Real estate · 2026 · Self-built prototype
Short-term-rental intelligence, keyed to the regulation and the map
A prototype that maps short-term-rental regulatory zones against parcels for a resort market, then layers seasonality and comparable performance on top, so an investor can see where a rental is even allowed before they argue about nightly rate.
- Sector
- Real estate
- Year
- 2026
- Engagement
- Self-built prototype
- Team
- Solo build, with Claude Code
Most short-term-rental analysis starts with the nightly rate and never checks whether the rental is legal. We built this the other way around. The first question is spatial: given this parcel, in this jurisdiction, under this overlay, can you operate a short-term rental at all, and under what cap. Only then does price matter.
What we built
A PostGIS layer resolves each parcel against the regulatory zones and overlays that govern short-term rentals in a resort market, with the ordinance behind each answer. On top of that sit two more layers: seasonality, because a lake town in July is not the same asset as in February, and comparable performance for the properties nearby. An investor sees the constraint and the opportunity on one map.
What we found
The regulatory layer is where the value lives and where nobody else does the work. Zoning, overlays, and cap rules are scattered across ordinances and PDFs; getting them into one queryable surface is unglamorous and exactly the point.
What we learned
The honest limit here is not technical, it is legal. Airbnb and Vrbo terms of service make scraped performance data a liability, so a production version depends on a licensed feed we would have to price into the engagement. We built the spatial and regulatory core, which we can stand behind. The comparable-performance layer is only ever as good as the data we are allowed to pay for, and we say so up front.