Community Begins at Home
Find Out Why Home Sharing is the Housing Solution that Brings Oregon Together!
A New Home, A Brighter Future: You Hold the Key
Home Share Oregon brings the classic community tradition of home-sharing into the modern age!
People of all ages and lifestyles are choosing to invite a roommate to build community and prevent going it alone.
Our area faces big challenges, from housing insecurity to social isolation. Now you can be part of the solution while creating a new friendship and a new stream of income from your home.
Our special partnership with Silvernest means that your roommate matching process is easy and secure. We’re with you every step of the way, including:
- Help preparing your space for home sharing
- Assistance creating a profile and listing
- Landlord tools and templates
- And more
Our services and a limited quantity of Silvernest memberships are free to qualified homeowners.
Would You Make a Great Roommate?
A New Option for Oregon Renters
Everyone goes through a time when tomorrow isn’t certain. One of the best ways you can create stability for your future is by securing an affordable home.
Homesharing gives you the opportunity to live in a more comfortable, established home than you could on your own, while also building a new friendship so you don’t have to live life alone.
All Home Share Oregon services are free to renters! We also offer these services to those who qualify:
- Assistance creating your home sharing profile
- Resources for move-in costs
- Tools for creating alternative rental agreements
- And more
Join us today to explore your options.
Getting Started is Easy and Secure
We’re here to provide more information on homesharing and guide you through the process.
1. Complete this simple form.
2. We’ll send you an email with a link to set up a homesharing profile on Silvernest, our trusted technology partner.
3. The information you provide helps us give you the right information about any local homeowner or renter benefits for which you qualify.
Your personal information is confidential and will not be shared with anyone outside of the Home Share Oregon program, for any reason.
A New Way for Oregonians to Build a Better Future
Oregon is in an affordable housing crisis that threatens a stable future for many of us. Many organizations exist to address part of the problem, but most can’t move fast enough to really solve it.
Home Share Oregon is the creative and cost-effective solution. Home sharing is a time-tested tradition that many communities all over the world use to create homes for more people and bring the community together. With technology, we can connect homeowners with great renters and roommates without using up too much valuable time or resources.
Our team is made up of passionate Oregonians who are dedicated to creating innovative ideas that benefit everyone. We partner with Silvernest because their existing technology is exactly what we need to create a smooth, pleasant process for homeowners and renters. Now all that’s missing is you!
Partner With Us
Home Share Oregon is a nonprofit program of the 501c3 organization Oregon Harbor of Hope. Our mission is to prevent housing instability, foreclosure, and homelessness through homesharing.
We use Silvernest technology to enable homeowners to find safe, compatible roommates to share their home, and our partner organizations help us support low-income Oregon renters and homeowners with additional services for homesharing.
Our services include:
- Rental listing service: list space in your home for rent to share with a housemate
- Roommate matching based on compatibility and preferences
- Secure message and background screens
- Lease generator and rent payment processing
- Mediation and homesharing support services
- Additional support services for those who qualify
Home Share Oregon partners with existing organizations. This allows us to stay lean while increasing the capacity of these organizations to serve those who need support.
Together, we streamline the affordable housing search process and increase the capacity of these organizations to serve more people with affordable housing.
FAQs
If you do not want any additional support, and do not want free access Silvernest you can skip straight to setting up your profile on Silvernest. Or, join us and sign up today!
Home Share Oregon powered by Silvernest is committed to your security and we make it easy to screen potential housemates. Background checks, legitimate rental agreements and access to mediation services all make home sharing more secure and comfortable for both homeowners and renters.
Some people like a casual home, some like a more formal house, but everyone deserves a home that is stable and secure. There is no quota for how “nice” your home has to be to share it. Just keep in mind renters will be looking for images of your home that reflect a clean, comfortable place to live. It’s a good idea to tidy up and put your best foot forward.
Everyone is comfortable with a different level of neatness. Some people may be a stickler about the level of tidiness they like in their home, others may be more comfortable with a more casual level of clean, but either way with the recent COVID-19 pandemic, we recommend disinfecting surface areas and shared spaces regularly. Your Silvernest profile also provides the option to list your cleanliness preferences and screen your matches based on theirs.
