It is time to change the narrative around rental management solutions

Long before I became a property investor, I was once a fresh grad who struggled to fork out a hefty sum to pay for the rental deposit. Years later, my goal has been to maximize rental income from my properties as with every other investors too. Since I have been on both sides of the table, I took into consideration these factors which had played an essential part in moulding the company’s services to what it is today.

When I drew inspirations from companies such as Sayrhino and Leaselock, I was determined to provide more value-added services for the communities out there, ideally an all-in-one software system that is fuss-free and reliable. Indisputably, the lack of affordable deposits and the inability to find a reliable tenant are key factors to which both tenant and landlord can’t seem to come to terms with. To come to a middle ground in this scenario is where BlueDuck comes into play. Predictably, everyone wants a win-win solution and one which comes at a reasonable cost. Therefore, our team at BlueDuck focused on narrow slices of the problem and treating visible symptoms that would have a positive impact on the subrental market today.

In 2020, the response towards BlueDuck Zero Deposit Program proved to be a much needed relief for some financially burdened tenants in an already overpriced rental market. It’s not only tenants who are applauding the cause but landlords too as they would be equipped with high-value protection through insurance provided by Liberty Insurance Berhad. As our data shows, less than 5% of our users have claimed runaway which is contrary to the popular belief that most tenants tend to abuse such policy. Thanks to the overwhelming response, BlueDuck now serves over 2000 tenants and landlords since its launch in August 2020.

So the question is what’s next on the plate. According to a survey, 65 per cent of respondents indicated that a tenant's gender should be compulsory information for the landlord, followed closely by nationality at 64 per cent, and marital status at 63 per cent. What this tells us is that, similar to a jobseeker’s profile, a tenant’s profile is pivotal to the screening process. Instead of interviewing the tenant physically, what if landlords could obtain their profile with consent and verifiable data, not to mention their rental history and credit scoring too. It goes without saying that adequate disclosure is reasonable should the tenant consent to such requirement too as it is a win-win scenario for both. Therefore, by Q4 2021, we will launch the ‘BD Tenant Profiling’ as a complementary service to the Zero Deposit Solution. It is expected to benefits over 50,000 tenants in the next 3 years.

As mentioned earlier, our vision is to achieve an all-in-one service that works well for all parties. Now, evidently the process is faster, transparency is unlocked, credibility is verified and risk is mitigated at the same time, and all is achieved in the interest of both landlords and tenants. Despite the pandemic, our product serves its purpose by fulfilling the parties’ needs without the need for them to be physically present.

With our current proposition to provide a more holistic solution to the market, we look forward to its recovery too post-pandemic. While we have a lot to offer, we know there would only be challenges and opportunities ahead of us. Thus, we have participated in MaGIC Virtual GAP Cohort 5 which is designed to help us stay competitive in the marketplace. We are delighted to have graduated from the MaGIC GAP Cohort 5, being the top 30 startups on the list. Throughout the programme, I have met many like-minded individuals from around the world and coached by reputable veterans in the business world. This programme has also helped me validate whether there is any product-market fit and assess our own business too. At the end, I would encourage all entrepreneurs to join any contest and cohort to increase your competitiveness and worldview. - Earnest Wong, CEO of BlueDuck. For more information, please visit our website www.blueduck.my.

This content is provided by Malaysian Global Innovation & Creativity Centre (MaGIC).