Why a HomeTrust listing can be trusted

Trust layers

1. Layer 1

   Ownership verification by document review

   Live

   An owner proves the property is theirs before it carries the verified badge. A HomeTrust ops reviewer looks at each document; nothing is approved automatically.

   • The owner uploads electricity bill, property tax receipt (last 12 months), sale deed (optional).
   • Each approved document adds to a score from 0 to 10: the electricity bill and the property tax receipt count 4 each, the sale deed 2.
   • The verified badge is shown only when the score is above 7. Below that, renters see the listing as not yet verified.
   • The score is recomputed by a scheduled job from the reviewed documents, so it cannot be set by hand.

   Not yet

   No Aadhaar number is collected and no Aadhaar KYC is run: the KYC provider (Digio) is not connected. Municipal property records are not cross-checked automatically either; the ops reviewer reads the documents.

2. Layer 2

   Photo theft check

   Live within HomeTrust

   Every photo an owner uploads is fingerprinted by its content hash and compared with every other photo on HomeTrust. A photo already used on another owner's property is the most common sign of a fake listing.

   • A match marks the listing "photo verification pending" and sends it to the ops queue.
   • The owner is asked for a fresh photo or proof that the original is theirs.
   • A scheduled scan rechecks every photo across owners, so a theft is caught even when the original was uploaded later.

   Not yet

   The check covers HomeTrust's own photos only. Web-wide reverse image search (hotel sites, stock photos, other platforms) is not connected.

3. Layer 3

   One listing per property

   Live

   Listings that describe the same property are grouped, and a renter sees one canonical listing per group instead of the same flat five times.

   • Grouped on matching normalised address and pincode, the same owner phone, or near-identical title and description.
   • One listing in each group is chosen as canonical and shown in search.

   Not yet

   HomeTrust does not scrape or import listings from other platforms. Every listing is published by its owner or shown as a clearly labelled sample.

4. Layer 4

   Reviews the landlord cannot remove

   Live

   Only a tenant who has lived in the property can review it: after moving out, or after six months in residence. The review is published on the listing and on the landlord's profile.

   • Ratings for overall, landlord responsiveness, property condition, maintenance and locality, with written text.
   • The landlord cannot remove, edit or hide a review, and there is no paid way to do so.
   • HomeTrust ops moderates only for harassment or false claims of fact. A negative review is not removed for being negative.
   • Ratings feed the landlord's trust score, together with disputes decided against them and their verification.

   Not yet

   Review prompts arrive in the HomeTrust inbox. WhatsApp and email prompts are not connected.

5. Layer 5

   Maintenance response SLA

   Live

   A maintenance ticket carries a response deadline from the moment it is raised, and a missed deadline is not left with the landlord.

   • 2 hours to respond to an urgent ticket, 12 hours to anything else.
   • The owner is notified when the ticket is raised. A ticket past its deadline with no response is marked breached and handed to HomeTrust ops.
   • Ops dispatches a vendor from HomeTrust's own verified vendor list and both sides are told.

   Not yet

   Vendor payment and landlord charge-back are not live: no money moves. Notifications go to the HomeTrust inbox; WhatsApp delivery is not connected.

6. Layer 6

   Food score for PGs

   Live

   A PG's food is scored in public, so a renter can compare kitchens before choosing a bed.

   • Ops audits (quality, hygiene, taste, variety) weigh 70% and tenants' weekly ratings 30%.
   • A score below 6 out of 10 shows a warning on the listing.
   • A PG without an audit in the last seven days gets an ops audit task and an owner reminder.

   Not yet

   Audits are entered by HomeTrust ops reviewers, so the score is only as current as the last audit.

7. Layer 7

   Escrow-protected deposit

   Recorded only, no money moves

   The deposit's lifecycle is recorded for every tenancy: holding, release due, released or disputed, with the refund amount and the statutory deadline.

   • At move-out the owner files deductions against the move-in photo baseline, and the tenant accepts or disputes them.
   • An accepted outcome marks the deposit release due within 30 days of vacating, the Model Tenancy Act limit. A disputed one goes to ops, who resolve it with written notes.
   • Renewal offers open 90 days before the lease ends.

   Not yet

   Escrow is not live. HomeTrust holds no money, operates no escrow account and has no banking relationship. A release is a record; the deposit itself is still paid and returned between tenant and landlord.

What is not connected

• Aadhaar KYC (Digio)Not connected

  No Aadhaar number or identity document is requested anywhere on HomeTrust.

• Web-wide reverse image search (Google Vision)Not connected

  Photos are compared with HomeTrust's own photos only.

• WhatsApp BusinessNot connected

  Confirmations and reminders go to the HomeTrust inbox.

• Escrow and UPI (Razorpay)Not connected

  Deposits and rent are recorded. HomeTrust holds no money.