Academy Canada and SpacesShared launch new homesharing partnership for students and older adults
January 18, 2024 — Academy Canada is proudly teaming up with SpacesShared, an innovative online homesharing platform, to help solve the growing challenge of affordable student housing.
SpacesShared uses an online platform and a team of people to match students who are looking for safe and affordable homesharing with older adult hosts. This service will be available to Academy Canada students upon launch.
“We’re delighted to work with SpacesShared. They’ve created a great platform to address the needs of students and seniors living in Newfoundland and Labrador,” said Lisa Lovelady, Academy Canada Vice President Academic & COO. “Navigating the challenges of affordable and secure housing is a common struggle for many students. SpacesShared provides a solution by connecting students seeking housing and older adults with available space in their homes. This mutually beneficial arrangement not only addresses the need for housing but also fosters a sense of strengthened connection and community on both sides.”
“There are two crises in Canada right now – a housing crisis and an epidemic of loneliness,” said Rylan Kinnon, CEO of SpacesShared. “By bringing together older adults who have space in their home together with students who need a safe and affordable place to live, we’re helping to solve two pressing problems at once.”
Students are in safe hands with SpacesShared: as standard practice, SpacesShared verifies the identity of each host, the home address, and confirms that the host actually lives in the home. The SpacesShared team conducts a criminal background check on each host before the homesharing agreement can be finalized.
If you are an older adult, your spare room could give you some extra income, while you give back to your community. If you are a student, homesharing can help set you up for success now, and in the future.
“We know that opening your home up to a stranger can be hard – but if we’ve done our job right, your guests won’t feel like strangers for long. We created SpacesShared so you can make a connection for life, and we will help with that,” said Kinnon. “If you’re interested in homesharing, curious, or think it could be good for you, we suggest you try it out. You think you will really enjoy it.”
Become A Host
Academy Canada and SpacesShared invite people who are interested in becoming hosts or seeking more information to visit www.spacesshared.ca.
About Academy Canada
Academy Canada is the largest independent career college in Newfoundland and Labrador with 15 locations and a team of 200 faculty and staff. It has offered a variety of career-ready training programs to 40,000 graduates across the province since 1985. The college currently offers 35 programs within the faculties of Animal Care and Nature, Business, Creative Studies, Health and Personal Care, Justice, and Trades.
For more information about Academy Canada’s programs and locations, visit www.academycanada.com.
About SpacesShared
SpacesShared is a homesharing 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 homes to people and experiences that enrich lives and communities.
For more information about homesharing through SpacesShared, or to register for a free account as a host or a student, visit https://www.spacesshared.ca.