I shaped Yaca Places’ live beta for discovering, saving, and updating local places, bringing neighbourhood context to Yaca Properties.
Product snapshot:
01
Yaca Properties needs to connect a home with the area around it. Transport, schools, shops, parks, and everyday services all contribute to that context, but the information is spread across maps, listings, and local sources.
The challenge was to build a useful local discovery ecosystem that could also provide this context for Properties. Places needed to support exploring an area today, with a consistent way to describe places and improve incomplete information.
02
Three decisions shaped a useful discovery experience today and a local information foundation for Yaca Properties.
Beaches, restaurants, and parks need different details within the same discovery experience.
Design response
I grouped location, photos, and practical details in a consistent order, giving Properties a common structure to build on.
Shown in:
Lists support comparison, while maps make proximity easier to understand.
Design response
I placed filters, cards, and the map side by side on desktop. Mobile uses separate views for comparing places and checking their location.
Shown in:
Local information can become incomplete or outdated.
Design response
People can suggest changes from Explore or a place page, then use drafts and review states to prepare and track their updates.
Shown in:
03
A listing shows the home. Yaca Places helps people explore what life around it could look like, from everyday errands to a favorite spot outdoors. That's the local ecosystem we're building on for Yaca Properties.
Places is live in beta. Bringing this context into the property search is still in development, with these questions guiding the connection.
Choosing a home
How Places can help
Explore the shops, services, and local places around a potential home to picture everyday life there.
Find parks, beaches, and outdoor activities that could become part of a daily routine.
Some people want quieter surroundings with fewer tourists. Helping people explore areas by these preferences is a planned direction for Properties.
Save and share local places with the person you're moving with, so you can discuss the neighbourhood as well as the home.
Design system
A focused foundation for the Yaca Places product: local discovery, contribution, map/list browsing, place detail, and reusable local-context patterns.
Product system
Yaca Places
Palette branch
Tailwind lime palette
Reusable UI
Type, spacing, states
Product foundationLocal discovery and contribution
Uses Tailwind lime shades for exploration, contribution, and local-context signals.
Tailwind lime palette
lime-700
#4d7c0f
Primary buttons and active navigation
lime-100
#ecfccb
Card fills and icon backgrounds
lime-200
#d9f99d
Selected states and badge borders
lime-300
#bef264
Dark-mode highlights and focus accents
lime-950
#1a2e05
Accessible text on soft lime
Yaca core
slate-950
#020617
Primary text and deepest dark sections
slate-900
#0f172a
Navigation and elevated dark surfaces
slate-800
#1e293b
Dark buttons and secondary surfaces
slate-500
#64748b
Secondary copy, metadata, and helper text
slate-200
#e2e8f0
Inputs, dividers, and card borders
neutral-50
#fafafa
Calm page backgrounds and light bands
60 / 48 / 38 / 30 / 24 / 18 / 16 / 14 / 13 / 12
Gabarito carries headings and editorial moments. Nunito carries body copy, controls, labels, helper text, and dense UI.
8 / 12 / 16 / 20 / 24 / 32 / 48 / 64
Stable stacks, equal-width cards, tighter product radius values, and softer marketing sections keep the system consistent.
WCAG AA minimum
Bright accents stay restrained on dark surfaces. Green and blue states keep readable text and visible borders.
04
I structured the live experience around four tasks: explore an area, inspect a place, save discoveries, and suggest updates. The map and list establish location, while place details explain what is there.
Saved lists let people collect and share places around a plan. Contributions start from the information people find, keeping suggested changes connected to the place they describe.
Journey
Browse places by location and category.
Find practical details about what is there.
Collect places in a list and choose who can open it.
Prepare a contribution from the information you find.
05 · Design in use
On desktop, the map and results support comparison side by side. On mobile, focused views make room for discovery, filtering, and place details.
Design decision 01 · Connected discovery
Explore brings local discovery and contributions into one surface. The Places and Properties tabs express the wider product structure, with Properties intended to carry local context into decisions about homes.
Places is live in beta. The Properties tab points to the property experience in development.
The Add Place action gives people a direct way to contribute local knowledge.
Map results show where places sit in relation to the surrounding area.
Mobile experience · Live beta
01 · Find nearby places
Design decision
I kept quick categories and the results drawer around the map, and moved detailed filters into a separate sheet. This gives each task space on a small screen.
Tradeoff
Detailed filtering temporarily covers the map. Returning to the results restores the area context.
Browse nearby places with the map in focus.
Refine your search, then return to the map.
02 · Assess a place
Design decision
I organized the place page from overview to practical detail: photos and a short description first, followed by directions, activities, amenities, and opening hours. Each section answers a different question about visiting.
Tradeoff
A consistent hierarchy makes different place types familiar, but more detailed information requires scrolling.
Get a quick overview of Praia de Salgueiros.
See what to do and which facilities are available.
06 · Dashboard
The dashboard gives people a place to return to their discoveries and contributions. Saved lists bring places together around a plan, with control over who can open them. The Contribute tab groups updates by review status so people can track their progress.
03 · Collect and share
Design decision
List creation lives in the dashboard, while adding a place starts from its detail page. Lists begin as private, and choosing Unlisted or Public enables a separate page for sharing. The example follows one list through all three steps.
Tradeoff
Sharing requires a visibility decision. Unlisted allows access by link without appearing in discovery. Private keeps the list personal.
Name your list and choose an icon.
Save a place directly to your chosen list.
Share an unlisted link with no sign-in required.
07
Yaca Places is live in beta with area discovery, structured place details, saved lists, and contribution flows.
The work brings these journeys into one ecosystem built to provide local context for Yaca Properties. The property experience and its integration remain in development.
A key tradeoff was using a shared place model across categories. It supports consistency and reuse, while limiting how much the structure can adapt to each place type.
Next, I would define which local details belong alongside a home and how to present them without competing with essential property information.
