Teaching Successful Home Sharing
Campaign Introduction:
Support the development of our online course where people will learn how to create healthy, happy shared homes!
- Our Story
- Contributors
- Updates
- Discussion
Campaign Story
We Believe in Home Sharing
Even before the pandemic, many people struggled with housing costs and social isolation. Shared housing is a viable solution many of us overlook when considering where and how to live, despite multiple advantages – social, emotional, and financial.
Home sharers enjoy healthier and happier lives by choosing to live with others. How? In addition to saving money and sharing tasks, they have a home-mate to ask about their day. “Since I started sharing housing, I am less worried about financial issues. I feel like my life is full of good stuff, and I have more productive energy.” – Deb, home sharer.
Why don’t more people share housing? Maybe they haven’t thought of it. Maybe it’s scary if you don’t have the confidence and knowledge to find the right housemates.
Discovering Shared Housing
Our course, Discovering Shared Housing, helps individuals successfully find and keep good housemates. It is currently offered live using Zoom. But the class can only reach groups of 20, and not everyone can take the class at the scheduled times. We want to create a stand-alone, professional quality instruction that will be available on line 24 hours a day, accessible to thousands of people who need the support and information. In the current class and future online course, participants learn:
- Five benefits of shared housing
- A proven selection process
- The health benefits of companionship
- Personal requirements for comfortable home-sharing
- Transitions and how to manage a major lifestyle change
I got so much out of this class.
It calmed some fears, answered my questions, and motivated me to move forward...I can't thank you enough.”
- Kathy
Help Make It Happen!
Your support will provide the funding needed to film, edit, and market a stand-alone Sharing Housing course. No course like this is currently available. We will offer it to individuals for a fee and sell licenses to social service and matching organizations so they can provide it to their people.
Who We Are
Annamarie Pluhar started sharinghousing.com in 2008. She is the author of Sharing Housing, A Guidebook for Finding and Keeping Good Housemates, which describes the process she created in the twenty years she lived in shared housing. Annamarie is a professional educator and has a master’s in Divinity. In order to bring this work to more people, in 2017 Annamarie and a group of supporters and donors formed the 501(c)(3) nonprofit —Sharing Housing, Inc.
Help Sharing Housing, Inc. bring our course fully online. Please give to this campaign and spread the word.
Update: Check out Sharing Housing's ONLINE LESSONS!
Campaign Contributions
Name | Location | Date |
---|---|---|
Dorothy Mazeau | , | July 26, 2020 |
Catey Berg | , | July 21, 2020 |
Annamarie Pluhar | dummerston, VT | July 21, 2020 |
Paula Goode | Northfield, MN | July 21, 2020 |
Carolyn Handy | Putney, VT | July 20, 2020 |
Robin Lowry | Fitzwilliam, NH | July 20, 2020 |
Suzanne Noble | , | July 20, 2020 |
Nancy Winrod | Berea, OH | July 20, 2020 |
William Roy | Denver, CO | July 20, 2020 |
Mary Zabriskie | Putney, VT | July 20, 2020 |
Monadnock Food Co-op | Keene, New Hampshire | July 20, 2020 |
Sally Koch | Portland, OR | July 17, 2020 |
Noel Kropf | Garrison, NY | July 17, 2020 |
Frank Anderson | Newfield , NY | July 17, 2020 |
Margaret Loomis | Silver Spring, MD | July 17, 2020 |
Mark Preece | Windsor, VT | July 16, 2020 |
