RoomHunt is launching today to not only simplify finding a place to live, but also finding people to live with. It is a website that aggregates rental listings from various sources and connects them with social networks. Those looking for a home select the neighborhood and number of bedrooms they desire, and the listings are automatically filtered by lowest to highest by bedroom price. From a listing, there is a “Find Roommate” button that notifies their social network that they are looking.

“We are creating the Airbnb for long term rentals,” said CEO David Weisburg. “Moving into a new city is very difficult both economically and psychologically.  RoomHunt’s mission is to make that process frictionless, affordable, and fun.”

Weisburg was inspired to start RoomHunt after moving to San Francisco and facing the frustrating and seemingly impossible task of renting an apartment. Rental sites like Craigslist, Zillow, Zumper, Padmapper, Trulia, and Rent.com can be overwhelming. By aggregating all the listings into one marketplace, RoomHunt attempts to offer a meta-solution (like Kayak), that puts all the relevant information in one place.

When I first started searching for a rental in San Francisco, I could not afford a one or two bedroom apartment. Unfortunately, I only had one friend to look with (sad, I know), and we were hesitant to check out three or four bedrooms without knowing who would be living in the other rooms. The roommate finder feature makes it easier to form a cabal to embark upon the hunt together.

This is also appealing to landlords and property managers that want qualified, responsible tenants.

As of today, RoomHunt is only active in San Francisco’s 37 neighborhoods, but has plans for national expansion. At the time of publishing, the site was down. However, in a statement, Weisburd describes it as “a visually-pleasing site featuring photos of hundreds of beautiful properties in every price range.”

So far, the two founders have raised $85,000 and said $25,000 is “hard committed.” Angel investors include Alex Roasti, Errik Anderson and Randy Brunson. RoomHunt is based in the SoMA area of San Francisco.

Zillow is a real estate marketplace that lists “practically every home in the U.S.” It can be used to find homes for sale, apartment rentals, market records, mortgage rates, statistics, and even advice. Like any enterprising real estate mogul, Zillow has been on a buying spree, snatching up startups to expand and improve its offerings. The HotPads purchase marks Zillow’s sixth acquisition in less than two years.

HotPads’ map-based real estate search engine is known for its split screen search interface that lets visitors view multiple listings side-by-side to make comparisons. Of the millions of visitors to HotPads, almost 70% were looking for rentals. This fits into Zillow’s recent launch of Zillow Rentals, which offers a suite of tools for rental professionals.

“This acquisition represents a significant step-change for Zillow Rentals, allowing us to dramatically increase the number of leads we send to landlords,” said Spencer Rascoff, CEO of Zillow. “HotPads has a younger, complementary and rental-focused audience. Now Zillow will become even more relevant to consumers at the beginning of their real estate life cycle.”

This is Zillow’s first acquisition of a primarily consumer-facing company. Earlier acquisitions include Mortech, Inc; Buyfolio; RentJuice, Diverse Solutions, and Postlets.

There are mixed sentiments about Zillow’s future within the technology community. While the company had a strong third quarter with $27.8 million in revenue and saw 36 million unique visitors in October, a recent report from research firm Citron undermined investor, share-holder, and consumer confidence.

HotPads will not only supplement Zillow’s rental offering but will also help build out its mobile presence. Zillow recently launched the Rentals for iPhone app and saw record mobile usage in Quarter 3. HotPads’ five mobile applications will “complement Zillow’s growing rental marketplace.” HotPads will also serve to bolster Zillow in its competition with Trulia, another real estate listing company.

HotPads has 19 employees and is based in San Francisco, where it will remain even though Zillow is based in Seattle. Read the press release. 

HouseTrip, a British clone of Airbnb, has raised $40 million in its third round of funding.

Like its American doppelganger, HouseTrip is community-driven marketplace for accommodation. Residents post their property on the site as available to rent, along with a profile, price, and reviews. Travelers looking for a place to stay search through the listings and book a rental for their trip. This model benefits the host, who can generate extra income, as well as the visitors who stand to gain more meaningful, personal travel experiences.

“We empower thousands of property owners to make money from their homes and investment properties,” said founder and CEO Arnaud Bertrand. “In Europe, this is of great importance as the economic crisis has impacted so many lives across the Continent. HouseTrip also empowers guests to travel to destinations where they can fully immerse themselves in local culture by literally living like a local, and we reduce the cost of their experience by providing better value.”

Bertrand started HouseTrip after he struggled to book a rental for a getaway to Scotland with his wife. The available options for finding and booking accommodation were inconvenient and outdated, consisting mostly of classified ads and requiring phone calls and wire transfers.

