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LETTR
UX/ UI DESIGN SEMESTER PROJECT
FALL 2023

Subletting in NYC is difficult. The main avenue to find and publish appartments is Facebook marketplace, but it was not built for this purpose. The legality behind the process is also quite confusing, and for students with little time on their hands, these factors cause discomfort and anxiety. With this in mind, we desgined Lettr, a swiping interface that gamifies and facilitates the process of subletting in NYC.

The Design Process


1. Understanding the Problem


I conducted interviews on 3 different college students to better understand how they felt about subletting. I found that:

1. Finding a sublet is difficult as there is no centralized platform for this.
2. It is hard to avoid scams as there is no way to verify the validity of appartments which are posted in places like Facebook Marketplace.
3. Subletting is time sensitive and therefore anxiety inducing and stressful.
4. Current subletting plaforms lack filtering options for a more precise search.
5. Communication between the person subletting and the person looking for appartment is a major problem due to (a) High volume of messages which makes it difficult to manage conversations. (b) Many subletters get ghosted by potential tenants. (c) There tends to be a lack of transparency about roommates and apartment conditions.


2. Affinity Diagramming


After collecting data from the interviews, my team and I constructed an affinity diagram to synthesize our findings.
Affinity Diagram

Affinity diagramming gave us valulable insights and allowed us to refine our problem statement:

Finding a sublet in NYC is a difficult, overwhelming, and anxiety-inducing experience for students with little time to spare.


3. Storyboarding


After coming up with 5 different storyboards, our team decided on a Tinder-like interface which gamifies the subletting experience through swiping. Swiping is familiar to college students, offering a stress-free alternative to scrolling through endless listings. It adds a sense of ease and playfulness to the experience, making what is typically an overwhelming process feel simple and engaging.
Storyboard


4. Conducting a Comparative Analysis


My team and I analyzed existing subletting solutions, identifying their strengths and gaps in addressing student needs. We categorized them into three types:

  • Short-term rentals (Airbnb, Vrbo)
  • Off-campus housing sites (Zillow, StreetEasy)
  • Social forums (Facebook Groups, WhatsApp)

    • Unlike these alternatives, our solution:
  • Gamifies the process to make it less stressful and more engaging
  • Focuses on students seeking affordable off-campus housing
  • Uses .edu verification for safety and trust
  • Prioritizes key concerns like apartment appearance, chat features, pricing, and scam prevention
  • Curates quality options to avoid overwhelming users

    • 5. Lo-Fi Prototyping

    We created low-fidelity prototypes to test basic functionality and gather initial user feedback through the Wizard of Oz technique. This helped us refine our approach before moving on to more detailed designs.

    Low-Fidelity Prototype


    6. User Testing


    User testing provided valuable feedback that directly shaped future design decisions:

  • Swiping is intuitive, but users want more control. While the Tinder-style interface was familiar and engaging, testers wanted a way to save and compare listings before messaging.
  • Profile creation felt overwhelming. Users preferred scrolling through options instead of seeing everything at once.
  • Location selection needed improvement. Instead of entering a specific address, users wanted neighborhood or radius-based filtering.
  • Amenities were unclear. Users assumed more options existed but wanted a clearer checklist similar to Airbnb.
  • Roommate preferences could be expanded. Some testers wanted a mixed/co-ed option and roommate age filtering.

    • 7. High-Fi Prototyping

    For our final design solution we developed high-fidelity prototypes incorporating feedback from user testing.

  • Implemented a "save/bookmark" feature for users to collect and compare listings.
  • Adjusted profile creation flow to allow scrolling for a smoother experience.
  • Replaced address entry with neighborhood selection or location radius filters.
  • Improved amenities section with a clear checklist inspired by Airbnb.
  • Added co-ed roommate preference and age filtering for better roommate compatibility.
  • Enhanced chat features by displaying a preview of past conversations with matches.

    • Click on the prototype below to explore more screens!

    High-Fidelity Prototype

    8. Final Product

    After several stages, we were ready to code our current design solution! We used HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Python (Flask), React, and SQL. Download Lettr here, and watch our team video below!

    9. Future Work

    In the future, we plan to integrate APIs and AI-driven matching based on user preferences. Enhanced UX features like smart filters and interactive maps will improve navigation, while automated verification systems will ensure security and trust. These advancements will make Lettr safer, faster, and more intuitive.

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