Anonymous | Truro, MA | July 16, 2020 |
Rita Farry | Cumberland, ME | July 16, 2020 |
Judy Rogers | Keene, NH | July 16, 2020 |
Jennifer Risley | Keene, NH | July 16, 2020 |
Matthew Arieta | Keene, NH | July 14, 2020 |
brian anderson | SARASOTA, FL | July 14, 2020 |
Alicia Drakiotes | Marlborough, NH | July 14, 2020 |
Beth Darlington | , | July 14, 2020 |
Shane Keats | Cambridge, MA | July 13, 2020 |
Michele Fiasca | Milwaukie, OR | July 12, 2020 |
Michele Fiasca | Milwaukie, OR | July 12, 2020 |
Barry Portney | Waldoboro , ME | July 10, 2020 |
Joshua Roberts | Brattleboro, VT | July 09, 2020 |
Joshua Roberts | Brattleboro, VT | July 09, 2020 |
Dave and Pamela Carr | , Vermont | July 08, 2020 |
Bill Schmidt | , Vermont | July 08, 2020 |
Joanna Rueter | Turners Falls, MA | July 08, 2020 |
Marusya Chavchavadze | Truro, MA | July 08, 2020 |
Ellis Cohen | Framingham, MA | July 08, 2020 |
Craig Ragland` | Bothell, WA | July 08, 2020 |
Izzy Gesell | Huntington, MA | July 07, 2020 |
Sharon Kha | Tucson, AZ | July 04, 2020 |
Diana Wahle | East Dummerston, VT | July 04, 2020 |
Carol Sersland | Minneapolis, MN | July 03, 2020 |
albert noyes cook | arlington, MA | July 03, 2020 |
Mona Kreaden | New York, NY | July 02, 2020 |
Constance Woodberry | E Dummerston, VT | July 02, 2020 |
Anonymous | Brattleboro,, VT | July 02, 2020 |
Diana Ryan | Rancho Palos Verdes, CA | July 01, 2020 |
Kate Cygan | Denver, CO | July 01, 2020 |
Stephanie White-Bateman | Concord, MA | July 01, 2020 |
Lynn Baumeister | Takoma Park, MD | June 28, 2020 |
Margaret Byrne | London, n/a | June 28, 2020 |
Marianne Kilkenny | Asheville, NC | June 26, 2020 |
Catherine Skove | Gilsum, NH | June 25, 2020 |
Jean Enright | PITTSBURGH, PA | June 25, 2020 |
Diane Sontum | Laramie, WY | June 24, 2020 |
Diane Sontum | Laramie, WY | June 24, 2020 |
Amy Bovaird | Montague, MA | June 23, 2020 |
Lee Tice | East Dummerston, VT | June 23, 2020 |
Drew Adam | Brattleboro, VT | June 23, 2020 |
Beverly Mann | East Windsor, NJ | June 20, 2020 |
Gladys Kozlik | merrifield, VA | June 20, 2020 |
Heidi Estus | EL PASO, TX | June 19, 2020 |
Patricia Giavara | Montpelier, VT | June 19, 2020 |
Sue Tannehill | Clarence Center, NY | June 18, 2020 |
Robert Sherwood | Dummerston, VT | June 18, 2020 |
Linda McJannet | CAMBRIDGE, MA | June 18, 2020 |
Thomas Deshaies | Putney, VT | June 18, 2020 |
Becky Ashenden | Shelburne Falls, MA | June 18, 2020 |
Bill Wendel | Cambridge, MA | June 17, 2020 |
Wendi Burkhardt | Rancho Santa Fe, CA | June 17, 2020 |
Margaret Shaw | Manchester, MI | June 16, 2020 |
Michael Splaine | Columbia, MD | June 16, 2020 |
Daniel Sicken | Putney, VT | June 16, 2020 |
deborah knox | Tucson, AZ | June 16, 2020 |
Kathleen Mandeville | New York, NY | June 16, 2020 |
Mary Lee Block | St. Louis, MO | June 15, 2020 |
Mary Ewell | SPOFFORD, NH | June 14, 2020 |
Mary Ewell | SPOFFORD, NH | June 14, 2020 |
Loretta Laurenitis | Peterborough, NH | June 13, 2020 |
Syd Fredrickson | Seattle, WA | June 11, 2020 |
Cynthia Major | Putney, VT | June 11, 2020 |
Diana Bingham | , | June 10, 2020 |
AYLETTE JENNESS | WELLFLEET, MA | June 08, 2020 |
Jeffrey Lewis | Brattleboro, VT | June 08, 2020 |
Tracey Lind | Cleveland Heights, OH | June 06, 2020 |
Karen Bush | Sarasota , FL | June 06, 2020 |
Anonymous | Brooklyn, NY | June 05, 2020 |
Cheryl Wilfong | E Dummerston, VT | June 05, 2020 |
Madeleine Pluhar | Woburn, MA | June 04, 2020 |
Janet Cramer | Brattleboro, VT | June 04, 2020 |
Lisa Sieverts | Harrisville, NH | June 04, 2020 |
Louise Machinist | Sarasota, FL | June 03, 2020 |
Campaign Updates
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23-06-2020
60% funded!
