When Ofo Ezeugwu was a college student, he heard countless horror stories from students trying to find affordable apartments near campus.
So, he created WhoseYourLandlord, a platform where folks can submit landlord reviews. Users create a free account, leave a review on their current or past landlord, and share and read the perspectives of other community members.
“We use the possessive form of the word ‘who’ because we’re giving our community ownership of their living situations by putting housing in their hands,” the WYL website reads.
“We’re… bringing transparency, equity, and humanity to the everyday interactions between residents and home providers.”
According to the Pew Research Center, younger Americans (under age 35), as well as Black and Hispanic communities, are most likely to rent in the United States. The entire mission of WYL is to “learn before you lease,” putting the power back in the hands of vulnerable renters, who may otherwise be taken advantage of by corrupt housing companies.
Additionally, WYL works to close the feedback loop with WYL for Home Providers, giving landlords and property managers insights into the best possible living situation for residents, ultimately improving resident retention and keeping people in quality, safe homes.
Properties that are well managed can be listed as certified home providers, making them stand out to potential renters.
In fact, Ezeugwu has found that trust plays a big role in a healthy home environment, after surveying over 13,000 renters across 46 U.S. cities for most of 2024.
It inspired him to create the WYL Resident Trust Index, the first standardized metric to measure the trust and satisfaction residents have in their property management.
“The Resident Trust Index evaluates the critical factors shaping housing experiences and offers actionable insights for all stakeholders,” WYL’s website stated.
Resident feedback is anonymous and verified by a third party, property conditions are measured based on safety, cleanliness, and functionality, and management performance is assessed through responsiveness, communication, and maintenance.
“The result is a comprehensive score that empowers property managers to make data-driven improvements while building confidence and trust with residents,” WYL concluded.
And when people contribute to WYL, they not only provide feedback on their landlords, but they support others looking for housing.
“When a renter or student renter goes to provide their review, it’s not just comments and a star system,” Ezeugwu recently explained to CBS 8 News. “They’re actually filling out a shorthand survey that hits on those key markers within the resident experience, so that [they] can compute the score, that ‘Resident Trust Index.’”
The goal, overall, is to standardize the quality of renting across the country — and give often marginalized renters the information they need to thrive.
“Your home is supposed to be your safe haven — a place to laugh, cry, ponder, and to find reprieve,” the WYL website says. “WhoseYourLandlord is committed to leading a movement that centers humanity at the heart of housing, forever changing the relationship between residents and home providers.”
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A version of this article was originally published in The 2022 Home Edition of the Goodnewspaper.
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