Week 4 - Start From The Beginning (18-24\11)

Pivoting, conducting new interviews, and reach a major problem.

We started the week, as usual, with a general conversation with the project facilitators, intending to present the impressions from the past week. From the main problem that arose last week, we were given the intention that the problem we chose probably does not deal with a cure point and a major pain in the chosen domain and even, a link to the transparency value is a bit weak. Hence, we were asked to think again about the way forward.

As you might guess, we felt a little disappointed and it must be said we even experienced a certain mental fracture. However, after a two-day break in which, each team member tried to think of a new way to act at the time, we met for a meeting in which we agreed on a new direction.

“Pivoting isn't plan B, it's part of the process”

We chose to focus on the accommodation domain.

The problem we want to investigate is the lack of information regarding all the historical variables of a rental apartment that are not visible and in fact do not exist for a potential tenant for the apartment, starting with the nature and conduct of the landlord, the condition of the property, how the apartment is handled, previous tenants' opinions Building and more. Another possible side to the problem is in revealing information about joint tenants.

Transparency will be expressed on the one hand in the ability to reveal hidden information about the apartment owners and the condition of the apartment itself (such as opinions and experience), and on the other hand in exposing information about potential partners, who connect usually early without knowing too much information. The care of the apartment, payments, organization and order, etc.) The main goal is to make the above process more exposed to the tenants.

After selecting the above domain and obtaining approval for further work, we met for a meeting designed to divide tasks and responsibilities among team members to perform the variety of tasks required in a relatively crowded time window, to reduce the time gap created by the change.

Step 01 - Expert Interviews We conducted 2 interviews with experts (property owner and appraiser).

The conclusions from the expert interviews:

- The rental market is not uniform and any apartment owner may charge unfounded prices without justification.

- The process of moving an apartment today can be arduous and even exhausting for tenants about other places in the world there is a disregard for laws to protect the rights of tenants.

- Tenants can not know how many other people in the same area pay and apartments are offered and this does not reflect the real numbers.

- There is a mutual interest of both parties (owner and tenant) in as little interaction and preoccupation with each other as possible, if not necessary.

- However, mutual opinion on each other is critical to the conduct of the process.

- Most people sign a contract that they do not even understand all the clauses in it.

- Property owners have the option of obtaining details that are usually not accessible to the general public in general and tenants in particular - about the construction plan, taboo, year of construction, list of property owners, etc. One reason for this is that most tenants will not make an effort to search due to lack of time or power to read and analyze the plethora of scattered data.

Step 02 - End-Users Interviews We conducted 2 interviews with end-users (people who rent in a shared apartment).

The conclusions from the interviews with the users:

- The interviews show that many apartment seekers tend to give up apartments at the time of signing the contract because when reading it reveals details they did not know about the apartment (such as construction projects to be built near the property, a draconian contract that is not fair for both parties, etc).

-Before accepting a new partner for the apartment, it is customary to talk with the current partners, get to know and check the level of general suitability on the basis of needs and habits (smoking, vegetarian/vegan), lifestyle (secular/kosher / Shabbat), level of order and cleanliness and more. To ensure the creation of a good quality of life and a successful partnership.

- Most apartment seekers testified that the choice of property is mainly based on location, but also when searching, they refer to the general visibility of the property in general and whether it has been renovated in particular, the level of maintenance.

- The interviews revealed that they were happy if they could check information about the property in which they are interested in checking the rating of previous tenants, the neighborhood in which it is located, or information about hazards in the apartment area (such as the construction of TMA).

- There is a clear desire to know in depth the intended landlord in advance because this gives a clear indication of his personality and attitude to its occupants.

- The history of the property is important and even critical for tenants who want to rent an apartment because sometimes during the initial inspection it is difficult to be exposed to hidden problems in the apartment. These problems may be caused due to improper handling by the owner. Therefore, providing this information may assist tenants in formulating a position about the day-to-day care of the apartment and estimating whether the asking price is right for the existing condition of the apartment.

The 5 main problems highlighted in the study:

• Tenants may sign a contract that they do not necessarily understand.

• Difficulty in finding details about the past history of the property resulting from lack of access to information.

• The tenants are not aware of the cost of the apartment of other tenants in the same residential area (a cost that does not reflect the value of the property).

• It is necessary to know in depth the intended owner of the apartment because this gives a clear indication of his personality and attitude to its occupants.

Step 04 - Find The Main Problem\ Need

We chose to focus on the main problem that stood out in all the interviews with the users and the experts: There is a clear need to know in depth the intended apartment owner/partner/ tenant/asset history - In order to prevent future unpleasant situations and disputes.

Step 05 - Persona

Following this, we prepared an initial draft of a naive persona based on a synthesis of the leading topics raised in the last two weeks in the various interviews.

Attached is a copy of the persona:

To sum up the week, we focused on establishing the main results by defining customer needs, main persona, and context.