GRAND Magazine - March/April 2017 - Subscribe Today! - 10

grand home
and where to live is often a bigger issue for single adults
than couples. With 90% of Americans over 50 expressing
the desire to age in their own home, relatively few will be
moving to senior communities or continuing care retirement
communities (CCRCs) though those types of communities
offer great options for people aging on their own. Cost is
likely the determinant, and it shows a huge gender bias:
single men on average have twice the median income of
single women.
One solution that is on the rise - especially with
women - is the decision to live with a roommate - often
described as, "the Golden Girls effect." The boom in this
living style is largely influenced by older women. Four
million women over the age of 50 are currently living in a
household of at least two women in that age cohort. And
that number is growing.
Many people believe they are too set in their ways to
consider living with an unrelated adult - isn't that something young people do? In fact, it is an important niche in
the $10 billion sharing economy. Now, nonprofits, cities, and
start-ups are focusing on shared housing for middle-aged
and senior adults. Many communities are now offering workshops on the topic.
A Colorado-based start-up, Silvernest is leading the
online movement for locating the right roommate. "At
Silvernest, we're offering a clear solution to help Baby
Boomers and empty nesters safely and seamlessly establish homesharing arrangements," said Wendi Burkhardt,
co-founder and CEO of Silvernest. "Silvernest set out to
develop new tools that provide an aging-in-place alternative,
boldly breaking the rules of aging so more people can live
in their homes on their own terms. We're eager to create the
next generation of roommates."
Silvernest offers end-to-end homesharing services for
homeowners that include home listing, roommate matching,
background screening, lease origination, and payment processing via a simple and secure online portal. These services
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MARCH APRIL 2017

take many of the worries and objections out of the home sharing decision.
Most of the women who decide to share a home initially do
so to better manage their expenses. But they continue to do so
because of the friendships and support from a peer. They discover that the initial awkwardness is offset by the benefits. The

key is finding the best match and carefully covering the details
at the outset. The issues most cited as problems include having
friends over, pets, and overnight guests. Sites like Silvernest help
uncover these issues upfront so that misunderstandings are as
limited as possible.

For additional resources on the home
sharing trend, look at these books

Sharing Housing:
A Guidebook for Finding
and Keeping Good
Housemates,
Annamarie Pluhar

My House, Our House:
Living Far Better for Far Less
in a Cooperative Household,
Karen M. Bush, Jean McQuillin,
Louise S. Machinist

Continued on next page

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of GRAND Magazine - March/April 2017 - Subscribe Today!