DirectKey
Why pay for a home and the agent's lifestyle too?
My Role:
Sole Product Designer, Research & UX Design, User research, prototyping, UI design
Scope:
Mobile Design, Real Estate
Outcome:
Created a trust verified P2P ecosystem that reduces housing search time by 32%. A 100% cut off of unnecessary agent fees and charges.
Timeline:
March 2026
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PROBLEM STATEMENT
The Problem of Agents in House Hunting
Through a combination of professional commissions and arbitrary charges, agents can inflate the final payout by 10% to 20% (and sometimes as much as 60% in the rental market). According to data from the Nigerian real estate market (2025–2026) and reports from the Lagos State Real Estate Regulatory Authority (LASRERA)
Goal
I facilitated a seamless, peer-to-peer (P2P) connections between property owners and seekers through a frictionless user journey.
RESEARCH
Research Methodology
I conducted a survey of 20+ Lagos and Abuja residents (ages 22–45) to identify the primary friction points in their last house-hunting cycle.
I further performed deep-dive interviews with 10 renters who had been scammed and 5 property owners who preferred direct deals but didn't know how to find tenants.
Research Results
The average respondent spent ₦150k+ on inspection fees alone before finding a house, money that provided zero value.
82% of respondents stated they would pay a verification fee if it guaranteed they were speaking to the actual landlord.
USER JOURNEY
From Friction to Freedom: A 20% Cost-Saving User Path
The DirectKey journey is a frictionless, end to end ecosystem designed to bridge the gap between property owners and seekers.
Onboarding & Discovery: Users enter through a verified login, moving quickly into a high signal search filtered by lifestyle pills (Solar, Security, etc.).
Verified Engagement: To ensure high trust, seekers view landlord profiles and book inspections directly within the app, bypassing intermediaries.
Transaction & Closing: The journey culminates in a secure in app application and payment flow. By centralizing the process, DirectKey eliminates the Middleman Tax, ensuring a transparent path from first click to move in day.
USER PERSONA
DESIGN SYSTEM
I engineered a high trust system using geometric silhouettes and institutional tech aesthetics to bridge the gap between design and reliability. By prioritizing clean layouts and modular lifestyle pills, I ensured critical data is instantly digestible building user confidence and ensuring 1:1 fidelity across the entire DirectKey ecosystem.
Components
Wireframes
UI Design
Typography
Color System
DESIGN IMPACT & REFLECTION
Success Benchmarks
Time to Lease (TTL): The duration from the moment a property is listed to the digital signing of the agreement, aiming to outperform the traditional market by at least 40%.
Conversion Rate: The percentage of visitors who transition from browsing to a verified direct owner chat.
User Trust Score: A post transaction rating system where both owners and renters rate the transparency and honesty of the interaction.