Since then, HouseTrip has built up a selection of 130,000 properties in 15,000 destinations, and the company expects by the end of the year to have helped book more than 3 million nights’ sleep. It has focused its efforts on Europe, and has options ranging from Italian villas to New York apartments.

The investor team also hews closely to European roots. This Series C was led by Accel Partners, with previous investors Balderton Capital and Index Ventures also participating.

“We are a European centric business,” Bertrand said. “Europe is the largest market globally for vacation rentals, and 60% of Europeans travel within Europe. This is the first time Europe’s three largest VCs have come together to back a European player.”

While many Airbnb user list their primary residence, Housetrip targets properties that are consistently available to rent. The team also offers management and calendar tools for the hosts, so they can keep track of their bookings and offer a reliable alternative to visitors.

“Booking entire properties requires the same traveller to scour multiple niche listings sites or to call travel agents, real estate companies and even homeowners directly,” said Accel Partner partner Sonali De Rycker. “Often the same guests have to send a substantial deposit before they even have sight of the property with little guarantee or recourse if the property is not as advertised. The better the service HouseTrip offers to guest, the more likely they are to make a booking which in turn means better business for the hosts – these network effects only reinforce themselves as the company scales.”

This investment will be used to fuel the company’s international expansion. This brings its total funding to almost $60 million, following a $17 million Series B last November.

HouseTrip is based in London, with offices in Switzerland and Portugal.

Online travel site Luxury Retreats welcomed $5 million into its sumptuous, landscaped, columned, decorated home (with a pool) today, from iNovia Capital.

Those looking for a getaway of the utmost comfort and style can peruse rental options around the world on Luxury Retreats. Each villa is “handpicked” by a global team, scouring the globe for opulent rental options. It has over 2,000 villas in the system, and the personal touch ensures an added layer of quality assurance. With homes at thousands of dollars a night (some are cheaper), quality assurance is rather important.

The site offers a complementary concierge service as well that can assist with other elements of planning a trip, like booking a private wine tour or going on a scuba adventure.

While researching the company for the article, I created myself a nice little wish list of vacations.

Someday when I dig up a box of gold or receive a massive inheritance from an estranged billionaire aunt, I will book a palatial Tuscan villa where I can throw elegant affairs in the ballroom and surrounding cedar garden;  Thai mansions overlooking the Andaman Sea, where I can bask under coconut trees and order massages on the hour; and a mountaintop chalet at Whistler, where I can ski all day, lounge in a hot tub, and sip hot cocoa on a majestic sleigh ride through the forest.

Back to reality.

The website clearly targets the affluent traveler and with this funding, plans to add at least 50 new destinations in the next year. Luxury Retreats was founded in 1999 by CEO Joe Poulin, who was 17 years old at the time. This is the company’s first round of institutional funding, which has existed thus far on its own profits.

It is based in Montreal, with offices in Barbados, St. Martin, and Buenos Aires.

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

No, it’s not the ’90s and no, Larry Ellison is not hawking network computers. Instead, it’s 2012, and Google is. Sorta.

Today, Google opened up the opportunity for individuals and companies to lease laptops or desktops via CIT Group, a financial and insurance services provider. Google is pitching the machines as temporary hardware for seasonal workers, or computers for companies looking to keep more of their cash in the bank.

For $30/month, decreasing to $25 and $20 in the second and third years of the lease term, you too can be the proud owner of a new Chromebook, or a Chromebox for slightly less cost.

The lease includes a three-year warranty, and for corporations, a web-based Chrome management interface to manage users, apps, and provide support. The terms are month-to-month, so you will not be locked into long-term commitments.

Samsung Chromebook

The device looks to be Samsung’s Chromebook, the series 5 550, which which pairs a full-size keyboard with 6-hour battery life and a 12″ screen — and the infamous Intel Celeron processor.

List price is $599, which means that if you bought one outright, you’d be financially ahead within two years. But many companies prefer to expense items monthly and pay as they go, moving costs from capital expenditure to operating expense budgets.

The Chromebox is an Apple Mini-style desktop computer that you attach to your own external screen or screens. It supports up to two 30″ displays.

Chrome OS was just recently updated, and Samsung’s hardware was last updated in May of 2012.

photo credit: Scott Beale via photo pin cc

That’s what new fashion rental startup Le Tote is offering young urban women. And the founders are hoping that women’s rich history of sharing clothes will make the company as successful as some other rental successes.

Netflix, anyone?

“Women only wear 10-20 percent of what’s in their closet,” co-founder Rakesh Tondon explains. “Most women have closets full of clothes they don’t wear.”

(Perhaps I’m way more metrosexual than I thought, or perhaps the problem is not limited to women.)

So Le Tote is trying to solve the problem of variety, without generating the bloat that spawns Hoarders-style rooms full of unused clothing. All while trying to fit inside the tight budgets of young urban women sans unlimited income.

