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We replaced rental brokers with software and filled 200 vacant apartments

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Re: We replaced rental brokers with software and filled 200 vacant apartments

#261

Post by baby »

EricE wrote: post #214
baby wrote: post #207

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I never had the luxury to limit my research to these places only. Actually I ran into one of these places once in 5 moves and it was a coliving space. I’m convinced they don’t even exist or you’d be looking at 1-2 places for an absurd price.

Not surprising. The biggest expense for a landlord is finding reliable tenants. Churn is HIGHLY undesirable, and thus the market adjusts accordingly. I may need something temporary - at this point I'll just stay in an extended stay hotel vs. trying to find a place to rent. Anything under a year is, as you note, problematic.

Bless airbnb for that, no idea how I would have managed when I was looking for apartments

Re: We replaced rental brokers with software and filled 200 vacant apartments

#262

Post by speby »

woodruffw wrote: post #236
handmodel wrote: post #206

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Uber and Lyft are 100% a win though. - It is now cheaper for the average person to get a ride to an airport/bar than it was before. It is safer, more predictable with timing, and more predictable with pricing. - Uber drivers make more money today than taxi drivers used to/or do today. There are also way more job openings in this than there used to be, with less friction to get involved. The world is not a zero sum ga…

Neither of these things is true in NYC: cabs charge a fixed rate to the area airports (Uber is at least twice that rate), and hack drivers have historically made reasonable money. Most of them have lost that stability, as well as (in some instances) their life savings due to the medallion crash.

Yes, the medallion crash.... because medallions were a political "tool" which controlled supply, making them artificially way more valuable than they otherwise should have been.

Re: We replaced rental brokers with software and filled 200 vacant apartments

#263

Post by koolba »

ipqk wrote: post #234
tenpies wrote: post #225

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spoiler: the landlord is just passing that cost to the tenant. It's like in Canada where tenants can hire a broker for "free" to find a rental. However the broker just collects 1 month rent from the landlord. Do you think the landlord just absorbs the cost? No, the quoted rent was just 8.4% higher when the broker mentioned he was a broker.

Yes, but the landlord can find cheaper brokers, or do it themselves to save money. There's now an efficient market. When the burden is paid by the renter, there's no efficient market because renter has no choice in the broker and the owner doesn't care.

Either way the renter is paying the cost and the landlord is losing a chunk of the spread.

It’s no different than the ridiculous notion that “the seller pays broker’s commission”. It’s baked into the price and the buyer is still paying it, otherwise a home would cost X% less.

Re: We replaced rental brokers with software and filled 200 vacant apartments

#264

Post by deminature »

wallawe wrote: post #239
cafard wrote: post #232

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Will Uber and Lift continue to be a win when the VCs start wanting to see some of their money back? Or will the prices start rising back to the old taxi rates, then past?

I'm confused by this comment. They both went public two years ago so VCs have all cashed out.

People don't understand the difference between VC backed startups and public companies backed by institutional and retail investors

Re: We replaced rental brokers with software and filled 200 vacant apartments

#265

Post by handmodel »

TeMPOraL wrote: post #248
handmodel wrote: post #206

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Uber and Lyft are 100% a win though. - It is now cheaper for the average person to get a ride to an airport/bar than it was before. It is safer, more predictable with timing, and more predictable with pricing. - Uber drivers make more money today than taxi drivers used to/or do today. There are also way more job openings in this than there used to be, with less friction to get involved. The world is not a zero sum ga…

> It is now cheaper for the average person to get a ride to an airport/bar than it was before. On average, in certain locations. In others, not so much. And let's not forget surge pricing. Or people living, or wanting to get to a place, along low-profit routes. Or people with disabilities. > more predictable with pricing Depends. Regular taxis tended to cost a bit more, but had much lower variance. > Uber drivers mak…

I would love a carbon tax but if that existed I don't see how you can blame Uber for making society worse. In additions to all the economic gains you talk about it has saved thousands of lives a year due to less drunk driving. Additionally, it has enabled millions of people in cities to skip buying a new car/any car which saves tons of emissions.

More predictable as in you know the fair before you get in. I did have to take a taxi in Los Angeles from the airport earlier this year and the guy wouldn't tell me how much it would cost. Gave me a ballpark that was $22 less than what it ended up being.

