Community and Economic Development Committee (City of Bellingham City Council)

**Bellingham Home Share Program — Status and Strategy** *What the program is:* The Bellingham Home Share Program is a city-administered pilot that uses the Nesterly platform to match homeowners with available bedrooms to renters seeking housing. The program is distinct from short-term rental platforms like Airbnb: it requires owner occupancy, uses trained social workers for match support, conducts background checks on all parties, and facilitates customized lease agreements. It is free to join; Nesterly assesses a fee at the time of the first match. *Policy rationale:* Staff framed home sharing as a response to the limits of conventional housing supply tools. Building new units is expensive, slow, and resource-intensive. The city estimates 4,000 to 10,000 existing bedrooms in Bellingham are underutilized — a potentially large, zero-construction housing supply that can be activated relatively quickly. The program is positioned as one tool among many, not a standalone solution. *Origin:* The program was initiated following Mayor Lund's housing executive order, which directed staff to identify creative approaches to housing. Staff approached community partners including Aging Well Whatcom about operating the program, but found insufficient organizational capacity. The city then undertook the program directly, secured five years of funding, and selected Nesterly through a public procurement process. *Affordability design:* The city and Nesterly established a "civic leader" badge for listings priced at $600/month or below. The badge signals community commitment to affordable rents. An optional "task exchange" feature allows renters to provide household help (such as yard work or cleaning) in exchange for reduced rent — in the example shown, a room listed at $600/month dropped to $450/month with utilities included when a task exchange was added. *Scalability concerns:* Council Member Hammill raised the most direct challenge: a five-year goal of 260 matches is modest relative to Bellingham's housing need, and the rate of housing demand growth may outpace program growth indefinitely. Staff acknowledged this directly, characterizing the program as designed to "move the needle ever so slightly" while emphasizing its additive value. Sundin added a cost-equivalency argument: 100 matches per year, at the city's standard investment of $75,000 per assisted housing unit, would represent $7.5 million in housing value delivered from existing inventory at no construction cost. *Pricing tension:* Hammill also noted that during the meeting, he searched the Bellingham listings on Nesterly and found no rooms at or below $600/month — the lowest…

**Tara Sundin, Community and Economic Development Manager, City of Bellingham** Presented the program's origin and framing. Positioned home sharing as a creative, low-cost complement to conventional affordable housing tools. Emphasized that the program required a five-year commitment to demonstrate results and that Nesterly was selected because no local partner had capacity to take it on. Acknowledged the team's contributions and expressed confidence in the program's trajectory. **Taylor Webb, City Staff (Program Lead)** Delivered the primary presentation. Described program mechanics, Nesterly's services, the affordability design (civic leader badge, task exchange), the owner-occupancy requirement, and the program's Year One goal of 10 matches. Highlighted the Joyce-Francine match as a success story. Responded to council questions about pricing, scalability, and benefits impacts. Characterized the program as one tool among many and acknowledged it will not "take a major chunk out of the housing issue." **Mayor Kim Lund** Expressed strong enthusiasm. Framed the program as having "a heart" and aligning with community values. Referenced the estimated 5,000 bedroom opportunity and the cost of constructing equivalent new housing. Invited council members and housing advocates to serve as program ambassadors. Called on the community to "take a risk" and list available rooms on Nesterly. **Council Member Jace Cotton (Chair)** Expressed support. Suggested targeted outreach to manufactured home community residents, particularly those dealing with high lot rents following a spouse's death. Referenced House…

**Taylor Webb, on the scale of underutilized housing:** "We estimate that somewhere between 4,000 to 10,000 underutilized bedrooms in Bellingham. That's quite a lot that we could tap into." **Taylor Webb, on companionship as a program benefit:** "The last piece I don't want this to be taken lightly is the companionship that can really come out of these matches. Something that we saw a lot of especially in COVID was loneliness. People really seeking out this sense of companionship." **Mayor …

Prior to this meeting, the Bellingham Home Share Program was operating administratively without a formal council presentation on its status. After this meeting: - **Council is formally briefed** on the program's current status: four matches achieved, ten matches targeted by fall 2026. - **Council members have publicly committed** to serving as community ambassadors for the program, at Mayor Lund's invitation. - **New outreach targets have been identified** on the record: senior centers, churches, schools, boards and commissions, and manufactured home communities — none of which appear to have been primary…

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