Service management systems and associated methods

• US 10,366,394 B2
• Filed: 05/20/2015
• Issued: 07/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/16/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Louis D. Delk
• Original Assignee: Louis D. Delk
• Inventors: Delk, Louis D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Whitaker, Andrew B
• Application Number:
  US14/717,461
• Publication Number:
  US 20150254671A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,532 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4037 Remote solvency checks
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0645 Rental transactions; Leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/163 Real estate management

Abstract

Service management systems and associated methods are disclosed herein. In one embodiment, a service management system can include a system for delivering various types of services including property management services, residential rental services, social services, low income housing services, and/or the like. One aspect of the disclosure is directed toward a computer implemented service management process (e.g., a property management process) that includes maintaining an inventory of property associated with a rental program, providing information associated with the rental program, processing an application to enter the program from a potential program participant, and administering various program elements of the rental program. In selected embodiments, the method can further include providing products/services and/or providing advertising. In still further embodiments, the method can include terminating the program participant'"'"'s participation in the rental program/service management process.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for improving (i) tracking of compliance with and (ii) management of rental agreements associated with a government program, the method comprising:

storing, in one or more network-accessible storage devices, one or more databases of information relating to a rental program, wherein the one or more databases include at least one database of housing units associated with the rental program;

receiving, from a renter, an application to enter the rental program;

processing the application using one or more data processing components in communication with the one or more network-accessible storage devices, wherein processing the application includes generating a rental agreement, and wherein generating the rental agreement includes (i) associating an available housing unit in the at least one database of housing units with the renter and (ii) defining program participation requirements, and further wherein the program participation requirements include (a) a requirement that the renter establish a budget to repay a loan in addition to paying rent and (b) a requirement that the renter make rental payments in accordance with the budget;

receiving an indication of consent to the rental agreement from the renter;

storing, in the one or more network-accessible storage devices, the budget established by the renter;

in accordance with the rental agreement and the budget, paying, using the one or more processors, a first portion of a rental payment to a property owner of the housing unit and a second portion of the rental payment to a debtor associated with the loan;

automatically generating, using the one or more processors, credit bureau arranged credit information of the renter based on the rental payment;

automatically generating, using the one or more processors, a notification to one or more credit bureaus, wherein automatically generating the notification includes populating the notification with the credit bureau arranged credit information; and

sending, using the one or more processors, the notification to the one or more credit bureaus.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending the notification to the one or more credit bureaus via a network.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the rental payment is one of a plurality of rental payments, and wherein sending the notification to the one or more credit bureaus via the network includes sending a history of credit information having data associated with the plurality of rental payments.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the rental agreement requires the rental payment as part of a manageable repayment plan that improves credit and successfully repays debt associated with the loan and associated with the rent, and wherein the rental agreement permits the renter to make rental payments via at least one of authorized electronic transfers of funds, direct deposits, and credit enhancing saving or payment systems.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the loan is an approved microloan debt issued by a financial institution.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the loan is issued without a credit check.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing the credit information.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the loan is a microloan issued to the renter.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the loan is associated with an approved debt.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the loan is associated with a plurality of pre-existing debts.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the rental agreement requires issuance of the loan, and wherein the loan is unrelated to pre-existing debt.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the rental agreement requires issuance of the loan, and wherein the loan is associated with payment of a pre-existing debt.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the pre-existing debt comprises a debt to an entity unrelated to the property owner of the housing unit.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein processing the rental agreement includes matching the renter with the housing unit.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising storing a record of the rental payment.

16. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions that, when executed by a computer system, cause the computer system to perform operations for improving (i) tracking of compliance with and (ii) management of rental agreements associated with a government program, the operations comprising:

processing, using one or more processors in communication with one or more network-accessible storage devices, an application received from a renter to participate in the government program, wherein the application includes information related to the renter;

generating, using the one or more processors, a rental agreement based, at least in part, on the information related to the renter, wherein generating the rental agreement includes (i) associating the renter with an available housing unit and (ii) defining program participation requirements, and wherein the program participant requirements include (a) a requirement that the renter establish a budget to repay a loan in addition to paying rent and (b) a requirement that the renter make rental payments in accordance with the budget;

storing, in the one or more network-accessible storage devices, the budget established by the renter;

in accordance with the rental agreement and the budget, paying, using the one or more processors, a first portion of a rental payment to a property owner of the housing unit and a second portion of the rental payment to a debtor associated with the loan;

automatically converting, using the one or more processors, information associated with the rental payment into credit bureau arranged credit data; and

transmitting, using the one or more processors, the credit data to a credit bureau via a network.

17. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16 wherein the loan comprises a microloan issued to the renter of the housing unit as a condition of the rental agreement.

18. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 17 wherein the rental agreement restructures a pre-existing debt into the microloan.

19. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16 wherein the credit data includes credit data corresponding to the first portion of the rental payment, credit data corresponding to the second portion of the rental payment, or a combination thereof.

20. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 17 wherein the microloan is unrelated to pre-existing debt, and wherein the rental agreement requires the microloan based on a determination that the renter'"'"'s credit rating needs improvement.

21. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16 wherein the operations further include transmitting, using the one or more processors via the network, an indication of payment of the rental payment to the property owner of the housing unit.

22. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 16 wherein the operations further include transmitting, using the one or more processors via the network, information associated with the rental payment to a database stored on the one or more network-accessible storage devices, wherein the database includes information associated with the housing unit, and wherein the information associated with the rental payment is associated with the housing unit within the database.