Before you start looking for an apartment, start looking for a bidding paddle.
Apartment hunting is grueling, aggravating and downright brutal. But, what if there was a way to make apartment hunting even more grueling, aggravating and downright brutal?
A new start-up in Silicon Valley wants to add competitive bidding to the disastrous mix of anger, awkwardness and desperation that apartment hunting already creates.
Rentberry allows landlords to list their property and have potential tenants bid on their property much like the style of eBay.
However, on Rentberry, landlords do not have to choose the highest offer available. They may choose a lower offer but a higher-quality bidder.
Alex Lubinsky, CEO of Rentberry, was quoted saying that: "Essentially, we offer a more efficient and transparent application process which has the elements of bidding and an auction,"
Rentberry currently charges the tenant a $25 fee when they agree to a property, but may switch that and charge landlords 25% of the extra rental income they are making off the tenant.
While it may sound like you are not saving on much, you may even be paying more. Rentberry estimates that potential tenants may save $400 in fees and a bunch of time searching for a place.
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The service is launching in New York City and San Francisco, the two places with the highest cost of living in the country.
Maybe Rentberry will revolutionize the way apartment hunting is done. Maybe you'll feel the anger you feel when you lose a bidding war on a vintage Nickelodeon alarm clock but magnified by a million.
What Rentberry shows us already is that competitiveness, luck and a little bit of faith are all needed when finding a new home. Those who are going to make the most out of this service are those who already lower a shoulder when entering a crowded subway.
So, New York City, get ready to bid on your future; it's gonna get nasty out there.
Check out This News Report on the NYC Subway from Back in the 90s.
[via SFGate] [Feature Image Courtesy Pulse]