Joining me to talk about this super cool program that Metropolitan State Go Roadrunners has to help students find housing is Abbi Kel. She's the MSU Associate director of Basic Needs and Housing Support. Abby, Welcome to the show. First of all, thank you.
I'm excited to be here.
So let's talk about this program where you are helping students find housing and you're going to an interesting source to find it.
But let me ask you this question first.
MSU is more of what we would call a commuter campus in that you don't have traditional dormitories and things like that. So is finding housing for your students in this extremely pricey rental market is it challenging overall?
How does your department work on that?
No?
Yeah, that's a great question.
You know, MSU is always known as a commuter, commuter campus, and it's a kind of a little bit of yes and a kind of a little bit of no. Because while students, even students who are considered commuter students, they still have to have housing, they still have to have
a place to live. And we're finding more and more students, whether they're a commuter or traditional or living closing campus, are just experiencing the heavy burdis some of the high cost of rent in Denver, and students are particularly struggling with that because they still have to live within the
Denver market. There's really no reduced rates and costs for students, and so we're seeing more and more every single year of increase of students coming to us asking for resources, relocations, options, and just general navigation on how to do this.
So where this program that we're going to talk about today in this Does this program have a specific name?
Yeah, So the program is its own nonprofit. It is called Sunshine Home Share, and so it's its own nonprofit that we partner with to match students up with a senior citizen in the community to live in their house, to pay rent in their house, but also provide community
in that house as well. It's not for everyone. It's not a perfect but it's definitely part of the housing conversation we're having because not one solution is going to fix all for our students, but it is a great option for folks seeking an alternative.
How an alternative option that's not just renting from a partner.
One of the things that I don't think we do well in this country is intergenerational living, because around the world, intergenerational living is the standard in many countries, meaning you may have a household with the grandmother, the parents, and the kids grown kids under one roof, but and you'll stay there until you get married. Kind of thing in many countries. But I think here we're so spread out
and we're so independent that we lose that. So what are some of the benefits for the young people or for the students that may be taking advantage of this.
You know, so far, the students that have taken advantage of this would be kind of your non traditional students, so would be returning to pursue a different career or change directions. And so so far the students we've seen are a little bit older, you know, later twenties, mid thirties that are seeking it out. But I think the benefits really are for both people. The benefits for the
student one is achieve a rent. They're having to save a little bit money on their bills by paying a lower coross rent.
They're also able to connect with.
Someone in the community and then not might meet at school, at their work and someone that also comes from a different way of life in a background. And then also I think it comes with the community aspect of just I'm living in someone else's home and I am respecting their space.
I'm respecting this person, and.
We're learning how to live together, and we're learning how to thrive together as well, because while they have come from their own situation, you know, the person in the home who owns the home, who's sharing it with them, can share their insights of how they got to where they are and the growth and also even possible connections down the line for themselves in the future.
So, no, you're not going to just like have somebody like say I sign up. Because I hate to say it, you said senior citizen. I'm fifty five, so technically I'm in this category and I'm not a senior citizen abbey. But that being said, you're not just going to like assign someone, right, I'm not just going to like open up my door to a complete stranger and have no say in that.
How does the process work?
No, that's a great question. You have to be super intentional one. It's not going to be for every student. So when I meet with students, when our case managers meet with students, we talk them through the options of
what they have for housing. And it's usually a little bit farther down the list for our students, and when we get when we get to talking about it, we really upfront the whole process with them and make sure they understand because the Sunshine Home Share program does a really intentional job of doing backgrounds, doing meet and greets.
They even do a temporary stay, so when the match is kind of through some of the process and they're seeing good signs, the student will actually do a two week temporary stay with the family and the home to see if it's actually a good fit.
And then also ongoing they do ongoing case management.
They check in in the home, they see if things are going well, and if things are not going well, they're able to mitigate it, talk about it, sit down and see what it is to help just with the transition process.
So it seems to me like this may be a better fit for a more mature student. I mean, you can be a twenty year old mature student. Everybody that went to college knows that like the normal undergrad dorms where all the chaos was, but the graduate dorms were where all the calm, adult people lived.
So it seems to me.
Like perhaps this would be a better fit for a more mature student.
I think so. I think so.
