StreetLeap launches online rental listing marketplace to change how the rental industry operates by comparing all-in TrueCost® for each property

** ADVANCED COPY ** DENVER, COLORADO, November X, 2021 – In cities across the country, renters are encountering surprise fees that can undermine their financial stability. It doesn't have to be this way, says a new company that's aiming for more transparency. Research by StreetLeap.com, an online rental marketplace launching in Denver, reveals that hidden fees and usage costs for a one-bedroom apartment can vary as much as $4,500 per year.

More Americans than ever (34% of us) are renting in today's tight housing market. And while rents are spiking, incomes are not. StreetLeap's nationwide research shows the one-two punch that rising rents, hidden fees, and less-than-clear usage costs have on renters, many of whom are still suffering economically from the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to StreetLeap co-founders Kavin Hanner, Josh Levy, and Austin Gonsalves, many renters discover surprise fees and higher-than-expected usage costs after they've signed a lease because most rental properties across the U.S. don't offer fee details in their listings. Often, renters don't find out about the additional fees and costs until they've invested valuable time visiting a property or after they've signed a rental contract.

[insert quote from financial influencer(s) on the impact that choosing the wrong rental, or paying too much for it, can have on a person's finances.]

Exposing hidden rental fees

Through their experience in running a rental brokerage, StreetLeap's founders witnessed a shortcoming in many online rental listings – the incomplete and often

hidden information on fees that many renters learn about only after a property visit or signing a rental contract. They set out to create a new kind of rental listing and rental search tool that would provide accurate listings and help renters answer an essential question: How will this rental fit my life's needs and my budget without any extra cost surprises after I've moved in? This informed the team's concept of TrueCostTM, which is the focus of StreetLeap.com.

Bootstrapping their business out of an apartment in Denver, the trio understood the city's massive demand for rental apartments. They decided that Denver would be the perfect place to roll out StreetLeap.

"We have witnessed first-hand how unforeseen rental fees and costs affect our friends and neighbors," said Hanner. "We created StreetLeap to give them better information to make accurate fee comparisons and smart choices."

How StreetLeap works

StreetLeap.com operates differently than other online rental listing sites. To help renters quickly compare the all-in cost of apartment or home rentals, StreetLeap.com displays rental pricing in two ways: First, based on fixed but often hidden charges such as parking, pets, wi-fi, gyms, and in-building laundry, and second, on usage estimates specific to the building. Prospective renters can now compare their actual, personalized cost for every rental rather than unknowingly select a space beyond their budget.

[insert another influencer's advice on why it's so important to know all the deets on a rental before signing a contract]

StreetLeap's online platform helps people accurately and quickly compare each rental's all-in costs depending on the neighborhood, type of building, amenities, and extras. It provides real-time data, shares features of different communities, and does the math for each renter based on their criteria. StreetLeap levels the playing field for all renters and encourages transparency for rental building owners and landlords.

Revealing rental fee horror stories

The number one reason renters move is that they can't afford their rent. For people on a tight budget, surprise fees can be the tipping point. In addition to its website's TrueCost® approach, StreetLeap addresses the hidden rental fee problem by bringing more peoples' rental fee experiences out in the open. The stories of frustration the StreetLeap team receives from renters reinforce their desire to make the rental search process transparent – and change the rental industry in the process.

StreetLeap's Reclaim Your Rental Fees Sweepstakes will award $10,000 between two renters who can best articulate their hidden fees nightmare and elevate the problem of hidden fees.

StreetLeap.com helps people understand their costs and get the best rental for their needs, neighborhood, and budget. "We're taking an intuitive approach to rental searches," says co-founder Kavin Hanner. "StreetLeap is how thorough, value-oriented people already think about rentals. We're simply making it easy, fast, and automatic. We're excited to help our Denver neighbors be informed rental shoppers and to serve Austin and Dallas renters in the near future."

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