SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ACQUIRING, COMPARING AND EVALUATING PROPERTY CONDITION

• US 20110040692A1
• Filed: 10/19/2010
• Published: 02/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mousiki Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Mousiki Incorporated
• Inventors: Ahroon, Erik
• Granted Patent: US 9,842,373 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/307
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0645 Rental transactions; Leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/163 Real estate management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass

Abstract

A system and method is provided for acquiring, collecting, comparing and evaluating the condition of rental property at several time periods during a lease or rental agreement. A deposit amount that is returned to a rentee or owed by the rentee is determined by a computer or individual based on a comparison of the documentation provided by the rentee and/or renter at the start of the rental period to the documentation that is provided the end of the rental period. The documentation provided by the rentee and renter is time-stamped and imprinted with geo-location information if it is available.

Claims

1. A method for determining an amount of a deposit associated with rental property that will be returned to a rentee or owed by the rentee, the method comprising:

receiving and storing first documentation about condition of the rental property before a rental period;

receiving and storing second documentation about condition of the rental property at termination of the rental period;

comparing the first documentation to the second documentation to determine if there is any damage to the condition of the rental property;

determining one or more deductions based on the resulting damage; and

determining an amount of the deposit that will be returned to the rentee based on the one or more deductions.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first documentation includes at least one image and the second documentation includes at least one image of the rental property;

the at least one image of the first documentation and the second documentation corresponding to a similar view of the rental property.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising comparing the at least one image of the first documentation to a corresponding one of the at least one image of the second documentation to determine if there is any damage to the condition of the rental property.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first documentation includes a first video of the rental property and the second documentation includes a second video of the rental property.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising comparing the first video to the second video to determine if there is any damage to the condition of the rental property.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the first documentation includes a first checklist, and the second documentation includes a checklist about the condition of the rental property.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising comparing the first checklist to the second checklist to determine if there is any damage to the condition of the rental property.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving the first documentation from a renter at or before the start of the rental period;

receiving the first documentation from the rentee at or on the start of the rental period;

receiving the second documentation from the renter on or after termination of the rental period;

receiving the second documentation from the rentee on or after termination of the rental period; and

comparing the first documentation from the renter and from the rentee to the second documentation from the renter and the rentee to determine if there is any damage to the condition of the rental property at the termination of the rental period.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the deductions are flat rate deductions or based on a percentage deduction of a total amount of the deposit.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining the amount of the deposit that will be returned to the rentee by subtracting one of more of the deductions from the deposit.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving third documentation from the rentee about the condition of the rental property at some time after the start of the rental period and before the termination of the rental period.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising comparing the first documentation, the second documentation and the third documentation to determine if there is any damage to the condition of the rental property.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the first documentation and the second documentation are time-stamped with a date and a time of when the first documentation and the second documentation are received.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is performed by a computer, a system or a server.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the comparing step is performed by a person.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the first documentation and the second documentation include one or more images that are time-stamped when received by a server.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the first documentation includes at least one electronic document and at least one image, and the second documentation includes at least one electronic document and at least one image.

18. A method for determining whether a deposit associated with rental property that will be returned to a rentee or owed by the rentee, the method comprising:

receiving one or more first images;

receiving one or more second images;

determining differences between the first images to the second images;

determining whether the differences between the first images and second images correspond to damage to the rental property;

assigning values to the differences found between the first images and the second images; and

determining the remaining deposit amount by subtracting the values from the deposit.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the method is performed by a computer, a system or a server.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of determining whether the differences between the first images and the second imaged correspond to damage of the rental property is performed by a person.