Community
Students are welcomed to home-sweet-HomeShare
HomeShare Kootenai County celebrated a new partnership and office at the historic Roosevelt building with a garden party fundraiser last weekend.
The event kicked off on the Roosevelt lawns with a croquet tournament and brass band. Guests mingled as they toured the historic building, savored an array of finger foods and beverages, and supported the cause by purchasing raffle tickets or placing bids in a silent auction of goods and services provided by local businesses and artists.
HomeShare is a non-profit organization that connects people who want to share their homes with those who fit the bill. HomeShare’s Executive Director, Duncan Menzie describes it as matchmaking for potential home providers and home seekers. Their aim is to increase the availability and affordability of housing in Kootenai County.
One of the unique things about HomeShare is that some of the home providers are willing to negotiate for a reduced rent in exchange for things like yard work or help around the house.
“A lot of our home providers want to be matched with students,” said Menzies. “They feel a certain level of trust.”
A majority of those opening their homes are seniors, mostly couples, or new homeowners looking to supplement their income.
“That’s how I got through college, my old high-school choir director said we’d love you to come live in our basement if you can do some landscaping for us,” said Menzies. “It’s important for college students to have their own space.”
Louisa Rogers from the Center for New Directions at NIC has already hooked up several NIC students with some of HomeShare’s other locations.
“It’s such an incredible resource for our students, especially non-traditional ones,” said Rogers. “Affording an apartment while going to school is a struggle, and rental prices have gone up significantly over the past few years. HomeShare is an affordable housing solution.”
NIC student, Daisy Bontrager, not only rents through HomeShare, but she volunteers for them too. She said she likes the professionalism of a program that’s interested in helping both the renters and the providers equally.
“It encourages community and promotes meaningful interactions,” said Bontrager. “There are even options for work exchange instead of total cost. HomeShare can feel like a real safety net for a college student who has adjusted hours of income or levels of commitment.”
While HomeShare is ideal for college students, it’s not limited to that demographic, anyone can apply. Applicants’ acceptance is based on compatibility, and both seekers and providers are encouraged to apply.
“I’ve always thought it would be so cool,” said Rogers, “if a family who has a child attending college out of the area could rent their child’s room to a local college student, while their child is away.”
HomeShare partnered up with former mayor Steve Widmyer and his wife Marie, who bought the old Roosevelt Inn three months ago, to provide a semi-communal living space perfect for college students. Each room is being converted into micro studios, some are already available on their website for as low as $700.
The Roosevelt has been around since 1905 and served as a schoolhouse until 1971. Later it opened as a bed and breakfast and was actually featured on Gordon Ramsay’s “Hotel Hell” in 2012. Steve Widmyer had attended school at the Roosevelt as a boy and purchased it in 2025 to save it from demolition and join the HomeShare family.
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