Users sign up for Le Tote at a monthly rate of $49, then fill out a style profile. Le Tote’s stylists (and algorithms) take that profile information and select looks and fashions for you: three garments and two accessories. Then you receive a little Le Tote bag in the mail.

Source: Let Tote

Filling out your Le Tote style profile by favorite stores and magazines …

Just like the Netflix DVD rental business, you can keep the outfit as long as you want. Get tired of it? Send it back to get another one.

Women can send the totes back as often as they want. They can have a new outfit every weekend, and can make special requests, such as no earrings, just skirts, or no tops. But the styles are picked for you, kinda like Forrest Gump’s box of chocolates.

The clothing itself is not brand name, nor, co-founder Brett Northart hastens to add, knockoffs on famous designer’s clothing. Instead, the fashion is under Le Tote’s own label and is sourced in Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America.

“We’re buying from wholesalers and manufactures that supply the big boutiques in major cities,” Northart says.

Source: Le Tote

Same Le Tote fashions

And the obvious question about re-using clothing? Tondon says that’s actually not been a problem at all in their target market testing, as women “grow up sharing with their sisters and friends.” In addition, the clothing is laundered and checked for quality and condition after every use.

That alone might incentivize some women to buy more than one membership and give up doing laundry entirely.

The July 4 holiday presents an opportunity for people within the U.S. to take some time off, eat hot dogs, and relax, but it’s also when you’ll be able to grab at least an hour to yourself.

We suggest using that time wisely by heading over to iTunes to rent the Lost Interview with the late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, which is available for U.S. users today.

The interview was originally shot by Robert Cringely for the Triumph of the Nerds PBS series in 1995. Only 10 minutes of the interview was used in the series, with the excess footage thought to be lost. However, someone found the original tapes, which have since been restored and produced into a 70-minute film that played in Landmark theaters back in November, as VentureBeat previously reported. And now you can watch the “Lost Interview” film for $3.99 in the iTunes store.

The film covers several subjects, including Jobs’ early days plotting the future of the personal computer, his views on the Internet, how he learned the business world, and more. (If you’d like to know more, VentureBeat’s very own Devindra Hardawar wrote a great review of the film when it was initially released.)

We’ve embedded the trailer for Steve Jobs: The Lost Interview below.

“With Craigslist gone, PadMapper is likely missing a lot of the best sublet/small landlord options, so I’d really like to get small landlords to list directly,” DeMenthon said this morning on the PadMapper blog.

VentureBeat reached out to DeMenthon for comment, and he responded by email while boarding an airplane.

PadLister supports multiple listing services. New rentals are automatically listed on PadMapper, of course, but users can generate formatted content to post on Craigslist as well, said DeMenthon: ”It just generates HTML in a nice layout that you can copy and paste.”

In addition, PadLister helps you get your listing on other rental sites. ”It syndicates your listing to some other services, including rentBits and Oodle.”

Summer is peak apartment-hunting season, DeMenthon said, so he is hoping to reach as many landlords as possible.

He is still hoping to get Craigslist data back via some form of licensing, but is pursuing PadLister as an alternate option in case that never happens. He is not yet sure what the revenue impact of losing Craigslist rental listings might be.

When asked if Craigslist might block data generated by PadLister, DeMenthon said he’s not certain:

“It’s very possible, but this doesn’t give them any reason to do it. It doesn’t link offsite or anything like that to generate site traffic.”

PadLister is a free service for landlords who wish to list a property. The site does charge a fee for screening potential renters, if landlords choose.

VentureBeat has reached out to Craigslist for comment and will update this story if we get a response.

Image credit: ShutterStock

Spring has sprung, the sun is shining, the air is fresh, the verdant buds are beginning to flower, yet we’re still sitting inside, typing away feverishly in a Reddit argument.

What the heck is wrong with us?

In an effort to promote the common good, we’re telling the world about Spinlister, a groovy startup that launched just a couple weeks ago. Put simply, it’s an Airbnb for bikes.

Yes, you, the laptop-bound gadget addict, can check out and rent a really cool pair of wheels in your own (or a destination) neighborhood. The bicycles are hella cool, the prices are reasonable, and the concept is perfectly timed.

VentureBeat caught up with Spinlister founder Will Dennis for a heart-to-heart about Spinlister, bike culture, and the fun side of running a startup about bicycles. Also, Dennis gives key details on how biking can make you sexier and get you dates.

Read it, then get yourself on a bicycle and go enjoy the weekend outside.

VentureBeat: Spinlister looks a lot like Spinster — has that occurred to y’all? Maybe it’s all in my subconscious, but I just get the mental image of old maids on bicycles…

Will Dennis: We have heard that, but to be honest we’re relatively insulated from the spinster community (knock on wood), so we thought Spinlister sounded great. And honestly, if these old maids have bicycles, we’d love to talk rentals with them.

