Samir Al-Battran, President of
RentCompass, says his company started when he realized that people looking to move wanted information on the move. "We found that the real estate market in Canada -- and specifically the rental search industry -- did not have any practical solutions that meet today's demands and advancements in technology," he says. "The recent rapid spread of smartphones made it possible to build mobile solution to find information on the go, and that was the inspiring point for RentCompass."
Last week, the company launched a native application for the iPad, a first for a Canadian real-estate search company. Earlier RentCompass launched the first rental application in the country for the iPhone. Al-Battran says he just sees the market for mobile applications getting bigger. "We believe that mobile applications are the future, especially in our segment. Our vision is that people should be able to find apartments or houses for rent on the go, whether they are driving or walking in a neighbourhood that they liked, or while commuting to work or school."
The start-up of three people offers ads for free, and is free for people to download or visit on the web. Al-Battran says that the business plan calls for selling advertising on the site. In the near future, he says, the company will likely be hiring support staff and, down the road, some developers, to complement their core team.
Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Samir Al-Battran, President, RentCompass