Life Admin & HomeDone with ChatGPT
Hunt for an apartment with an agent (partly failed)
A self-hosted agent surfaced broken links and mismatched descriptions at over $100 in credits; ChatGPT then compared listings and scheduled searches until it lost site access.
- What They Did
- The author installed OpenClaw on Hostinger with a one-click installer, in about 40 minutes, and connected it to Telegram. It was told to watch Facebook Marketplace, filter for a three-bedroom apartment with a balcony, and send twice-daily roundups. He capped it at 30 attempts. After it failed, he tried ChatGPT, then Codex with useComputer.
- How It Went
- The agent never found an apartment. Roundups came late or not at all, links were broken, and descriptions were hallucinated. It cost over $100 in credits and a week. ChatGPT worked better until it lost site access. Codex, driving a real browser, worked reliably.
- Worth Knowing
- Cap the agent's attempts, since agents don't report intermediate failures and costs can run away. A $20/month ChatGPT subscription beat the self-hosted setup, and the Codex route needs your own computer left on.
Try it yourself with ChatGPT
Help me find an apartment in [city or neighborhood] with a budget of [max rent], [number] bedrooms, and these must-haves: [list]. Open the listing sites, check that each link works and that the description matches the photos and details, and give me a table of the 8 best verified options with price, address, and link. Flag anything that looks outdated or suspicious. Do not contact any landlords or submit any forms without showing me first.