Home Share Oregon is a nonprofit program. All of our services, including Silvernest membership fees for our clients, are paid for with money collected from the community through fundraising. Silvernest is a home share business. Home Share Oregon has raised the money to buy access to the Silvernest technology and has added additional services so that we can support more people to share homes. We know some people need a little help in addition to online tools, and that is what we aim to provide!
Home Share Oregon will provide home share services to 50 homeowners for six months and free background checks and renter profiles to 400 renters. That is 450 Home Share Oregon members at no cost! Our goal is to continue raising money to provide all of our services at no cost to low-income participants, forever. In the future, higher-earning homeowners will pay a small service fee while lower-income participants continue to receive free service.
6 Tips for Sharing a Home During COVID-19
It is a good idea to periodically review the latest guidelines, executive orders, and information from state public health officials such as the Oregon Health Authority guidance on COVID-19. You can find out the latest national guidance and information from the Centers for Disease Control. We also recommend checking out the CDC’s resources on coping with stress during this time.
You may have already exchanged this type of information with your roommate, but now’s a good time to make sure it’s all up-to-date. Save your roommate’s information in your smartphone and/or secure a physical location at home. You’ll want to gather and exchange emergency contact information as well as copies of health insurance cards, primary physician contact information, and a list of known allergies and current medications. If there are pets in the house, make a backup plan for their care in event of an emergency, and keep the pet’s veterinary contact information in the same place.
Use home health supplies provided free by Home Share Oregon before you share your home. Home Share Oregon is providing a handheld device that checks oxygen level and temperature to all homeowners who post a listing through our service on Home Share Oregon.org, while supplies last. Additionally, homeowners and renters who sign a lease agreement will have the option to each receive a free COVID test once a rental agreement has been signed and a move-in-date has been chosen (while supplies last). These tools do not guarantee that there is no Coronavirus present, but they are an effective way to reduce risk of exposure.
Sit down together for a compassionate conversation about social distancing practices, cleaning, and other precautions. Keep in mind, you may have to check back in about this conversation as recommendations and circumstances change. Some suggested topics include:
- How often each of you needs to leave the house (and why)
- Which precautions you agree to take both inside and outside the house
- How to handle groceries and deliveries
- New routines for regular cleaning and disinfection of frequently touched objects and surfaces in shared spaces. Think about things such as phones and remotes, as well as door handles, counters and sinks, light switches, etc.
Be detailed and specific. One of you may be more or less concerned than the other-or at a higher risk. It may be a little uncomfortable, but it’s better to discuss concerns ahead of time and prevent someone from becoming uncomfortable.
Even close friends and family can get prickly with each other when everybody’s stuck in the same house for extended periods. That’s why it’s smart to have another friendly conversation about ground rules, this time geared toward being respectful of one another’s space.
Here are a few things to consider:
- Working from home and possible need for quiet during work periods
- FaceTime or video-conferencing considerations (using headphones instead of speaker phone, keeping doors closed or creating a “do-not-disturb” signs, etc.)
- Using shared entertainment devices, such as the primary TV, stereo system, etc
- Times of day when more or less interaction is preferred.
One of the more inspiring developments we’ve seen during the COVID-19 crisis is the many creative ways people have found to entertain themselves while staying home. Try one of these ideas (or come up with your own!)
- Share an exercise routine. Exercise is crucial in boosting your mood, alleviating stress and improving immune function. You might find free online classes to try!
- Treat each other to an “I’ll cook” night and make it special by using your best tableware or having a fun theme.
- Initiate a game night or puzzle challenge.
- Have your own film festival and take turns choosing movies you love to watch together!
- Binge watch a show from season 1 episode 1 together. We are big fans of Grace & Frankie, The Good Place, and The Big Flower Fight around here.
Take your time, rest, get some fresh air, and take time to connect with friends, family, and other community supports. Our partners at Silvernest have a resource library called Silver Linings
