Nestaway Living Full Stack Developer Interview: Rounds, Questions and Preparation

What the job involves

As a Full Stack Developer in proptech and construction tech, you will build and maintain web applications that connect tenants, landlords, and construction teams. Day to day, you might work on features like property listing dashboards, rent payment flows, maintenance ticketing systems, or project tracking tools. You will typically work across the stack, from React or Angular frontends to Node.js or Django backends and SQL/NoSQL databases.

Role and technical knowledge

1. 1

   What is the difference between REST and GraphQL, and when would you choose one over the other for a property listing service?

   Explain that REST uses fixed endpoints while GraphQL lets clients request specific fields. For a listing service with varied client needs, GraphQL can reduce over-fetching, but REST is simpler for basic CRUD.

2. 2

   How would you handle user authentication and authorization for a tenant and landlord portal?

   Mention JWT or session-based auth, role-based access control (RBAC), and secure password hashing. Emphasize that tenants and landlords should see only their own data.

3. 3

   Explain how you would design a database schema for tracking maintenance requests in a rental property.

   Cover tables like Users, Properties, MaintenanceRequests, and StatusLogs. Discuss relationships (one-to-many) and indexing for quick lookups by property or status.

4. 4

   What are some ways to optimize the performance of a React app that displays many property images?

   Mention lazy loading, image compression, CDN usage, pagination or infinite scroll, and memoization of components.

Practical scenarios

1. 5

   A user reports that rent payment fails intermittently. How would you debug this issue?

   Start by checking logs for errors, reproduce the issue, and test payment gateway integration. Consider network timeouts, idempotency keys, and database transaction rollbacks.

2. 6

   You need to add a feature that lets landlords upload property documents. Outline your approach from frontend to backend.

   Describe file input with validation on the frontend, secure upload to cloud storage (e.g., S3), storing metadata in the database, and setting access permissions.

3. 7

   How would you ensure that a construction project tracking dashboard updates in near real-time?

   Suggest WebSockets or polling, and discuss trade-offs. Mention using a message queue or server-sent events for scalability.

4. 8

   You are asked to reduce the load time of a property search page. What steps would you take?

   Cover database query optimization, caching (Redis), frontend code splitting, and using a search engine like Elasticsearch for complex queries.

Behavioural and situational

1. 9

   Tell me about a time you had to learn a new technology quickly for a project.

   Use the STAR method. Highlight how you identified resources, practiced, and applied the technology to deliver results.

2. 10

   Describe a situation where you disagreed with a teammate on a technical approach. How did you handle it?

   Show that you listened, discussed pros and cons, and either reached a compromise or escalated with data. Emphasize teamwork over being right.

3. 11

   Why do you want to work in proptech and construction tech, specifically at a company like Nestaway Living?

   Connect your interest in solving real-world problems like rental housing or construction inefficiencies. Mention the impact of technology in this sector.

4. 12

   How do you prioritize tasks when you have multiple deadlines?

   Talk about using urgency and impact, communicating with stakeholders, and using tools like Trello or Jira. Give a concrete example.

HR and company fit

1. 13

   What do you know about Nestaway Living and its business model?

   Research the company: it provides rental housing solutions, manages properties, and uses technology to streamline renting. Mention its focus on tenants and landlords.

2. 14

   Where do you see yourself in three years in a full stack role?

   Show ambition to grow into a senior developer or tech lead, with deeper expertise in proptech systems and possibly mentoring juniors.

3. 15

   Are you comfortable working in a fast-paced startup environment with changing requirements?

   Give an example of adapting to change, and express enthusiasm for learning and wearing multiple hats.

4. 16

   What are your salary expectations for this role?

   Research typical fresher salaries in Indian proptech startups. Give a range and express flexibility based on overall compensation and learning opportunities.