THE HECTRE
Designing a new way to find, move, and live together.
Designing a new way to find, move,
and live together.
My role: Co-founder / Design Lead
My role: Co-founder / Design Lead
Status: Beta / App in development
Status: Beta / App in development
The operating system for modern living
The operating system for modern living
Finding a home shouldn't mean jumping between WhatsApp, Facebook, property websites, agents, roommate groups, and marketplaces.
Finding a home shouldn't mean jumping between WhatsApp, Facebook, property websites, agents, roommate groups, and marketplaces.
The Hectre brings the people, place, and process of moving into one connected experience.
The Hectre brings the people, place, and process of moving into one connected experience.
We're building a platform that helps people discover who they'll live with, where they'll live, and how they'll move - all in one ecosystem.
We're building a platform that helps people discover who they'll live with, where they'll live, and how they'll move - all in one ecosystem.
Finding a home is surprisingly fragmented.
Finding a home is surprisingly fragmented.
Today, moving involves much more than finding a property.
Today, moving involves much more than finding a property.
You need to:
You need to:
Find a roommate → Find an agent → Find a home → Schedule viewings → Secure the home →
Buy essentials → Move in
Find a roommate → Find an agent → Find a home → Schedule
viewings → Secure the home → Buy essentials → Move in
But every step happens somewhere different.
But every step happens somewhere different.
Facebook.
WhatsApp.
SpareRoom.
Property websites.
Phone calls.
Facebook Marketplace.
Facebook.
WhatsApp.
SpareRoom.
Property websites.
Phone calls.
Facebook Marketplace.
The result is a housing journey held together by screenshots, referrals, scattered conversations, and a lot of trust.
The result is a housing journey held together by screenshots, referrals, scattered conversations, and a lot of trust.
WHY THIS MATTERS
The problem gets worse when you're moving somewhere you don't know.
The problem gets worse when you're moving somewhere you don't know.
You may not know:
You may not know:
Which agents are legitimate
Whether a listing is real
Who you're going to live with
Whether the person you're talking to is trustworthy
What the rental process looks like
Where to buy the things you need after moving
Which agents are legitimate
Whether a listing is real
Who you're going to live with
Whether the person you're talking to is trustworthy
What the rental process looks like
Where to buy the things you need after moving
In the UK, newcomers and international renters can face a different set of barriers: limited local networks, unfamiliar rental processes, guarantor requirements, and little housing history.
In the UK, newcomers and international renters can face a different set of barriers: limited local networks, unfamiliar rental processes, guarantor requirements, and little housing history.
In Nigeria, people often rely on informal channels to find roommates, homes, and agents. Unverified identities and agents make the process vulnerable to scams and unreliable listings.
In Nigeria, people often rely on informal channels to find roommates, homes, and agents. Unverified identities and agents make the process vulnerable to scams and unreliable listings.
And after finding a home, the relocation journey still isn't over.
And after finding a home, the relocation journey still isn't over.
People need furniture, appliances, and other essentials to actually settle in.
People need furniture, appliances, and other essentials to
actually settle in.
Housing has always been treated as a search problem. We believe it is a matching problem.
Housing has always been treated as a search problem. We believe it is a matching problem.
Most housing platforms start with inventory:
Most housing platforms start with inventory:
| " Here are thousands of listings. Find one. "
| " Here are thousands of listings. Find one. "
But finding the right home depends on much more than the property itself.
But finding the right home depends on much more than
the property itself.
It depends on:
It depends on:
Who you'll live with.
Where you want to live.
What you can afford.
Whether you can trust the people involved.
And what happens after you find the home.
Who you'll live with.
Where you want to live.
What you can afford.
Whether you can trust the people involved.
And what happens after you find the home.
So instead of building another listings-first platform, we designed The Hectre around people, intent, compatibility, and trust.
So instead of building another listings-first platform, we designed
The Hectre around people, intent, compatibility, and trust.
From finding a listing to finding a life fit. The Hectre is structured around a connected housing journey:
From finding a listing to finding a life fit. The Hectre is structured around a connected housing journey:
01 — PEOPLE
Understand who you're living with.
Understand who you're living with.
02 — COMPATIBILITY
Find people whose lifestyle, budget, and preferences align with yours.
Find people whose lifestyle, budget, and preferences align with yours.
03 — TRUST
Build confidence through verified users and accountable agents.
Build confidence through verified users and accountable agents.
04 — HOMES
Discover homes that fit your needs.
Discover homes that fit your needs.
05 — MOVE IN
Continue the journey beyond finding the property.
Continue the journey beyond finding the property.
This became the foundation for how I approached the product.
This became the foundation for how I approached
the product.
What if finding a roommate felt more like finding a person than finding a listing?
What if finding a roommate felt more like finding a person than finding a listing?
Traditional roommate experiences often reduce people to a photo, age, and short description.
Traditional roommate experiences often reduce people to a
photo, age, and short description.
We wanted to surface the information that actually affects co-living.
We wanted to surface the information that actually affects co-living.
Lifestyle
Work pattern
Budget
Preferred areas
Living preferences
Compatibility
Lifestyle
Work pattern
Budget
Preferred areas
Living preferences
Compatibility
The goal wasn't to tell users who they should live with.
The goal wasn't to tell users who they should live with.
It was to give them enough context to make a better decision.
It was to give them enough context to make a better decision.
A match needs to mean something.
A match needs to mean something.
