulty in finding clients through a centralized platform

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An application that utilizes:
 

  1. An intelligent recommendation system that suggests the best-fitting neighborhoods for renters

  2. A broker system with filters for languages and personalized preferences

User Journey Mapping 

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Renters

Time-consuming

Move to a new city

Google rentals, browse rental websites, consult brokers

Find a rental and sign lease

Find suitable neighborhoods in the app

Connect with culturally suitable brokers easily

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Brokers

Time-consuming

Time-consuming

Look for clients

Access clients’ needs; showing units; stay in touch with potential clients


Client signs lease

The app collects users

App does part of the job as it assists in assessing user needs

Design Discussion

Who are the users?

As we position this as a rental app targeted primarily at newcomers, it’s crucial to conduct thorough market research to determine if this group is large enough to sustain the product. We may find that we either need to focus on this niche or broaden our approach to cater to a wider audience.
 

Did we talk to the right users?

For now, no - it's always a challenge to cover everything when it's a one-person team. I did speak with fellow immigrants to get a better understanding of their experiences when first arriving in the U.S. and trying to find a place to live. However, an important segment—property buyers and brokers - was unfortunately not included in this project.
 

What’s more to come?

While the broker side of the application is equally important, it wasn’t developed due to a lack of data. However, we should aim to create some form of MVP for that side to differentiate our product from the competition. Beyond the promise of attracting immigrant renters, this would help set us apart in the market.

Design Overview

Final Thoughts

Creating the MVP for this product should be quite manageable. We just need a scoring and evaluation system that can assess neighborhoods based on key characteristics. Much of the data we’ll use is public and objective - such as crime rates, public transportation options, available amenities, and average rental prices. Nowadays, most LLMs can handle this type of analysis effectively.

However, this feature is easy to replicate and not a sustainable strategy for long-term user retention. Our primary focus should be on attracting as many brokers with international backgrounds as possible to our platform. The true value of our product lies in the quality of our resources and how seamlessly we can deliver them to both user groups. By concentrating on this core strength, we position ourselves to carve out and dominate a niche in a trillion-dollar industry.

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