FAQs

A Host is our term for a homeowner who has a spare room they’d like to offer to someone at low cost in exchange for practical help or just good company.

A Homemate is our term for a lodger requiring affordable accommodation, and happy to offer practical help or company in exchange for lower cost living.

Homemates provide their Hosts with a number of hours per week of their company or skills to pre-agreed activities in exchange for a room at a mutually agreed price lower than market rents.

While the help is offered flexibly and free of charge, it is part of the picture in creating the overall homesharing arrangement.

The activities should not include heavy housework or caregiving. The hours and expectations need to take into account a homemate’s leisure and downtime given they will most likely also be working or studying.

There are certain obligations that come with being a Host which are set out in full in section 10 of the Safeguarding page.

No. Hosts may be families or people living alone. There’s no age limit just so long as you don’t have a health condition that would impact on the enjoyment of the living experience by a Homemate, and that you don’t require caregiving. Homeshares can be between contemporaries or people from different generations. We do recommend that if you live alone and want to homeshare you have either a family member or a friend who can help you in the unlikely event that a particular arrangement doesn’t work out and a contract needs to be terminated.

Only that Homemates must be over 18. Homemates are often students, graduates, key workers or young professionals on restricted incomes, but many are also older and in changing circumstances such as ending relationships or facing financial cutbacks and needing stop-gap homes. There is no upper age limit so long as you can provide the company or assistance required. Homeshares can be between contemporaries or people from different generations.

Absolutely! While you can be confident that any members you contact have passed the ID verification and background check (which includes money laundering and negative media), and gives you a level of confidence that people are who they say they are, it is not a criminal record check! It is therefore essential for members to do further due diligence by checking DBS certificates (criminal record certificates), and documentation proving a lodger’s legal right to rent in the UK, as well as references BEFORE agreeing a contract. See safeguarding for full guidelines.

You will be offered the chance to check their profile and decide whether to subscribe and reply to them.

We recommend that if you live alone you have a family member or a friend who can help you in the unlikely event that a particular arrangement doesn’t work out and the Homeshare arrangement needs to be terminated. Having a contact to turn to is a basic safeguarding measure.

Sure. Lots of people in differing circumstances need all types of help at home – from families wanting help with child-minding to people wanting a little help with shopping or IT support, a pet-sitter while they travel or just a little extra company. It’s also for anyone with a spare room who’d like to help someone in need of affordable accommodation.

Normally we recommend that a Homemate is a single person. It is possible to move in as a couple but not recommended. This is because a) the Host may need to register and have the property approved by the local authority as a House in Multiple Occupation, and b) if it does not work out it may be more difficult for multiple Homemates to relocate. If you do wish to do this Hapipod would recommend you consult a lawyer to advise on the arrangement.

Our contract template does allow for pets if agreed by the Host.

Sharing your living room is not a given and must be pre-agreed. If you have a large spare room this may be adequate for someone and you can maintain your living room as private. However, if your spare room is small and it is unreasonable to expect someone to live in that space only (aside from using your kitchen and bathroom) then you may find Homemates less willing to live with you without agreeing to share your living room space.

Yes, so long as overall it is still felt to be a fair and balanced arrangement.

If both parties are in agreement, you can just amend your lodging contract accordingly.

Under the Government’s ‘Rent A Room’ scheme you can earn up to £7,500 per year from having a lodger in your spare room before being taxed. With Hapipod Homeshare you can only make a maximum of £4,200 so should not need to declare it.

No. Tenancy deposit schemes are only applied to Assured Shorthold Tenancies. A homeshare like this comes under a lodging agreement. However, Hapipod recommends Hosts give Homemates details of which bank account the deposit has been placed in, which ideally should be the same account the fee is paid to.

Homemates are responsible for buying their own food, and should only expect to share meals if expressly invited to do so by the Host. This may, however, be a pre-agreed activity. We would advise all fine details such as shared meals to be specified in the contract before signing.

No. There is no obligation to stay in during the evenings unless you have pre-agreed in your contract to cook or share a meal or attend an event on a specific or regular basis.

Only if it is pre-agreed with your Host on any given occasion. If they are happy about it then it’s not a problem, if not, you would be in breach of your contract.

There is a clear Code of Conduct on the site which states people must respect one another. If you feel someone has breached this Code please contact us immediately and let us know. We reserve the right to ban from the site anyone suspected of acting inappropriately.

Yes, Hapipod’s contract template is available to download free of charge to subscribers and is designed to be adapted and tailored for both parties’ mutual arrangements. It appears under Hosts and Homemates’s buttons in the menu bar once members have purchased a subscription. Hapipod recommends you seek your own legal advice on this contract to ensure it suits your particular circumstances. Hapipod strongly advises you utilise a written contract rather than relying on verbal commitments.

Hapipod recommends contracts are no less than 6 months from a convenience perspective, and no longer than 1 year from a safeguarding perspective, but it is up to the parties to agree the details.

Currently payments must be transferred directly between Hosts and Homemates. This includes the deposit and upfront payments. Failure to pay is breach of contract and can result in termination of the agreement and the Homemate being asked to leave.

In the near future we plan to offer a service to pay room fees via the site which can provide greater peace of mind.

If you feel a Host is asking you to undertake any tasks not previously agreed that may be either unreasonable or inappropriate, or is behaving in a way that makes you feel threatened or uncomfortable, you should give notice as soon as possible and find an alternative homeshare. Most homeshares work out fine as they’re based on each party’s own background checks as detailed in Safeguarding, and from mutual trust formed by good communication and meeting in advance of the agreement. In the unlikely event that the arrangement doesn’t work out for the above reasons, please inform Hapipod so we can investigate. We reserve the right to ban from the site anyone suspected of acting inappropriately.

It is free to register and find out which homesharers are available in your area. Hapipod charges a one-off £20 fee to take the ID verification and background check which is a basic safeguarding check that allows members to connect with others. Currently, connections are being made by Hapipod specialists rather than via the matching platform, and there is just a one-off fee for the introduction once an ideal homesharer is found, This is £95 for a host and £55 for a homemate. We do not charge any commission or ongoing management fees.

A homemate can be any nationality, but since 2016 the law has required homeowners to check that any lodgers are legally allowed to live and work in the UK. See the Government's Guidelines for more details.

If you have more than one lodger or Homemate in your home you may have to apply for a licence to run an HMO – House in Multiple Occupation license - see the Government’s HMO Page. See section 10 of the Safeguarding page for full details.

If either a Host or a Homemate wants to end a homeshare early they must give reasonable notice to terminate. The suggested notice in Hapipod’s template Homeshare contract is one week which is the minimum period that can be given. Hapipod recommends notice is always given in writing, and it is often helpful to get someone help you to prepare and give the notice.

If you’re a tenant or your home is mortgaged you should tell your landlord or lender, respectively, if you wish to take in a lodger and get their consent. If you have a spare room in a property you own or rent and are receiving state benefits, you should check if being a Host will affect the amount of your benefits payments.