Folly #29: Empty Homes

Leveraging our other assets for philanthropy

I’ve spent the past few weeks with my daughter in London and truly counting my blessings. It’s wonderful to be here with her, and comical juggling meetings that are 8 hours behind on Pacific Time. I’m grateful for both.

One thing we’ve also been juggling is her “flat” search for her next apartment. I might have discounted her experience had I not read We Need to Talk About Money. This eye-opening book by Otegha Uwagba illuminates the challenges young adults are facing in finding housing and living wage jobs to afford skyrocketing rents.

It has me wondering … To what extent does Empty House Syndrome (or short term rentals like AirBnB) contribute to this housing shortage?

Empty Houses

You’ve made it and have earned a home that you enjoy from time to time, but you “live” somewhere else. I get it. It’s nice to come back to the same place when you travel, and enjoy a neighborhood that you know and love.

What I also get is how this is part of a system where people of all ages can’t afford to live. Among Uwagba’s statistics for those starting their careers (hers are for the U.K., but I doubt the U.S. is much different):

Millennials (born 1981-1997) make 20% less than their parents at the same age.

Of adults age 22-29, 41% are still living at home with their parents, according to the Financial Times.

Not more than 35% of after-tax income is recommended for rent expense. (For my daughter in her chosen field in the nonprofit sector, that would mean an early career job of over $50,000.)

Yet, at the same time, it feels like there is an epidemic of empty houses.

Interdependence

Of course, the crisis in affordable housing is much broader than young people starting out. We all know it exists. Yet how often do we discuss our own role in creating it? And how can we think more broadly about the ways that we, as individuals, leverage other assets for social impact?

We’re undeniably connected. We all contribute to a system that houses some and excludes others. I live (full-time) on a houseboat dock, as do many of my neighbors. It’s an incredible community. As a highly unscientific data point, I’d estimate that half of the houseboats sit empty most of the time. Some are used on weekends. Others have owners who spend a few weeks a year.

Is there no way that we can bring the sharing economy to empty houses? What if they could serve both purposes: a treasured getaway for some, and a place to live for others?

Philanthropy Meets the Sharing Economy

On this London trip, kind people I’ve met through Trusted Housesitters are taking care of my dog while I’m visiting my daughter. And my daughter and I are taking care of someone’s dog in London while she’s in between flats. We’re participating in this socio-economic system that facilitates the distribution, sharing and reuse of excess capacity in goods and services.

Investopedia defines philanthropy as an effort that an individual or organization undertakes based on an altruistic desire to improve human welfare. If we give money to support affordable housing and programs to end homelessness, doesn’t it make sense to use the wealth in our home to the same ends?

With the sharing economy and online calendars and scheduling, how hard would it be to have an empty home be a real home for someone for most of the year? You get a bit of income for rent, and can mutually arrange times the tenants are away while you want to visit? (If you’re worried about your stuff, a locked cabinet can store valuables.)

A simple idea, but one I have not heard discussed. Have you?

Own more than one home? Where do you do you see yourself in the system that creates – or excludes access to – housing?

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If you believe we can do philanthropy better, please share Funder Follies and …

And I’d love to hear your creative solutions to empty homes and unaffordable housing in the comments below.