I save £430 every month paying ZERO rent, all I have to do is cook dinner – and you can too

WITH rent prices at an all-time high, more and more people are turning to non-traditional housing options to save money – one of them is home sharing.

Paul Woodland, 57, is saving £430 a month thanks to this kind of living situation, which includes the support of a home owner.

The TEFL teacher has been living with Sandra Singleton, 65, in her bungalow in Bournemouth since September last year.

Sandra has MS and lives a busy, independent life, but occasionally needs support around the house.

“My role is mainly cooking,” says Paul. “I cook dinner every day, which is good for me because I love to cook.

“I also clean up and wash up and make sure everything goes back to its place after meals.”

Besides cooking, Paul helps with anything technical around the house and gives Sandra a weekly shopping list.

In exchange for his help, Pavel does not pay rent – which means he’s been able to save for vacations and join the gym since moving.

He also does not invest in the economy accounts like energy and also save more money.

The couple were introduced by Supportmatch, a home-sharing agency that matches homeowners who need help and have space to share with people looking for affordable housing.

Paul pays the agency £169 a month, saving him £431 on the average monthly rent of £600 for a room in Bournemouth.

Sandra also pays Supportmatch a monthly fee of £200.

“The financial benefits of sharing a house are great, it has allowed me to live a smart life without worrying about things like keep my car on the road or going on vacation, – explains Paul.

“The alternative was paying half my monthly salary in rent for just a small room, which is probably horrible and not a place I would want to live.”

Last year, Supportmatch saw a huge surge in applicants wanting to share a home, which according to Supportmatch managing director and co-head Zaira De Novellias is directly related to the growth cost of living.

“People came to us with much more pressing needs. We had a lot of people who were really struggling to find a place to live and were at risk of becoming homeless,” explains Zaira.

In popular places. In prime locations, where there used to be 10 applicants for one placement, there are now about 40.

According to rent tracker Rightmove, the average rent outside London was £1,172 a month at the end of last year.

This is almost 10% more than during the same time in 2021.

“There’s a big housing crisis right now and we’re just trying to help as much as we can,” Zaira explains.

“If you want to help, if you want to spend your time supporting someone in the household, then this can be a really good way to save money and live in a safe home for a fraction of the cost.”

How does home sharing work?

Supportmatch has a vetting system that involves interviewing everyone who applies, and Zaira cautions that this arrangement isn’t for everyone.

“If you want to spend all your time away from home, or if you’re going to go out on the weekends and party and drink, then sharing a home is not for you,” she says.

Each home sharing platform will have its own set of rules, so it’s important to check the terms carefully to make sure you know what you’re signing up for, from rules to fees.

As well as the financial benefits, Paul says: “I can’t say enough how important it is to live with someone in your home and understand the reality of living with a long-term illness.

“It was an incredible learning experience for me.”

He says the most important part of a successful home sharing arrangement is ensuring a good relationship with the home owner.

He adds: “You have to get along with the person you’re living with, if you don’t think it’s right, you shouldn’t do it.”

Paul is Sandra’s third resident of the house in the past three years and Sandra says it’s “working really well”

She said: “Having Paul around working is great because I’m quite independent and like to do things myself anyway, so it doesn’t matter if he works during the day.

“It’s nice to have someone around in the evenings and they cook dinner, which is always great, even though I’m still getting used to vegetarian meals!” she laughs.

After completing the interview with Supportmatch, Paul and Sandra were introduced to each other to see if they were happy with the match.

After agreeing, Paul moved to a one-month trial period where either party had a two-week notice period if they wanted to cancel the arrangement.

After the first month, the contract became a continuous monthly contract with a one-month notice period.

“Your situation is a little less secure than if you were renting with a month’s notice,” says Paul.

“But it gives both sides the ability to terminate the arrangement if it stops working, and that’s a good thing.”

Roommates may be asked to do a number of tasks, such as cooking as Paul does, cleaning and laundry, shopping, gardening, walking the dogs.

But this should be agreed in advance.

Zaira says flexibility is essential to making a home-sharing arrangement work.

She adds: “There is a clear distinction between a carer and a homemaker. Roommates have no professional training and will not take on caregiving responsibilities.

Arrangements should be flexible about the roommate’s time and availability, it can’t seem like work.

“That’s what the matching service is all about, we want to find the best, most suitable people to match with our homeowners.”

More ways to save on rent

Home sharing isn’t the only arrangement that can help you save money on rent.

Be the guardian of the property

Conservatorship is when you live in an unused property such as a school, office or nursing home.

This means that the property is cared for, not vacant, and the tenants receive below-market rent.

Essentially, you are maintaining the property to deter squatters. It must be in livable condition.

Rents can be as much as 60% less than traditional rents in the area.

But check the terms and conditions carefully, as you will have fewer rights than a typical tenant.

You can search for property guardians online at sites like Global Guardians and Blue Door Property Guardians.

The economy

There are some websites, such as House Sitters UK, where you can search for a property to live in for free for a period of time while the host is away.

For example we spoke to Alex Walker, who lives for free in a five-bedroom house in Surrey there are no owners yet.

Although rentals are free, you usually need to pay a membership fee to a site where owners and caretakers can connect.

For example, House Sitters UK requires a monthly fee of £29.

You’ll also need to create a profile page so homeowners can view your information and provide valid identification.

According to our research, you can also earn around £20 a day looking after the housebut it depends on whether you need to care for a pet in the property.

Other sites you can look at include Trusted Housesitters, MindMyHouse and Nomador.

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