Bondi short-term rental host’s porn, guns horror
Adalbert Hutter could be the unluckiest short-term rental host in history amid a series of horrific experiences, involving guns, porn and scammers.
Bondi’s Adalbert Hutter has an entertaining, yet shockingly unlucky history when it comes to holiday rentals.
From having three guns pointed at him after booking a US rental to finding his property manager secretly living at his holiday rental in Manly, Mr Hutter has also had a number of broken televisions and wild parties thrown at his properties.
One of the biggest shocks was when he found out his Bondi apartment was used to film an adult movie.
“The cameraman left the door open so he could get the right angle and my neighbour noticed there was an adult movie being shot,” Mr Hutter said.
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“It paints a picture that you are open to all kinds of risks when renting your home.”
Mr Hutter has used these experiences as inspiration for a new tech start up designed to give hosts more information about what happened inside their holiday rental homes, while maintaining guests’ privacy.
With the help of fellow entrepreneur Max Tesanovic, the pair co-founded Cappsule which is described as a “privacy-oriented alternative to traditional home surveillance and security equipment”.
The main device, called Cappsule HQ, uses sensors to alert guests to issues such as too much noise or alert property owner’s to damage, theft and unusual activity.
“It’s similar to a smoke detector … but this detects noise and air quality issues,” Mr Hutter said.
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“It’s only if something is going wrong that someone in the property will get an alert.
“We use censors tried and tested to be able to detect occupants in a space. So if a property is meant to be vacant it can let you know there’s something going on.”
He said the instance of his property manager secretly living in his beachside investment property in Manly around eight years ago triggered the initial idea of Cappsule.
Mr Hutter was baffled when the apartment wasn’t rented over Christmas and when he came home he found his manager making himself at home.
“That was the first thing that went wrong,” he said.
“You trust a property manager and this was a big breach of that trust.”
Mr Hutter stressed that the Cappsule HQ, designed to be placed in a common area of a rental, did not breach privacy with no cameras or eavesdropping technology used. The sensors detect audio signatures as opposed to conversations.
“It’s a little heads up to give accountability for guests while maintaining privacy,” he said. “If the music is too loud it will alert guests.
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“As a host and owner you also don’t want to annoy your neighbours. It’s also peace of mind, your home is one of your biggest investments.”
According to PropTrack data, units in Bondi recorded a median price of $1.4m over the past 12 months while Manly’s median unit price was $1.8m.
Mr Hutter has been on both sides as a host and as a guest and had his privacy breached.
However his most confronting experience was in Philadelphia when he rented what he thought was an short-term rental.
When he was trying to work out which key opened which door, the police turned up with guns pointed at him.
“There were three cops with guns on me,” he said.
“I am there with a laptop bag over my shoulders and my buddy had gone out for a bite to eat. “He had the booking details with him. I said to the policemen ‘I am just reaching into my bag for my phone’ to call my friend.”
Mr Hutter said the rental booking ended up being a scam with the house abandoned.
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The 40-year-old, who has run technology companies for 20 years, said he travelled six months of the year and knew the importance of safety and privacy when it came to short term rentals.
“I love short term rentals, there’s more space, more attractive costs and the comfort of a home,” he said.
Cappsule is about to launch on Birchal, an Australian Equity Crowdfunding platform with the first batch of devices expected to roll out across Australia and the US in the next few months.
“It’s an exciting time for us,” Mr Hutter said.
Mr Hutter also had a friend recently invest in the business after his holiday rental was trashed in Noosa and he was penalised as a result from the local council.
“We have received so much feedback about similar experiences,” he said.
The Cappsule range also includes “Go Tags” which can be attached to portable items such as house keys and surfboards. In the event they go missing, guests can use an app to easily locate them.
“Stay tags” were also developed to identify potential damage and stop theft, tracking the movement of TVs and appliances.
Originally published as Bondi short-term rental host’s porn, guns horror