Thank you so much to the funders who have already contributed to our crowdfunding campaign, “Teaching Successful Home Sharing”! We have raised more than sixty percent of our goal!
When we have the course online and available to anyone with an internet connection, it will help people overcome their fear of having a bad housemate. Shared housing is a viable solution many people overlook when considering where and how to live, despite multiple advantages — social, emotional, and financial.
You might also enjoy reading our team member’s account of living in shared housing here: https://www.sharinghousing.com/home-sharing-means-never-having-to-scoop-the-litter-box/
Thank you for whatever support you can give us!
-
01-07-2020
72% Funded!
We’re now 72% funded! There is 28% to go…
Please help us get the word out. Not only will it help our campaign, it’s also helping people learn about us and how we are advocating for shared housing and offering resources.
1) Share our campaign on social media!
2) Share our campaign through email and conversation! Do you have a group of people you Zoom with regularly? Tell them about our campaign!
Thank you for all you can do.
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07-07-2020
Campaign Update
Our crowdfunding campaign has raised $7,769.00 from 53 supporters. Thank you so very much!
Do you know that we have a closed Facebook group called “Hello Home-Mate?” (https://www.facebook.com/groups/hellohomemate) We do. The group is designed to be a place where people can find each
other and talk about shared housing. Many of the 641 members say that they have joined because they are considering shared housing and are looking for dialogue and answers. Some are looking for their future home-mate.
We have started offering live Zoom gatherings. The first one was enough of a success that we are continuing. The next meeting will be on Monday, July 13th. Details are inside the Hello Home-Mate group if you want to join in.
It’s all part of our continuing work to encourage shared housing.
Please share the crowdfunding campaign so we can meet our $10,000 goal.
Thank you!
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14-07-2020
Sharing Housing Committee Member Spotlight
It’s the final week of our crowdfunding campaign. We have reached 87% of our goal of $10,000, with 66 supporters. Thanks to all who have helped us get this far!
One of our team members is Louise Machinist, co-author of “My House Our House,” the book she wrote with her two home-mates, Jean and Karen. As they tell their story in the book, they first got to know each other through church. As things evolved, they shared custody of an aging cat (too long a story to tell here.) Next, they started traveling together on vacations. One day, Karen suggested, “When we retire, we should live together in a fabulous place.” As they played around with that exciting idea, they suddenly realized, “Why not NOW?” A lucky house find catapulted them further into the adventure, and there was no turning back. Their book is full of interesting and useful ideas for co-owning a home with home-mates.
When asked why she supports shared housing, Louise says, “I lived in a co-owned cooperative household with two friends for eleven years, then a co-owned cooperative condo with one of those friends for four years. Sharing a home with friends was the best way I ever lived, for many reasons. It was fun, it was an adventure, it worked beautifully, we supported each other, we maintained boundaries, we were independent as well as interdependent, and we saved a lot of money. As our book subtitle proclaims, I lived far better for far less in our cooperative households. When asked to join the team, I agreed because I truly admire the work Sharing Housing has been doing, year after year, to further the cause.”
Thank you, Louise, for your help on this campaign!
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21-07-2020
$10,178!
Our crowdfunding campaign closed last night at midnight having raised $10,178 with eighty-nine supporters. Thank you to everyone who donated and shared our campaign.
We are now turning our attention to the development of the course and hope to have it online before the end of the year. If you want to keep track of the progress and learn when it is available, please sign up for our newsletter here:
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Please stay safe.
