Movebubble, the platform for renters, has unveiled major changes to its service, to make moving house even easier, cheaper and less stressful for tenants.
The new features include Renter Profiles, the ability to give references and ratings and a Viewing Planner, to organise appointments online. Through its renter-focused service, Movebubble is challenging property owners and agents to be more transparent in their approach to letting homes.
Following three months of rapid growth, Movebubble has reached 20,000 registered users and 250,000 property searches have taken place through the site.
Aidan Rushby, CEO of Movebubble, said: “Renting is one of the last markets to be improved through collaborative technology and proptech is finally a hot area for development. We are excited to be leading the way.
“We’ve seen a staggering response from renters since we launched in June. As a renter myself, I know how exciting it is to have a platform designed specifically to make our lives easier. At Summit, we’re rolling out new features that represent a milestone in our mission to reduce the costs, lack of transparency and unfair treatment that over nine million renters face while letting property in the UK. If you rent, sign up to Movebubble and make moving better.”
Through Movebubble, renters can build a “profile” which helps them stand out from the crowd and take charge of their personal information. Instead of the current process where letting agents request references which renters rarely see, Movebubble’s Profile lets people develop a ‘renting CV’ with feedback from former housemates and landlords. Renter Profiles give people control over their own information, allowing them to share it only with their chosen prospective landlords.
With Movebubble, renters can provide references about their landlords and properties for other renters. This offers renters the opportunity to have a voice for the first time. While it’s standard practise for renters to have to provide references before they rent a property, landlords don’t have to do the same. Movebubble research found that 70% of 1,000 renters questioned think references would have stopped them getting ripped off by rogue landlords in the past.
Renters can also give feedback on properties and viewings, helping other renters in their search for their next home.
Logan Hall, CMO of Movebubble, said: “The more forward thinking and trustworthy landlords see the value in building their online rental brands early and are jumping on-board and building their Movebubble profile. We have seen this across many other industries, with the likes of seller ratings on Ebay, Airbnb, Uber and many more.”
After browsing for property on the site, Movebubble’s Viewing Planner lets people book viewings that fit around their work and social life, chat with owners and stay on top of upcoming appointments. Having a Renter Profile means that renters can book multiple viewings with the same details, without having to fill out lots of forms.
“People are used to booking restaurants, gym classes and gig tickets online, so why not viewings of properties? This is how we want to operate, it’s about time people woke up to this,” said Rushby.
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Comments
I hope Landlord Today were paid for this advertising?
Its certainly not news. I suspect any chain of high street letting agents have way in excess of 20,000 people "registered" with them at any given time.
At least with a real agent, they'll do the viewings for you and if you use a decent one, they'll weed out the duds before even getting to the referencing stage. Hey ho, you get what you pay for