Inspiration
Finding housing as a tenant, especially in unfamiliar markets, can feel risky and unfair. Renters often have to send large security deposits to strangers with little protection if something goes wrong. At the same time, landlords want proof that funds are real and securely committed. We built RentEscrow to create trust on both sides by using blockchain escrow, wallet risk analysis, and automated safeguards to make rental deposits safer, smarter, and more transparent.
What it does
RentEscrow is a decentralized rental deposit platform that securely locks tenant deposits in a smart contract until lease terms are confirmed. Before any transaction happens, the platform runs a Security Shield check powered by GoPlus to evaluate wallet risk, detecting phishing exposure, blacklisting, and suspicious activity. Once approved, funds are held in escrow and designed to preserve value through a guaranteed 3% yield mechanism during the holding period. This gives tenants better protection, landlords more confidence, and both parties a safer way to transact.
How we built it
We built RentEscrow across three connected layers. On the blockchain side, we used Solidity and Hardhat to create and test the escrow smart contracts that manage deposit locking, release conditions, and yield logic. On the backend, we used FastAPI in Python to coordinate API routes, wallet security checks, and communication between the frontend and blockchain environment. On the frontend, we built a user-facing interface that allows tenants and landlords to interact with the escrow system in a simple and intuitive way. We used Ethers.js v6 to connect the application to the EVM and GoPlus API to perform real-time wallet risk analysis.
Challenges we ran into
One of the biggest challenges was designing a flow that balanced decentralization with usability. Smart contracts need to be secure and deterministic, but real rental relationships involve trust, timing, and external verification. Another challenge was integrating the GoPlus security layer in a meaningful way so that risk analysis was not just informative, but actually useful in the user experience. We also had to think carefully about how to structure escrow release logic and yield generation in a way that felt practical, transparent, and easy to explain.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
We’re proud that we built a working concept that combines real blockchain utility with a real-world housing problem. Instead of creating a generic payments dApp, we designed a product with a clear use case: protecting rental deposits. We’re also proud of integrating GoPlus in a way that adds real security value, not just a buzzword feature. Finally, we’re proud of creating a full-stack architecture with clear separation between blockchain, backend, and frontend, making the project scalable beyond the hackathon.
What we learned
We learned that trust is one of the most important missing layers in Web3 applications aimed at everyday users. It’s not enough to just move money on-chain — users also need safety signals, clear logic, and intuitive design. We also learned a lot about coordinating smart contracts with off-chain services, especially when combining Solidity, FastAPI, Ethers.js, and external APIs like GoPlus. Most importantly, we learned how powerful blockchain can be when applied to practical, high-friction problems like housing and deposits.
What's next for RentEscrow
Next, we want to expand RentEscrow from a hackathon prototype into a more complete rental trust platform. That includes supporting stablecoin deposits, more dynamic escrow terms, better lease verification flows, and richer reputation systems for both tenants and landlords. We also want to strengthen the yield mechanism, improve the frontend experience, and explore integrations with property managers, student housing platforms, and international renter communities. Our long-term vision is to make RentEscrow a trusted on-chain infrastructure layer for secure rental transactions worldwide.
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