forabit: hire, don't buy

forabit is a place to hire things from people who live near you, and to earn money from the things sitting in your own shed. Most of what we own sits still. A drill gets used for minutes in its entire life. A pressure washer comes out twice a year. Meanwhile somebody three streets away is about to buy one for a single weekend job. HIRE WHAT YOU NEED Search what is available nearby, pick your dates, and send a request. Nothing is charged until the owner accepts. Collect it yourself, or have it delivered where the owner offers that. The price you see is the price you pay. Fees are already in the figure on the card, before you tap anything. EARN FROM WHAT YOU OWN Listing is free and stays free. You set the price, the deposit, the shortest and longest hire you will accept, and the dates you need the item yourself. Every request needs your approval, and you can decline anyone without giving a reason. forabit takes no commission on what you earn. The price you set is the price that reaches you. HOW A HIRE WORKS 1. Find it near you and request your dates 2. The owner accepts, and you pay 3. Photograph it together at handover 4. Bring it back, photograph it again, and the deposit is released WHAT PROTECTS BOTH OF YOU A refundable deposit is held on the renter's card rather than taken, and released when the item comes back. Photos are taken at collection and again at return. forabit keeps them, and neither side can change them afterwards, so a disagreement about a scratch has something to point at. Anyone hiring something valuable verifies their identity first: a photo of a government ID checked against a live selfie, handled by Stripe. Owners of less expensive items can ask for the same check. Messages stay in the app, so there is a record of what was agreed. WHAT IT COSTS Renters pay a service fee on top of the hire price, shown in full before you request and again before you pay. Owners pay no commission on their earnings. WHERE IT WORKS forabit is starting in south-west Sydney. If there is nothing near you yet, listing something is the fastest way to change that. forabit does not own, inspect, store or transport anything listed here, and never takes possession of an item. A hire is an agreement between the owner and the renter. There is no insurance: the deposit is the protection on a hire, and it is limited to the amount the owner set.