This past summer, University of Wisconsin seniors Isaac Lee and Vinesh Janarthanan interned in Texas and California respectively. Both students found that it was quite difficult to find appropriately priced short-term housing for their time away from campus. They decided they wanted to come up with a more efficient and simpler way to sublease. Together, they developed “Crib.”
Crib is a marketplace that aims to ease the process of subleasing. The app assists students in finding subleases and offers a platform for tenants to sublease their own housing as well. Those looking for suitable housing are able to do so in just three clicks on the app. The application uses artificial intelligence to find subleases that will cater to every individual’s needs, according to Janarthanan and Lee.
Lee and Janarthanan discovered that subleasing is a common renter’s activity, especially in college towns. From summer break to semester internships to studying abroad, there are always students looking for a tenant to sublease their housing while they are away.
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But, those looking for subleases or to sublease their apartment don’t have many options beyond word of mouth or Facebook to find a sublease or tenant.
“The way people are subleasing right now is very, very inefficient,” Lee said.
Crib provides a much simpler app to give users just what they are looking for with customizable filters and safety features already in place, according to Janarthanan and Lee.
Although Lee and Janarthanan founded Crib nine months ago and only got it approved to be on the app store two months ago, Crib is growing fast. With over 1,000 users and 400 properties in cities like Madison, New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and many more, Crib has become popular nationwide, according to Janarthanan and Lee.
“We want to be the major platform for subleasing, kind of like Airbnb but for subleasing,” Janarthanan said.
Lee and Janarthanan are in the beginning stages of growing their business and are currently focused on expanding their user base by traveling to different universities to market Crib nationwide.
The founders added that their team of nine students have long-term plans to establish an affiliate network with universities to really cater to students looking for affordable subleases.
Lee and Janarthanan included that one of the key aspects of Crib is the safety features included in the back end. From developers moderating the app daily to user verification, Crib prioritizes the safety of all users.
Janarthanan and Lee, like many others, have realized the housing crisis that faces Madison and are looking to solve one aspect of the problem by building a bridge between subleases and prospective tenants.
