RentLoop — the spec

RentLoop is a self-service client portal that lets everyday consumers find, book, pay for, and manage item rentals end-to-end without any manual intervention from the operator. From first search to return confirmation, every step runs automatically — so bookings happen without anyone touching them.

---

Decisions locked

---

The core loop

1. Search — User filters the catalog by item type, price range, and location to find an available item.
2. Check availability — User opens the real-time calendar for that item and selects a rental period; the system confirms instant availability.
3. Checkout — User adds damage protection or insurance, then pays securely; the booking is confirmed automatically and a receipt is sent.
4. Track — User monitors booking status in their portal dashboard and sees scheduled pickup and return times.
5. Extend or close — User extends the rental period if needed, or marks the return complete.
6. Review — User submits a rating and short review of the rental experience.

---

v1 scope

Search and filter catalog
Consumers filter all listed items by type, price, and location from the catalog screen. Results update instantly; no item appears if it falls outside the active availability window.

Real-time availability calendar with instant booking confirm
Each item detail page shows a live calendar reflecting current bookings. Selecting a valid date range triggers an immediate confirmation — no approval queue, no waiting on an owner.

Secure payment processing with rental-period pricing
Checkout calculates the total based on the selected rental duration and processes payment through a secure payment integration. Partial-period pricing (e.g., half-day rates) is supported at the product level.

Booking status tracking and pickup/return scheduling
The portal dashboard shows every active and upcoming booking with its current status, pickup instructions, and scheduled return time. Users can update the return slot within the allowed window.

Damage protection and insurance options at checkout
Before payment is captured, users are offered tiered damage protection or insurance add-ons. Selection is stored against the booking record and included in the confirmation receipt.

---

Deliberately later

• Owner profile and review ratings — trust signals matter more once there is enough booking volume to generate meaningful data; shipping it empty creates noise.
• Rental history and past transaction archive — full history views require a settled data schema; better to lock the schema in v1 and build the archive read layer cleanly in v2.
• Messaging system to contact owners — direct messaging risks pulling operator support back into the loop, which contradicts the 30-day automation goal; introduce it once automated flows have proven reliability.

---

Data model sketch

• users — user ID, name, email, phone, account status, created at
• items — item ID, name, category, description, location, daily rate, half-day rate, owner reference
• availability_blocks — block ID, item ID, start datetime, end datetime, status (open / booked / blocked)
• bookings — booking ID, user ID, item ID, start datetime, end datetime, status, pickup details, return details, created at
• payments — payment ID, booking ID, amount, currency, period pricing breakdown, payment status, processor reference, paid at
• protection_options — option ID, label, tier, price, coverage description
• booking_protections — booking ID, option ID, amount charged
• reviews — review ID, booking ID, user ID, rating, body, submitted at

---

Screens

• Catalog / search — filter and browse all items by type, price, and location.
• Item detail — view item description, real-time availability calendar, and pricing tiers.
• Checkout — select protection options, confirm rental period pricing, and pay.
• Booking confirmation — display receipt, pickup instructions, and calendar summary.
• Portal dashboard — central view of all active, upcoming, and pending bookings with status and scheduling controls.
• Booking detail — manage a single booking: extend, view return schedule, or initiate return.
• Review submission — rate and review a completed rental from the closed booking record.

---

How to use this document

• Bring it into Mind Palace, where the guided platform and its AI coach pick up from exactly this document and build RentLoop with you step by step.
• Hand it to a developer as the complete v1 brief — scope, data model, and screen list are all here.
• Keep it as the single source of truth while you build, so every feature decision can be checked against what is locked above.