What is Rentcast Mcp

RentCast MCP is a Model Context Protocol server that provides comprehensive access to the RentCast Real Estate API, enabling AI assistants to interact with over 140 million property records and real estate data.

Use cases

Use cases include conducting property research, performing market analysis, estimating property values, discovering listings, and automating real estate workflows.

How to use

To use RentCast MCP, integrate it with your AI assistant, and utilize the various API tools available for property research, market analysis, and more. Detailed documentation can be found in the RentCast API reference.

Key features

Key features include property data retrieval, AI-powered property and rent valuation, active listing discovery, market statistics, and utilities for API usage monitoring.

Where to use

RentCast MCP can be utilized in real estate sectors, property management, investment analysis, and any application requiring real estate data and insights.

RentCast MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides complete access to the RentCast Real Estate API for AI assistants like Claude Desktop.

Demo

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/9377fcea-22ce-4c0d-8509-3e0476f154b3

🏠 What This Enables

This MCP server gives AI assistants access to 140+ million property records and real estate data, enabling powerful use cases like:

• Property Research: Search and analyze properties by address, city, or ZIP code
• Market Analysis: Get market statistics and trends for any ZIP code
• Property Valuation: Get AI-powered rent and value estimates (AVM)
• Listing Discovery: Find active sale and rental listings with detailed filtering
• Investment Analysis: Compare properties, analyze cash flow, and evaluate markets
• Real Estate Automation: Build AI workflows for property management, lead generation, and market research

🚀 Features

Complete RentCast API Coverage (11 Tools)

🏠 Property Data (3 tools)

• search_property - Search properties by address, city, state, or ZIP
• get_property_by_id - Get detailed property information by RentCast ID
• get_random_properties - Get sample properties for testing and exploration

💰 Property Valuation (2 tools)

• get_value_estimate - Get AI-powered property value estimates (AVM)
• get_rent_estimate - Get AI-powered rent estimates for any address

📋 Property Listings (4 tools)

• search_sale_listings - Find active properties for sale
• search_rental_listings - Find active rental listings
• get_sale_listing_by_id - Get detailed sale listing information
• get_rental_listing_by_id - Get detailed rental listing information

📈 Market Data (1 tool)

• get_market_stats - Get comprehensive market statistics for any ZIP code

⚙️ Utilities (1 tool)

• ping_rate_limit - Check your API usage and remaining quota

📋 Prerequisites

1. RentCast API Key

   • Sign up at RentCast
   • Generate your API key from the dashboard
   • Free tier includes 50 requests/month

2. Claude Desktop App

   • Download from Claude Desktop
   • Works on macOS, Windows, and Linux

3. Python 3.10+

🛠️ Installation

1. Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/rentcast-mcp
cd rentcast-mcp

Replace yourusername with the actual GitHub username where this repository is hosted.

2. Set Up Python Environment

# Create virtual environment
python -m venv .venv

# Activate virtual environment
# On macOS/Linux:
source .venv/bin/activate
# On Windows:
.venv\Scripts\activate

# Install dependencies
pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Configure API Key

Create a .env file in the project root:

echo "RENTCAST_API_KEY=your_actual_api_key_here" > .env

Replace your_actual_api_key_here with your actual RentCast API key.

4. Test the Server

python rentcast_mcp_server.py

If everything is working, you should see the server start without errors. Press Ctrl+C to stop.

🔧 Claude Desktop Configuration

1. Locate Claude Desktop Config

The configuration file location depends on your operating system:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
• Linux: ~/.config/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

2. Update Configuration

Add the RentCast MCP server to your Claude Desktop configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "rentcast-local": {
      "command": "/path/to/your/project/.venv/bin/python",
      "args": [
        "/path/to/your/project/rentcast_mcp_server.py"
      ],
      "cwd": "/path/to/your/project"
    }
  }
}

Important: Replace /path/to/your/project with the actual path to where you cloned this repository.

Example Paths:

• macOS/Linux: /Users/yourusername/rentcast-mcp
• Windows: C:\Users\yourusername\rentcast-mcp

3. Restart Claude Desktop

Close and reopen Claude Desktop for the changes to take effect.

🎯 Usage Examples

Once configured, you can use natural language to access real estate data through Claude:

Property Search & Analysis

"Search for properties in Austin, TX and analyze the market trends"

Property Valuation

"Get both rent and value estimates for 123 Main St, San Francisco, CA"

Market Research

"Find rental listings in Denver, CO under $2000/month and analyze the market statistics for that area"

Investment Analysis

"Search for properties in zip code 78701 and get market statistics to help me understand the investment potential"

Property Comparison

"Find 3 similar properties to 456 Oak Avenue, Seattle, WA and compare their estimated values"

🔑 API Key Management

The server automatically uses your API key from the .env file, so Claude won’t need to ask for it with each request. This provides a seamless experience while keeping your credentials secure.

If you prefer to provide the API key manually for specific requests, all tools also accept an optional api_key parameter.

📊 Rate Limits

• Free Tier: 50 requests/month
• Paid Tiers: Higher limits available
• Use the ping_rate_limit tool to check your current usage
• Visit RentCast Pricing for upgrade options

🔍 Troubleshooting

Server Not Starting

1. Ensure your virtual environment is activated
2. Check that all dependencies are installed: pip install -r requirements.txt
3. Verify your .env file contains a valid API key

Claude Desktop Not Connecting

1. Verify the paths in your claude_desktop_config.json are correct
2. Ensure Claude Desktop has been restarted after configuration changes
3. Check that the MCP server shows up in Claude Desktop settings

API Errors

1. Verify your RentCast API key is valid
2. Check your API quota with the ping_rate_limit tool
3. Some areas may have limited data availability

🚧 Future Enhancements

• Cloud Deployment: Deploy to Modal, AWS, or other cloud platforms
• Caching Layer: Add Redis caching for frequently requested data
• Batch Processing: Support for bulk property analysis
• Custom Filters: Advanced filtering and sorting options
• Data Enrichment: Integration with additional real estate data sources

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request. For major changes, please open an issue first to discuss what you would like to change.

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

🔗 Links

• RentCast API Documentation
• Model Context Protocol (MCP)
• Claude Desktop
• FastMCP Framework

⭐ Support

If this project helps you, please consider giving it a star on GitHub and sharing it with others in the real estate and AI communities!

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Built with ❤️ using the Model Context Protocol and RentCast API

python -m pip install --upgrade modal-cli
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