VB: In San Francisco, we just got over a nasty rainy spell and have been enjoying some amazing weather. Has Spinlister seen any additional traffic (no pun intended) due to that?

WD: Yeah, we see some spikes during the sunnier periods. We also have a good number of people renting bikes in advance to even it out.

VB: What’s been going on since your launch? What have you been doing with your $450,000 in funding?

WD: We’ve been building out our product, talking to users, improving the site and experience as much as we can, and taking lunchtime bike rides.

We’re not spending too much money right now, really saving up for that special someone. That special someone being two special someones: an iOS and a Ruby on Rails dev.

VB: What’s coming up over the next few months for you? New cities, new features, etc.?

WD: We’re working on developing a few new markets. L.A. and Portland look like the front runners right now, but we’re really taking it on a city-by-city basis. Some of the smaller cities may open up soon as well.

It’s really all about judging when there’s a solid number of quality bikes and an enthusiastic community.

We’re also adding some new features to make the process of renting a bike even more seamless and easy. We’re excited about where we are but even more excited about what’s to come.

VB: Why is biking important, socially, ecologically, economically, or otherwise?

WD: Biking is important because it is the best way to move from point A to point B, all factors considered. Whether you’re looking to improve your health, your savings, your daily commute, your travel, the environment, or your recreation, a bike can help.

I’d actually throw improved sex appeal into that list as well.

VB: Why is biking so popular right now? Is it more than just the hipster thing to do?

WD: Bikes are a great, individual mode of urban transport. As people become more and more urban, I think it’s a natural fit, and as young people become more car-apathetic, transportation options have opened back up.

Biking is one that makes a lot of sense and is a whole lot of fun.

And as with expensive coffee and microbrews, the biking hipsters may be setting a trend that the main stream is soon to adopt.

VB: Do you have a favorite story about a Spinlister user or bike-rental experience?

WD: My favorite story so far is actually about a girl who rented my bike. It’s called the Blue Lady Killer, and apparently it’s just as effective with men.

Some guys at Central Park struck up a conversation with her and now she’s going on a date with one of them. Proof in review number five.

Also, the international willingness to use Spinlister has been a pleasant surprise as well. We’ve had people rent from six or seven continents (still waiting on Antarctica). My cofounder Jeff, my girlfriend, and I all went out to dinner with a renter from South Africa two weeks ago.

We’re starting to see the people who use Spinlister as adventurous, easy going, and fun. It’s been great meeting as many people involved in the Spinlister community as possible.

VB: What’s the coolest bike listed on the site right now, in your opinion?

Sort of a tough question, because I will be permanently biased towards my own Blue Lady Killer. We do, however, have a glow-in-the-dark, fixed-gear track bike that’ll be a head turner on night rides.

Really though, I’ve been so excited by the quality of bikes on the site. They’d all be a blast to ride.

After dabbling with film rentals by offering five Sundance Film Festival titles in January, and expanding its beta testing effort with more content in February, Youtube finally launched its rental store today.

Rentals are available for $0.99 – $3.99, and currently consist primarily of independent, anime, Bollywood, and documentary films, reports Read Write Web. Unsurprisingly, rentals are paid for through Google Checkout.

Many reported on the lackluster sales figures more than a week after YouTube started offering the Sundance films for rent, but I argued that the Sundance experiment wasn’t a complete failure. It offered YouTube a way to beta test its rental setup, and it still managed to give many people access to films they would otherwise never have seen.

The major reason its Sundance rentals didn’t sell very well is that YouTube didn’t promote them much, and finding the films on the site was far from intuitive. I’m hoping that’s something YouTube doesn’t repeat this time around, although the quiet nature of the store’s opening doesn’t bode well for strong marketing.

YouTube is jumping into a market where Apple’s iTunes Store currently reigns king, and it also doesn’t have the convenient ability to let you take the video offline or put it on your portable device. Google Video previously offered users the ability to download video files that they rented or purchased, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the same feature is soon integrated into YouTube’s store. YouTube is also a site that’s primarily associated with free content, and it remains to be seen if users will actually pay for content.

YouTube’s other big problem is that its content isn’t easily ported to your television. There are a few ways to do it right now — including built-in YouTube access in some high-end TVs and software offerings like Playon and Tversity that use game consoles  — but it’s hard to find specific content, and YouTube’s store currently isn’t integrated into any of the above methods.

For YouTube to have a shot at success with its rentals, it will need to work seriously on a decent television user interface (YouTube XL is a start, albeit a small one) and make it easier for consumers to get access to YouTube content on TVs as well.