If Adrian Yong needed proof he was onto a game-changing idea, he got it when he found one of the major barriers to growing his company is the fact nothing like it exists.
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The Canberra man was trying to find medium-term rental accommodation in Brisbane after his start-up, Rentality, was accepted into a 12-week program run by corporate accelerator Slingshot in September.
The problem? Most landlords will only accept tenants who sign long-term contracts with a minimum stay of six or 12 months, while the cost of a short-term solution like Airbnb adds up after more than a few weeks.
"I stayed in an Airbnb for about two weeks, met people and inspected homes, met people and inspected homes, then finally found one," Mr Yong said.
"It cost me so much more money [than necessary]. I needed Rentality to [help grow] Rentality."
Having started as a platform where people could find a place to stay for anywhere between one week and three months, Rentality's booking lengths now range from one month to nine months.
Since the start-up's website launched on April 30, its focus has shifted from tackling homelessness to making housing affordable and accessible for migrants, international students, contractors and fly-in fly-out workers.
Co-founder Joey Wong said people in those target markets were "stuck in the middle" of the short- and long-term rental markets, and often had to fork out large amounts of money for short-term accommodation while they looked for something long-term.
"This segment of people is really struggling," Ms Wong said.
"It’s not affordable for them to go to Airbnb and book a place for a few months and on the other hand, if they go through a real estate agent, the minimum often starts from 12 months and they would have to go through a physical inspection.
"A lot of them need a place to stay instantly when they arrive, so they can't go for an inspection first."
As Rentality continues to grow, with more than 1100 users now signed up in Canberra, Sydney and Perth, the accolades have followed.
Earlier this month, the company was named the regional finals winner at StartCon, the biggest start-up and growth conference in Australia.
Rentality has already received a $30,000 investment through the Slingshot accelerator and marked the end of the 12-week accelerator program this week in Brisbane with a pitch to a crowd of more than 200 people, including potential investors.
Rentality was crowned the most investable start-up at the pitch event and Mr Yong said the company would hold follow-up meetings with three potential investors who had expressed interest in offering financial backing.
After the accelerator program, which offered bespoke training and access to a support team of mentors, Rentality's founders are confident they're ready to make their mark.
"[Rentality] is a unique solution to a huge problem that’s increasingly faced by our generation, because people are relocating more often," Ms Wong said.
"We were talking to some of the big players who attended StartCon and they haven't seen any solution to this problem [before]."