Peace,
Annamarie Pluhar
Founder and President, Sharing Housing, Inc.
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19-08-2020
One Month Later ...
We are so grateful to every one of you for supporting the Teaching Successful Home Sharing campaign. It’s been 30 days since the campaign was completed successfully, with over $10,000 raised from 90 donors.
Our first milestone has been writing the Request for Proposal (RFP) for web development. We published the RFP on August 18, and we look forward to selecting the ideal partner for our on-going work to create the standalone online course. If you know of a developer who would like to respond to this RFP, please send us their name and email address.
Our founder, and resident instructional designer, Annamarie Pluhar, is working on transitioning the current face-to-face online course to the new standalone “take the class anytime you want” format. She will work closely with the web development team as she scripts and produces the video and online content.
If you want to keep track of the progress and learn when the new course is available, please sign up for our newsletter here:
Thank you again for your support and generosity.
Peace,
Lisa Sieverts
Sharing Housing, Inc. Board Member, Crowdfunding Team Member
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16-08-2021
You Funded These New Video Courses for Sharing Housing, Inc. - Special Offer
Thank you again for your support of the 2020 Teaching Successful Home Sharing crowd-funding campaign — you made it possible for Sharing Housing, Inc. to publish two fully online, self-paced video courses!
5 Key Benefits answers the question, “Why share housing?” In five short video lessons, it describes how shared housing is a win/win solution. We are offering this course for free because we think it is so important for people to reconsider shared housing which too many see as a “less than” solution. This course reframes the conversation. Don’t miss the last benefit!
Sharing Housing 101 teaches you how to do it. In under an hour, with videos and worksheets, you will learn what you need in a homemate and how to find the right person, including how to write a good announcement. This unique course costs only $80. As our gift to you, please use the following coupon code to purchase Sharing Housing 101 at 40% off the full price: 40OFF (expires 9/30/2021).
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Please check out the courses by registering on the Sharing Housing website and enrolling.
Are you on our newsletter list already? If not, please signup for Sharing Housing News and Tips.
Thank you for your support and generosity.
Peace,
Lisa Sieverts
Sharing Housing, Inc. Board Member, Crowdfunding Team Member
Campaign Discussion
Rewards
$15
1# Freshly Roasted Coffee Beans
Home mates love drinking coffee together. In Keene, NH, Prime Roast Coffee Roasters is a favorite source for coffee beans. Demon Roast™ is their signature dark roast. The roasting process is all about caramelizing the sugars locked inside the beans. Their customers rave that it's the best dark roast coffee, plus it’s both organic and fair trade!

$25
Badger Sun and Bug Outdoor Fun Basket
Badger is a small, family-owned, family-run, and family-friendly company nestled in the woods of Gilsum, New Hampshire. We blend the finest organic plant extracts, exotic oils, beeswax, and minerals to make the safest, most effective products possible to soothe, heal, protect and otherwise treat your body.
Sun & Bug Outdoor Fun includes: (1) SPF 40 Clear Zinc Sunscreen Tin (1) Lip Balm SPF 15 (1) Anti-Bug Shake & Spray 2.7 fl oz

$75
Dirt Bags Hip-Hopper Bike Bag
Dirt Bags in Laramie, Wyoming was a TLC crowdfund campaign in 2017. Their Hip-hopper bags are a combination bike bag and fanny pack. Each DirtBags seamstress/artist puts together endless color combinations and creative designs depending on which scraps are in the scrap bin and which landscape, street art, or crayon box inspired them. NO CHOICE ON COLOR

$170
Evolutionary Astrology Reading
Enjoy an Evolutionary Astrology reading of your natal chart, by phone or Zoom, to deepen your self understanding, find empowerment, guidance and purpose. Come away from your reading feeling clear, validated and empowered. By Zoom or phone. 1 1/2 - 2 hours.
$1,000
1 Year Social Service Agency Access
Give a gift to a nonprofit organization with clients for whom the online course could be valuable, for instance a senior center, council on aging, or housing entity. The organization receives one-year access to course for unlimited users.

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