Home Rental Responsive Website
UX Case Study
The goal of this UX Design project is to design a responsive website to allow tenants to find a safe home to rent. This website should help tenants simplify the home rental process by contacting property owners and being able to make an offer online. Additionally, it should make it easy to determine how safe the property and location are before renting.
Problem Statement
Steve is a busy entrepreneur, husband, and father who needs a website to find and rent a safe home for his family to live in because he is too busy to spend time visiting different locations physically which is time-consuming and may not be safe for him or his family to live.
Business Overview
HappyHomes is a local home rental business that helps people find homes to rent at a reasonable price. The typical user is 23 to 45 years and oftentimes is married with at least one child. HappyHomes’s goal is to have a responsive website designed for their home rental service. This website should help users quickly and efficiently find a safe home to rent for themselves and their families.
The Challenge
There is a growing local real estate market with an emphasis on the growing need for rental properties for small families. Despite the size the quantity of renters and tenants there isn’t a safe, reliable, and easy way to connect them, and greatly simplifies the process of finding a safe and ideal place to rent.
The Research Goal
The goal of this UX Design project is to design a responsive website to allow tenants to find a safe home to rent. This website should help tenants simplify the home rental process by contacting property owners and being able to make an offer online. Additionally, it should make it easy to determine how safe the property and location are before renting.
The Research Approach
Primary & quantitative research was done with people who were currently looking to rent a property or were recently searching for a property to rent for themselves and their families.
My Role
The project was undertaken by me and I carried out all areas and duties of the UX Design process.
Project Duration
March 2022 – April 2022
My Responsibilities
- User research
- Wireframing – Paper and Digital
- Prototyping – Low- and High-Fidelity
- Information Architecture
- Visual Design
- Testing – Usability Studies & iterating on designs
- Writing
Understanding Our Users
User Research Findngs
Research Summary
Primary & quantitative research was done with people who were currently looking to rent a property or were recently searching for a property to rent for themselves and their families.
Before the research, I assumed that prospective users would want to be able to look for places to rent online, view HD pictures, and ultimately call the real estate agent if they are interested.
After the research was completed I learned that users were worried about the safety of the properties. They also wanted to be able to have their friends and families help them find a property that is a good fit for them. They also wanted a way to contact the seller directly from the platform, make an offer, and even pay their rent online.
My UX Design Process
Empathize
Time spent learning about the users we need to provide a solution for such as their pain points, fears, and motivations.
Define
Learn about the market, competition, and other solutions to our users' problems that are currently available.
Ideate
During this phase a solution was proposed based on the information gathered in the previous two steps. The first usability study was done here.
Design
During this stage the information gathered from our first usability study was used to make incremental changes to the lo-fi prototype. It was then converted to a hi-fi prototype.
Implement
During this phase, we tested our hi-fi prototype in a second usability study to ensure that the app was ready for production and the market. Minor changes were made.
Evaluate
During this phase an evaluation of the entire UX Design process was done with feedback from users taken into consideration to evaluate the success of the project.
User Pain Points
Lack of Pictures
There were many listings on popular real estate listing platforms that didn’t have pictures to represent the listings.
Lack Of Access
There was a genuine concern among tested users who were in need of a high-quality local solution for finding a rental property.
Find A Safe Property
Users needed an easy way to determine how safe an area and listing are before they decide to contact the owner or make an offer.
Contact Owners
Users needed an easy and efficient way to contact property owners from the platform without needing to make a call or send an email externally.
User Needs
- Users need an easy and convenient way to find a home to rent for theimselves and their families online
- Users need to be able to determine how safe a listing and location is before they make an offer or decide to move in
- Users need to be able to contact the property owner or listing agent directly from the platform without the use of third-party communication tools
- Users need to be able to create a list of properties that are a good fit for them as well as have family members and friends help in compiling this list. This will make property searching easier
- Users need to be able to rent the property, pay security deposits, as well as pay their rent monthly from the platforms
User Personas
Age: 21 to 55
Education: Highschool Graduate
Hometown: Boston, Massachusetts
Family: Fiancee, Children
Goals:
- An online platform that’s easy to use to find a place to rent
- The ability to contact renters regarding listings
- The ability to complete the rental process is 100% online
Frustrations:
- “I’m frustrated that I can’t find a safe place for my family and me to live.”
- “I hate when I want to learn more about a place but there are no photos listed.”
- “I want a way to do the entire renting process online to save time and effort.”
User Story
As a dedicated husband, loving father, and busy entrepreneur I want to be able to view places to rent online and have my family and friends view places I’m interested in so that I can find a safe place for my family to live without losing time with my family or work to find this place.
Steve is a 27-year-old engaged entrepreneur who is a father to a son and a daughter. He spends up to 14 hours per day working on his business at the office and early in the mornings at home.
