Best website for an outlier to fnd congenial housemates&secure dwelling?
November 3, 2018 4:57 PM Subscribe
I want to search for reasonably priced humble secure housing, likely a room, in a context that will make it easy to meet people in my area. I'd like to search by age, interests, genders, 'household philosophy' and honesty, but Craigslist doesnt make it easy. Where would be a site that would let me, or you, get this task completed quickly? There are better things to spend your life doing.
p.s. beware the accidental mouseclick, folks, the one that vaporizes your carefully composed question.
p.s. beware the accidental mouseclick, folks, the one that vaporizes your carefully composed question.
Post your own ad on Craigslist describing what you are looking for.
posted by the agents of KAOS at 5:40 PM on November 3, 2018
posted by the agents of KAOS at 5:40 PM on November 3, 2018
Best answer: Check Facebook for a "housing offered/wanted" type group for your city. Toronto has "Bunz Home Zone" for example, where people will specify the kind of living environment and housemates they are looking for, whether offering a room or looking for one. Best of luck!
posted by piamater at 5:51 PM on November 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by piamater at 5:51 PM on November 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
Yes, in my experience Facebook housing groups have taken the place of Craigslist for shared housing ads these days.
posted by needs more cowbell at 6:13 PM on November 3, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by needs more cowbell at 6:13 PM on November 3, 2018 [2 favorites]
I had good luck with a craigslist ad because I figured out something that ruled out most responses. I wrote a long ad specifying what I was like and the kind of person I was looking for, and the last line said a specific word must appear in the subject line of all responses. I figured I didn’t want to live with anyone who wouldn’t bother to read the whole ad. About 95% of the responses I got did not include the word, which I found pretty shocking. This saved me a lot of time by narrowing down the pool, and I ended up with a great roommate.
posted by FencingGal at 6:16 PM on November 3, 2018 [11 favorites]
posted by FencingGal at 6:16 PM on November 3, 2018 [11 favorites]
Someone I know who's moving recommended Roomster. I haven't tried it myself yet, but he said he listed his requirements and sent a "blast" out to the entire area to find somebody.
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:01 PM on November 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:01 PM on November 3, 2018 [1 favorite]
Definitely FB groups. I've seen people have some luck in my neighborhood's FB group. There are also sometimes different housing search groups for different communities, especially queer folks.
And yes, let everyone know you're looking. I'm thinking back through all the various roommate situations I've had and the best were all through word of mouth. Of the three roommate situations I've had that kind of sucked, two were the only two I found through strangers on the internet. (The third was through a friend who was moving out, but she'd warned me so at least I knew what I was getting into)
It makes sense when you think about it - if you have friends in common, you probably share some other things in common too. Also, those rare really great house-sharing situations (the ones where the rent is below-market, the house is nice, and the roommates are really awesome) often don't even make it to craigslist or FB because they get filled by word of mouth.
posted by lunasol at 7:25 PM on November 3, 2018 [2 favorites]
And yes, let everyone know you're looking. I'm thinking back through all the various roommate situations I've had and the best were all through word of mouth. Of the three roommate situations I've had that kind of sucked, two were the only two I found through strangers on the internet. (The third was through a friend who was moving out, but she'd warned me so at least I knew what I was getting into)
It makes sense when you think about it - if you have friends in common, you probably share some other things in common too. Also, those rare really great house-sharing situations (the ones where the rent is below-market, the house is nice, and the roommates are really awesome) often don't even make it to craigslist or FB because they get filled by word of mouth.
posted by lunasol at 7:25 PM on November 3, 2018 [2 favorites]
This thread is closed to new comments.
But overall...
- Telling everyone you know that you're looking for share housing helps, as they will tell you if they hear of anything.
- Knowing that a lot of people don't want to using their housing situation as a way to meet people.
posted by k8t at 5:23 PM on November 3, 2018 [1 favorite]