Rent a Bedroom

July 11, 2004 by Dane | 2 Comments
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Dan Sherman found an article about a company in the UK that is “an online marketplace linking those looking for somewhere to stay during the working week with those who have a spare bedroom they wish to let from Monday to Friday.”

On a national level, I don’t know if something like this would be feasible in the United States because the enormous scale involved, but its still an interesting idea.

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Comments

  • Chuck on July 11th, 2004 at 7:45 pm

    Oddly enough, the book “The Coming Crash In The Housing Market” by some Wall Street Wonk John Talbott says that rising interest rates may cause a severe contraction in the housing market.

    One of his suggested remedies if you can’t escape your adjustable rate mortgage is to … ta da… rent out a room.

    So, because necessity is the mother of invention, it may be possible to see this type of service available on a regional basis as people try to turn an underutilized asset into a profit center.

  • Jim on July 12th, 2004 at 1:49 pm

    I think that this idea is very feasible, but will be extremely difficult to start. I myself, would be glad to rent out a bed room in my home on an occasional basis, or the possibility of home trading also, for vacations. But, and a big but, you have to first market and get sufficient interest. How will you book the rooms, and will there be a central clearing house, how will it charge, as most people use credit cards. ALSO, a very big BUT, liability concerns, what if the person gets hurt while in your home, how does your insurance coverage work. But is good for discussion and would like to see some ideas.

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