The local property rental market may be on the verge of a shake up after the launch of Sqmeterz, an online marketplace for mid- to long-term property rentals.

Luke Curmi, the brains behind Sqmeterz, believes the start-up will disrupt the market by reducing the costs associated with renting a home for both tenants and landlords.

Times of Malta reports Mr Curmi saying, “There is no doubt that the rental market has been growing rapidly with the proportion of younger tenants, known as ‘Generation Rent’, increasing markedly. Renting is not exactly cheap with tenants and landlords bearing a significant share of the total transaction costs. This was the starting point that I set out to address and was determined to do something about.”

He describes how he got together with his father and his brother to work on changing a “very long established and traditional marketplace” by addressing three main “pain points”: the exorbitant fees, the laborious and time-consuming viewings and the lack of transparency.

“Renting property is becoming increasingly expensive,” he says, attributing this to the standard industry practice where tenants pay 50 per cent of the first month’s rent to the letting agency, with the other 50 per cent being paid by the landlord.

“In addition, tenants must pay a lump sum of money to put down a deposit to cover potential damages. This is what led me to disrupt this status quo with a platform where tenants pay zero per cent fees and the landlords pay only 25 per cent of the first month’s rent.”

Sqmeterz will also provide a Landlord Protection Guarantee whereby if the tenant causes damages to the property more than the deposit amount, Sqmeterz will cover the landlord for up to €250.

“I believe that this is a win-win for both the tenant and the landlord,” Mr Curmi continues.

The platform also allows self-listing of properties by landlords in just five minutes, virtual viewings which reduce the number of wasted in-person viewings, online coordination and booking of physical viewings, and digital execution of contracts and other documentation.

Mr Curmi also mentions the “unparalleled transparency” offered by the platform.

“All tenants are screened and their profiles are verified before being uploaded on our online platform, and through a secure messaging system, the landlord and the tenant can communicate openly and directly. We are building a community of trusted tenants and reliable landlords.”

Mr Curmi’s clear vision is evident throughout.

“We have managed to launch the Sqmeterz online platform in 12 months from when it was originally conceived. And we have other plans as we shortly expect to start accepting listings of business and commercial properties. Our ultimate ambition is to take our platform to a foreign market,” he says.

“With our Sqmeterz online platform, we can fill an important gap in the market for ‘digital property renting’, a concept that is bound to challenge this market’s current status quo. Over and above this, we are also a start-up with a strong social purpose – that of reducing the cost of renting a home while at the same time reducing the cost to landlords.”

“But we do not want to just be disruptive. We will contribute efficiency and alignment to the market and, ultimately, change the customer’s experience.”