EVERYONE has had a bad roommate experience in their life. Here are some highlights of those experiences. #roomienightmares
"My roommate ordered food and didn't have cash, guess who's paying..."
"Came home to my roommate's mom sleeping in my bed..."
"Always come home to Gossip Girl on the tv..."
"woke up to my drunk roommate crawling into my bed..."
My roommate told me that he loved me...when i told him i didnt love him, he asked "could you learn to love me?"
"I can't walk within 15 feet of our bathroom..."
"my dog loves my roommate more than me..."
"the nutella is gone again...and i f##king love nutella"
We will be updating more each week on BuiltinChicago!
WHO AND WHAT IS AMERICAN ROOMIES?
American Roomies is a Chicago based start-up that is trying to revolutionize roommate searching by merging the concept of an online dating site and roommate finding site - but in a platonic way.
Each year, millions of internationals arrive in the U.S. for school, work, visit, etc. We are focused on making their experience in the states as amazing and safe as possible through the help of an American Roomie!
The basic model is that we have LISTERS and RENTERS. Listers are going to be graduates or current students from Top 25 universities (verification through their university associated email) that need to sublet or find a new roommate for their extra room in their current apartment. Listers will receive a monetary incentive to list with American Roomies through our premium rental price mark-up system.
Renters will be internationals coming to the U.S. for any amount of time, looking to find a roommate to live with. When internationals arrive, they have trouble finding safe and reliable roommates, and usually do not have the ability to sign their own leases. This is where American Roomies comes in. We help match these internationals with safe and reliable Roomies from the top 25 universities living in their desired area.
EXAMPLE: I attended the University of Chicago and live in a two bedroom apartment in downtown Chicago. My roommate is moving out in June so I list his bedroom on American Roomies for which he paid $1000 each month. American Roomies takes that room price and marks it up 25% to $1,250 for each month. American Roomies and the Lister split that $250 mark up each month that is transacted through the site. I then fill out my profile that has a lot of optional information about my school attended, degree, previous work experiences, interests, etc. I could also become American Roomies verified by paying a small one-time fee to get a background check by the company. If an international Renter shows interest in my room, he can message me with a great transparent messaging system and then he can request to be my "Roomie". Once I accept within 48 hours, there is a secure payment system that allows him to pay 1st and last months rent up front (at the $1,250 per month price). American Roomies receives that payment from the Renter and distributes to myself, the initial $1,000 for the rent on the extra room for the 1st month, and $125 as a monetary incentive. American Roomies keeps the other $125 as a transaction fee.
I then have amazing experiences with this international Renter each month and we each share our own unique cultures with each other. I also introduce him to my network and I share my knowledge of my university and previous work experiences. This is a win-win situation for both parties. I get to live with an extremely great person from a different country and we exchange knowledge and culture. I also end up making an extra $125 each month he stays with me which could help take care of my own living expenses.
AMERICAN ROOMIES IS A COMPLETELY FREE SERVICE!
Please let us know what you think about the start-up and please contact me for any additional information! I am sorry about the long post!
Thank you everyone! CHOOSE SMART, ROOM SMART!
