TORONTO, ONTARIO – Humber College and SpacesShared have joined forces to connect students who need affordable places to live with older adults who have available space.
Students can apply for the program waitlist now, and they will be contacted once a supply of host homes becomes available. Humber and SpacesShared are seeking hosts in the west GTA, Peel Region and surrounding areas. Hosts are needed and can sign up anytime.
SpacesShared is a secure and user-friendly technology platform that helps older adults who are interested in home sharing connect with verified student guests. SpacesShared and the team behind the platform handles the entire process -- from profile viewing and messaging to virtual meetings, home-sharing agreements, rental payments, and monthly check-ins. Older adults can supplement their income by offering a spare bedroom to students at an affordable rate. Reduced rent options are available when students contribute to household chores.
"Tackling the issue of affordable housing for students is critical in this important time in their lives,” says Jason Hunter, vice-president of Students and Institutional Planning at Humber College. “The partnership and platform offer an innovative solution that addresses student housing needs in a safe way, while also benefiting our valued seniors living in the community.”
The platform has already launched in the Barrie area to help Georgian College students find new housing opportunities and is expanding its reach to the Greater Toronto Area through this new collaboration with Humber.
Affordable housing is a significant challenge, particularly for international students. The SpacesShared platform helps domestic and international students find a new place to call home and encourages intergenerational relationships that can help alleviate the social isolation that both hosts and students can sometimes feel.
“SpacesShared is designed to solve two of Ontario’s most pressing challenges,” says Rylan Kinnon, chief executive officer of SpacesShared. "We know that students are not the only Ontarians facing housing affordability issues. Older adults have been greatly impacted by changes in the housing market, inflation, increases to the cost of living, and a little help with chores around the home can significantly reduce barriers to aging-in-place. By pairing up these two demographics who have so much to offer one another our aim is to provide a new way to facilitate a very old concept – homesharing."
For more information on the SpacesShared and Humber College collaboration please refer to this backgrounder.
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About Humber College Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning
Innovation. Opportunity. Partnership. Support. At Humber College, we bring it all to more than 86,000 learners, in-person and online. As a global leader in polytechnic education, Humber provides in-depth theoretical learning, hands-on, work-integrated experiences and applied research opportunities to students at three main Toronto locations and beyond. Extensive industry connections, experienced faculty and a comprehensive range of credentials, including honours undergraduate degrees, Ontario graduate certificates, diplomas, apprenticeships, and certificates prepare career-ready global citizens for success in the future world of work. Visit humber.ca.
For more information, please contact:
Sylvie Lendvay
Media Relations and External Communications Specialist
Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning
sylvie.lendvay@humber.ca | 416.729.8940
About SpacesShared
SpacesShared is a home sharing technology platform that empowers two key groups to meet each other: older adults and students. Launched in 2023, SpacesShared is responding to the Canadian housing crisis with a solution that prioritizes connection, comfort, and community. Students looking for a safe, affordable place to stay can now quickly and affordably connect with older adult hosts who would like some extra income, help around the house, and an opportunity to give back. The platform is entirely self-contained from application, to agreement, rent and relationship management on its website. It’s a new way to honour an old tradition: opening our homes to people and experiences that enrich our lives and communities.
For more information, please contact:
Rylan Kinnon
CEO
SpacesShared
rylan@spacesshared.ca| 416.882.6459