He would like to find a bigger place to rent for his family to stay but is frustrated by his inability to learn how safe a place is for his family. Additionally, he often sees listings with no picture, address, or profile pictures for renters. He also feels overwhelmed by his inability to complete the rental process 100% online.
User Journey Map
| Action | Search For Place | Contact Renter | Get pictures of Property | Visit Property | Sign Rental Agreement Move In |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Task List |
A. Browse newspaper B. Search magazines C. Ask friends and family about any potential listings that are available |
A. Get renter contact
information B. Call renter or send an email if its a newspaper lead C. Visit renter at a predetermined location if its a referral from family or friends |
A. Request pictures of
property from renter if
a newspaper lead B. Take pictures of property if a referral and renter allows it C. Share pictures with family and friends for a second opinion |
A. Take time away
from work to visit
property B. Find a mutually beneficial time for both renter and tenant to view property |
A. Have a lawyer
review the rental
agreement B. Sign rental agreement C. Plan date to move in and make monthly payments |
|
Feeling Adjective |
●Anxious ●Frustrated ●Tired |
●Worried ●Anxious ●Concerned for safety |
●Pressed for time ●Tired ●Overworked |
●Tired due to work involved
●Frustrated |
●Excited ●Anxious ●Happy |
|
Improvement Opportunities |
Ability to search for potential listings online from an online catalog |
Provide a way for interested potential tenants to contact renters from the website |
Allow website users to save and download pictures of properties they are interested in as well as create a list of properties that can be shared with other users. Allow multiple users to create and edit one list
|
Allow renters and tenants to be able to book a time for viewing according to their availability.
|
Provide a way for multiple people to view the contract online, parties to sign contract for rental agreement online as well as make rental payments online
|
Low-fidelity Prototype
Usability Study
Usability Study Parameters
Study Type
Unmoderated usability study
Location
Worldwide, remote
Participants
5 users
Length
20 - 30 minutes
Usability Study Findings
One round of usability study was conducted using the low-fidelity prototype.
At the conclusion of this usability study, it was determined that users needed more features that were tailored to renting property online, not another general online real estate listing platform.
Findings from the usability study helped guide the designs from low-fidelity wireframes to high-fidelity wireframes and mockups.
The usability study included questionnaires to qualify participants as users who needed the use of the website. Specifically, we tested with users who were home renters, in the process of renting a property, or were recently searching for a property to rent.
The usability study included several tasks that needed to be completed by participants. The tasks were to be recorded by the participants as they completed them remotely in the comfort of their homes with an effort made to verbalize as best as possible their thoughts and reactions while completing the tasks.
Participants ranged from the ages of 23 to 55, were frequent flower buyers, and lived across the world.
Add property to list
5/5 users were unable to create a list, add a property to the created list, then share the list.
Make an offer
5/5 users were unable to make an offer on a property from the platform
Create account
5/5 users were unable to create an account from anywhere on the website
Before Usability Study
After Usability Study
Summary of changes
Before the usability study there wasn’t a way to make an offer on a property listed. That was fixed after the usability study.
Before Usability Study
After Usability Study
Summary of changes
Before the usability study there wasn’t a way to make a list of properties, share that list, or view that list. That problem was fixed after the usability study.
Hi-Fi Prototype & Final Mockups
Desktop and Mobile versions of each screen included
Accessibility Considerations
Hierarchy
A proper hierarchy was added to allow screen readers to properly and easily navigate and read content for people with disabilities. This was also accomplished by using landmarks.
Screen Readers
The website is added with alt text added to all images to allow screen readers and other assistive technology to help people with disabilities.
Visual Hierarchy
A clear visual hierarchy was designed by using H1, H2, and H3 headings appropriately with different-sized text.
What I've Learned
What I learned:
I’ve learned that I should always start my wireframes and sketches with only the most important features and pages. Using the MVP approach is very useful for ensuring that the core product and features solve the most painful user problems, offer product differentiation, and have a competitive advantage.
Next Steps
More Diverse Product Testing
Improve the accessibility of the product by testing the high-fidelity prototype with more people with disabilities.
Added Features
In the next steps of this project we will add the account creation, login, and password reset screens.
Add Property Owners
We will create user profiles for property owners to allow them to review and accept offers.
Online Property Management
We will allow tenants and property owners to complete and manage the home rental process from the platform including collecting security and rental payments directly from the platform.
Let's Connect!
I am open to more projects in the field of UX Design with an added interest in Product Design, UX Generalist, UX Research, UX Visual & Interaction Design, and UX Writing.
Let us talk more about your next project and how I may bring value to your company and team. I can be contacted at www.jabezroberts.com/contact or info@jabezroberts.com.