Re: We replaced rental brokers with software and filled 200 vacant apartments

#266

Post by TeMPOraL »

sudopluto wrote: post #198
boringg wrote: post #178

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your comments are the perfect example of the short term positive news wave they can generate. Thank you for validating.

i don't care if a tech company extracts a fee, as 1) the process will likely be much better then texting a broker: virtual apartment layouts, ability to see profiles for roommates, no bait and switch of "that unit just got taken buuuuuuuuuuuttttt i have this crappy one that is still available just for you!" 2) the fee they charge will be less than brokers. no way would someone handover a month's rent to some company…

> virtual apartment layouts

I wish to see that. It'll be 10 more years before the implementation won't be total garbage.

> ability to see profiles for roommates

Privacy concerns may prevent that. If not, it's a prime candidate for a paywall.

> no bait and switch of "that unit just got taken buuuuuuuuuuuttttt i have this crappy one that is still available just for you!

You're joking, right?

On-line services literally live by that. They've perfected it, refined it to the level of art. Only the best US used car salesmen can get close to pulling shenanigans the large on-line hotel and vacation booking services pull.

> the fee they charge will be less than brokers.

The fee will be whatever they say it will be. The more centralized the market will get - and this is what happens when things get handled by tech companies - the higher the fees are likely to be.

> no way would someone handover a month's rent to some company who's only interaction with you is via chatbot

People will pay if the service is good enough, for the same reason they pay brokers today. Many have more money than free time in their lives; one month's rent isn't much if it cuts out most of the bullshit that's involved in finding a place to rent.

Re: We replaced rental brokers with software and filled 200 vacant apartments

#267

Post by afterburner »

handmodel wrote: post #206
boringg wrote: post #159

Caretaker: The redfin of brokers. Take all the value for themselves freeze out the brokers (who provide a service but are universally disdained). Ride that wave of positive news for a couples years. Eventually everyone will hate the fraction of the market Caretaker has as they raise prices to make investors happy and people realize there are problems. It's like the same idea of Uber and Lyft. Less human involvement =…

Uber and Lyft are 100% a win though. - It is now cheaper for the average person to get a ride to an airport/bar than it was before. It is safer, more predictable with timing, and more predictable with pricing. - Uber drivers make more money today than taxi drivers used to/or do today. There are also way more job openings in this than there used to be, with less friction to get involved. The world is not a zero sum ga…

An exercise in offloading car depreciation and maintenance onto unsuspecting low-paid workers.

Re: We replaced rental brokers with software and filled 200 vacant apartments

#268

Post by albedoa »

e1g wrote: post #192
khuey wrote: post #179

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, that's right. The landlord is required to seek a new tenant.

USA is a big place, but OP is talking about NYC specifically before COVID. At that time you were liable for the full amount until the end of the lease. Landlords could sit on empty boxes and sue you for the entire amount. Whether they want the hassle is up to them, but you couldn't compel them to do anything. It does sound unfair, but see here for supporting sources https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/tenants-rig…

Your own link says that NYC landlords are required to mitigate damages by seeking a new tenant.

Re: We replaced rental brokers with software and filled 200 vacant apartments

#269

Post by p_j_w »

beisner wrote: post #185
boringg wrote: post #159

Caretaker: The redfin of brokers. Take all the value for themselves freeze out the brokers (who provide a service but are universally disdained). Ride that wave of positive news for a couples years. Eventually everyone will hate the fraction of the market Caretaker has as they raise prices to make investors happy and people realize there are problems. It's like the same idea of Uber and Lyft. Less human involvement =…

If they bring permanent change to the market and lead to the elimination of rental brokers entirely, I don't care what replaces it.

>I don't care what replaces it

What if the replacement is worse?

Re: We replaced rental brokers with software and filled 200 vacant apartments

#270

Post by __sy__ »

dempsey wrote: post #253
__sy__ wrote: post #161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

oh right! Yeah it's pretty neat actually (for anyone interested[1]). Unfortunately, it does require physical presence/labor (i.e. $$$) by whoever has the master reset tool. For Airbnb's or even self-tours, that's kind of a non-starter. [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5MQz3JjZl8&ab_channel=Kwiks...

When you perform a move out or move in inspection, you change the key. It's super easy. The reset tool can fit in your wallet or glove compartment. It's a big change versus having to change the cylinder as in the past. Having to manage a load of electronic locks is likely more costly. Again, this is long-term rentals not short-term. As for self-tours, they make electronic lockboxes. They've been around forever and us…

I'm not going to try to convince you that key-exchanges are bad for short-lived visits (whether electronic lockboxes or not). We just know from experience doing millions of these for a large company that this is very problematic at times and you're better off with a remote controlled solutions that doesn't involve anyone having any physical key.
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