Finding off-campus housing around University Park Campus will be like finding a perfect match on Tinder with HouseSwipe, a new app where students can swipe, match and connect with their ideal apartments. When a student matches with a house, the app notifies the owner, setting the two up for further communication through text. 

The software, launched March 1 by four juniors at the University of Michigan, will expand to USC next. 

Even though USC and Michigan are similar “in terms of student population and college town vibe,” they will conduct outreach to USC students to adapt the app’s features to meet Trojans’ preferences, co-founder Armand Gago said.

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Co-founder Brady Haisfield said USC’s location in Southern California “is a great place” for students to live while working their summer internships. The app also aims to help students with subleasing, especially those going on study abroad programs.

“If they only want to sublease for the fall, they can set an expiration date,” Gago said. “When the fall semester is over, it automatically deletes the house and so they don’t have to worry about people messaging them for spring or summer, they’ll be off the app.”

Regina Duran, a sophomore majoring in narrative studies, said HouseSwipe mimics the features of dating apps, making it more accessible for students.

“A lot of people do like exploring and looking at different housing whether or not they are looking,” Duran said. “It would be good for just engagement overall because I do think it has a lot to offer for students here at USC.”

Haisfield said this interactive feature can be “addicting” to students in their 20s and simplify the process rather than scrolling through listings. 

However, Soygun Ismayil, a sophomore majoring in English and history, said the swiping feature feels a bit too “gimmicky.”

He said it’s easier to look at multiple listings and see where all the options are instead of having to explore them one at a time. 

“A list where you can just sort your options and look at them concretely would be a big game changer into this app,” Ismayil said. “I would love to see that as a feature.” 

Charlotte Riggs, a freshman majoring in biological sciences, said HouseSwipe told her she was in Michigan and said the app would not let her change the setting and crashed multiple times.

The end goal of the platform is to allow students to access various services, like finding a house, contacting a subleaser or making a payment all in one place, which would make the whole process “seamless,” Haisfield said. 

Gago said the application has a map feature which allows users to view all the houses posted around them according to their location and lets them choose a house by simply tapping on it to proceed further. 

Yili Wang, an undeclared freshman, said a map feature makes it a lot easier to see and filter out houses based on personal preferences. 

“[USC is] close to downtown South Central, so there are unsafe areas. And I know people who live in the not so safe areas and it’s not so pleasant of an experience,” Wang said. “So, the map -feature I think is pretty good.”

Haisfield said that HouseSwipe allows students to narrow their search by specifying preferences such as preferred area, number of rooms and amenities like a dishwasher or a laundry machine. 

Duran said it can be very “overwhelming” to find different housing options, especially for people who have never had to look for housing before. She said it can be “competitive” trying to find housing as a sophomore or upperclassman. 

“Having an app that can really help navigate that search and help you get off the ground is really effective,” Duran said. “I think it would be really successful.”

Haisfield said they plan to partner with USC Housing and the Office of International Services to help international students secure housing.

“We didn’t start it as a way to make a ton of money for us,” Haisfield said. “It’s just because we recognize the problem that we are facing and really want to help students all over.”

Disclaimer: Soygun Ismayil was a news staff writer for the Daily Trojan in Spring 2024. He is no longer affiliated with this publication.