Tel Aviv Founders Launch Roomers Platform to Simplify Short-Term Sublets
Two 23-year-old entrepreneurs have launched Roomers, an AI-powered platform designed to streamline the chaotic process of finding and listing short-term sublets in Tel Aviv.
Finding a sublet in Tel Aviv has long been a frustrating exercise involving endless scrolling through Facebook groups, messaging landlords, and discovering that the apartment is already taken or the dates do not match. While classified sites like Yad2 feature sublet listings, they are buried within a sprawling real estate directory. To solve this issue, two 23-year-olds have launched Roomers, a dedicated platform built exclusively for short-term rentals in the city.
The Origins of Roomers
Roomers was founded by Idan Schiller, an electrical engineering student in Tel Aviv, and Naor Wallerstein, a former project manager in the Ministry of Defense. Having served hundreds of reserve duty days near the Kirya military base, the two sought a temporary apartment in Tel Aviv to stay close to their post. Facing the chaotic landscape of social media groups and direct messages, they decided to build the tool they desperately needed.
Advanced Search and AI Integration
The core innovation of Roomers transforms chaotic social media posts into a structured, searchable database. Users can filter listings by entry and exit dates, price, number of rooms, roommates, pet-friendly policies, parking, and balconies. The platform also includes an interactive map view and natural language search capabilities, allowing users to type queries such as "apartment near the beach up to 6,000 shekels." Once a suitable match is found, users can contact advertisers directly via WhatsApp without intermediaries or fees.
For apartment owners, the platform streamlines the listing process. Instead of filling out lengthy forms, owners can write a natural text description of the sublet. The system uses artificial intelligence to automatically extract pricing, dates, neighborhoods, and other key details to generate the listing, filling in any gaps with a few brief follow-up questions.
"We scrolled for hours through Facebook groups and stories, sending messages only to find the apartment was already taken," the founders share, recalling the frustration that sparked their entrepreneurial journey.
Bootstrapped Development and Early Traction
Notably, the product was built with limited prior programming experience, zero funding, and no external team. The website was developed using Base44, the iPhone application was written in SwiftUI, and daily operations are partially managed by custom AI agents built by the founders to handle social media posting, story updates, and bug reporting.
Launched on September 6, just ahead of the holiday season when many Tel Aviv residents travel and list their apartments, Roomers has experienced rapid organic growth. Within a month, the platform attracted over 900 registered users, facilitated more than 500 inquiries to landlords, and generated over 200,000 organic views without any advertising budget. Currently, the site hosts approximately 250 active sublet listings in Tel Aviv.
At this stage, the service remains entirely free for both seekers and listers, with the founders focusing on establishing Roomers as the definitive hub for short-term rentals in Tel Aviv before exploring monetization strategies.