I think it has worked a little bit better for some of our mature students, but I still don't shy away for some of our younger adults who might be more traditional in their younger twenties, because they too might have grown up in some multi generational households. Into them, it might seem like a good fit because that's used the home that they're already used to, and so it's like it's not going to be perfect for everyone. But I think it's really just exploring the option of how
can I be a part of the community. How can I help someone keep themselves in their home? How can I also just have a cheaper rent for a couple of years so that I can achieve my long term goals.
WI I'm in college.
Where speaking of cheaper rent, how much cheaper? I mean you guys have a ballpark of what people are paying or is there a set amount?
How does that work?
There tends to be.
Somewhere between five and seven hundred and fifty dollars for the student.
That's how much they charge. It can really fluctuate based on just like.
Where they are in the community, you know how close they are to transportation, but generally that's where it's that ballpark range is.
Somebody just asks, I'm guessing the students would have their own transportation. So this is a you are renting from a landlord. Just like you would not expect to use your landlord's vehicle. You are going to have to provide for yourself on everything else, your food, your transportation, and all that stuff.
Oh yeah, you would have to have your own transportation.
But then there's pros and cons of if you don't have transportation, seeing if there's a home share that is close to public transportation, or if you know, if you're a margaret commuter with a bike. In those kind of aspects, you can always rely on those. But yes, like some of the amenities like cars, food, household supplies like TVs and things like that, those are separated.
Now do you have to have do you have any say on whether or not you rent to a male or a female?
Yeah, that's a great question.
And also just like people have different preferences on what they feel safe and comfortable with the story we did through red. Actually the homeowner that was seeking someone to do a room share originally wanted a female, but just through a handful of interviews, landed on the student TJ and just felt really comfortable and safe with them.
So you can do like preferences on who you would.
Like to reside with, because both sides want to respect everyone's choice and safety in that and no one wants to be uncomfortable in their home, the renter or the homeowner.
How can people sign up?
As I said to you off the air, Abby, I'm like, I bet you there are people listening to the show right now who would love the little extra and come and maybe love the company right because when you're an empty nester and all the kids are gone, you may find out that you don't love living by yourself. How can people get involved? Sign up or get more information?
So there's a couple different ways.
The first thing I would direct you to the Sunshine Homeshare website, and that Sunshine Homeshare website is just Sunshinehomeshare dot org. And you can look at the website, you can look at the application process, you can look at the screening on the tenant side and as well as the homeowner side, and you can apply, or you can also just reach out and ask questions the staff. They are wonderful and love to talk about this program because they're very passionate about it.
Well, I find it interesting.
I was looking at their website and it says Geriatric social Workers staff by experienced geriatric social workers that have education and backgrounds working with homebound older adults and are knowledgeable about social work based home sharing. So this is not just some really nearly you know like rental site. This is an apartments dot com. This is much more complex.
It's an Evidence Bates model.
So it's been researched on how it keeps, you know, seniors in their homes. It keeps them also longer longevity in their lifespans, and then also the support to the tenant as well, providing a vital piece that they need affordable housing to live in wherever they are in their life.
Abi Kel, thank you so much.
I love that Metro State did a story on this because I would have never known it, and I think
it is one of the coolest programs. One of my favorite favorite people is a lady named Hazel, and Hazel's in her nineties now, but she has a tenant in her home named Bill, and Bill has now become so much more than a tenant for Hazel and I see that relationship and that's the first thing I thought of when I thought of this program, is how much they both get from each other in terms of that relationship that started as a tenant landlord relationship and now has
become so much more. So well done, and I hope, I hope lots of my listeners take advantage of this. Somebody asks, how far can they live from the college. Is there a perimeter that you need to be within?
No, I mean it's really.
Just based off that again, the tenant if they're comfortable with it, So I mean they can expand from Boulder all the way to look Side.
And so that's you know, that's who they're who are to.
Be owning the homes and if the student is comfortable with that type of commune, then the match.
Can move forward.
Abby.
Thank you so much for your time today, and thanks Metro State for publicizing this program.
I think it's super cool. Not just for students.
We should say, if you go to Sunshine Home share Colorad it's not just students, so there's lots of opportunity there. I would urge you to check it out. Abby, Thanks so much, for your time today.
Thank you. You have a good one all right.
That is Abby Kel from Metropolitan State University