We designed compatibility around who you are, how you live, and what you’re looking for - not just a percentage.
We designed compatibility around who you are, how you live, and what you’re looking for - not just a percentage.
First, users build their profile around the things that actually matter when sharing a home: lifestyle, preferences, budget, location and living habits.
First, users build their profile around the things that actually matter when sharing a home: lifestyle, preferences, budget, location and living habits.
Then, The Hectre uses those signals to pair them with people who are compatible
with the life they want to live.
Then, The Hectre uses those signals to pair them with people who are compatible with the life they want to live.
Instead of simply showing:
Instead of simply showing:
| “80% match”
| “80% match”
We can explain why:
We can explain why:
Similar lifestyles
Compatible budgets
Overlapping preferred areas
Compatible living preferences
Similar lifestyles
Compatible budgets
Overlapping preferred areas
Compatible living preferences
| The user defines the criteria. The system finds the people who fit.
| The user defines the criteria. The system finds the people who fit.
Finding the right person is only half the problem.
Finding the right person is only
half the problem.
Once users know who they might live with, they need somewhere that works for everyone.
Once users know who they might live with, they need somewhere that works for everyone.
The home discovery experience brings together:
The home discovery experience brings together:
Search · Filters · Map · Saved homes · Property information
Search · Filters · Map · Saved homes · Property information
But the home experience doesn't exist independently from the people experience.
But the home experience doesn't exist independently from the people experience.
Who you're living with influences where you live.
Where you live influences who you can live with.
Who you're living with influences where you live.
Where you live influences who you can live with.
That's the loop we're designing around.
That's the loop we're designing around.
The AI doesn't replace the product.
It connects it.
The AI doesn't replace the product.
It connects it.
The Hectre contains information that normally lives in separate places:
The Hectre contains information that normally lives in
separate places:
People
Homes
Preferences
Budget
Location
Lifestyle
Moving needs
People
Homes
Preferences
Budget
Location
Lifestyle
Moving needs
Users should be able to say get what they without writing any prompt.
Users should be able to say get what they without writing any prompt.
The interesting question isn't:
The interesting question isn't:
| “Where can we put AI?”
| “Where can we put AI?”
It is:
It is:
| “Where can intelligence remove complexity from the housing journey?”
| “Where can intelligence remove complexity from the
housing journey?”
Moving doesn't end when you sign the lease.
Moving doesn't end when you
sign the lease.
Someone moving out has things someone moving in needs.
Someone moving out has things someone moving in needs.
Furniture
Appliances
Household essentials
Furniture
Appliances
Household essentials
We saw an opportunity to connect those two moments.
We saw an opportunity to connect those two moments.
The person leaving:
The person leaving:
| “I need to sell this”
| “I need to sell this”
The person arriving:
The person arriving:
| “I need this”
| “I need this”
The Hectre Connects them at the exact moment both have intent.
The Hectre Connects them at the exact moment both have intent.
We call this the “passing of the torch.”
We call this the “passing of the torch.”
Rather than becoming another generic marketplace, the opportunity is directly connected to the relocation journey.
Rather than becoming another generic marketplace, the opportunity is directly connected to the relocation journey.
Every side of the marketplace needs a reason to participate.
Every side of the marketplace needs a
reason to participate.
Every side of the marketplace needs
a reason to participate.
The product had to work for more than the renter.
The product had to work for more than the renter.
RENTERS
RENTERS
Better matches
Trusted people
Relevant homes
A smoother move
Better matches
Trusted people
Relevant homes
A smoother move
AGENTS
AGENTS
Qualified leads.
Better visibility
A trusted environment
Qualified leads.
Better visibility
A trusted environment
DEPARTING TENANTS
DEPARTING TENANTS
An easier way to sell household items
An easier way to sell household items
INCOMING TENANTS
INCOMING TENANTS
Affordable essentials at the moment they need them.
Affordable essentials at the moment they need them.
This shaped a business model around agent subscriptions, premium listings, marketplace transactions, and trust/matching services.
This shaped a business model around agent subscriptions, premium listings,
marketplace transactions, and trust/matching services.
This shaped a business model around agent subscriptions, premium listings, marketplace transactions, and trust/matching services.
We're taking the learnings from beta
into the app.
We're taking the learnings from beta
into the app.
The current beta is helping us understand the core experience before expanding it.
The current beta is helping us understand the core experience
before expanding it.
The next stage is the Hectre app.
The next stage is the Hectre App.
We're using what we've learned from design, development, and beta testing to rethink the experience for a more focused mobile product.
We're using what we've learned from design, development, and beta testing to rethink the experience for a more focused mobile product.
Up next
Up next
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Finding a home is rarely just about finding a property. The Hectre is a people-first housing marketplace designed around how renters actually move, live and find others to live with. I shaped the product from the ground up - from marketplace strategy and matching to the design system that brings it all together.
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Fintech
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Crypto on/off-ramping can feel unfamiliar, with users navigating wallets, assets, exchange rates and transaction states. I designed Xebar's experience to make moving between digital assets and local currency simpler, clearer and more familiar.
You’ve seen the work. You’ve met Batman. Now let’s build something difficult.
birthrightntuk@gmail.com
You’ve seen the work. You’ve
met Batman. Now let’s build
something difficult.
birthrightntuk@gmail.com
You’ve seen the work. You’ve
met Batman. Now let’s build
something difficult.
birthrightntuk@gmail.com