HomEase
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Why We Set Out to Fix Roommate Conflicts
Living with roommates can be fun—but also frustrating. Miscommunication, unspoken expectations, and messy household management often lead to unnecessary tension. As new graduate students ourself, we had seen and heard of various roommate problems around us.
💡initial project goal
At first, we thought the biggest problem was bad roommate matches—so we aimed to design a roommate-finding app that helped people find a compatible match.
📌 Mapping the Path Forward: Our Game Plan
Discover: The turning point
👂 Talking to our primary users
We conducted contextual inquiries with 8 university students in Rochester, NY, recruiting participants across three categories:
- Extremely unhappy roommates to uncover major pain points
- Moderately unhappy roommates to compare experiences
- Happy roommates to identify what works well
💡 What we learned
Most participants did not want to switch roommates. Instead, they wanted a better way to manage their current situation.
Roommate conflicts were not about mismatched personalities but about household mismanagement, like unclear chores, shared expenses, and decision-making struggles. Many had tried using WhatsApp or Google Sheets for organizations and communication but found them inefficient.
🔄 Pivoting our approach
Instead of focusing on finding new roommates, we shifted our goal to improving communication and organization among existing roommates.
🔊 interview quotes that stood out
"I compromised because confronting was awkward"
"They changed the house lights without asking me!"
"She doesn't wash her dishes regularly, I don't like an untidy house."
"He hosted a house party and I had an exam the next day."
Defining the user & the problem
As we sifted through our interview data, we realized that every roommate had unique frustrations, but patterns started to emerge.
Key Takeaway From Atharva
He's frustrated with his roommates not fulfilling their duties.
Key Takeaways From Divya
Does not feel included in common decisions, wants better communication.
From problems to questions to solutions
We listed the problems we wanted to tackle and translated them into questions. After various think-aloud discussions, we began outlining potential solutions and identified the most ideal ones for the platform.
🎭 Mood & Personality Differences
How can roommates easily gauge each other's moods when they don't find the time to communicate?
EMOJIS is the easiest non-verbal mode of conveying what one feels.
🤝 Common decisions
How can roommates feel like their opinions matter and are considered?
A VOTING system where their response affects the final outcome.
🛠️ Rules, duties, and responsibilities
How can duties be divided, managed, and documented to ensure fair contribution?
Assign and schedule tasks in a calendar allowing visibility of what's due and who's responsible for it.
Creating the information architecture
With the primary solutions identified, we noticed certain secondary aspects of shared living that hadn't been addressed: Shared groceries and Splitting expenses. With HomEase being a one-stop-shop for roommates, we incorporated these additional features as part of the solution.
This structure served as a blueprint for the app's features and helped as a reference point when we started sketching screens.
✨The solution✨
the 'What's your mood?' feature
Avoid explanations; one click update on what you're feeling.
Feeling sick and don't want to come home to a chaotic & noisy environment? Let them know!
Had an exhausting day and would prefer not to talk about it? Use the DND emoji.
"I was unwell and my roommate was not aware, she hosted a party at home that I was not comfortable with it"
With busy and different schedules, roommates don't always find the time to have basic communication, let alone feelings. This feature is optional, and the mood disappears after 24 hours.
"I compromised because confronting was awkward"
Interviews highlighted roommates' hesitation in verbally expressing their feelings and concerns to each other. This non-verbal mode of communication is fast and convenient.
announcements Feature
roommates can easily ask for opinions, share information, or raise concerns with this feature.
Sample Use Case:
If Shreya decides to host a party and wants to let others know about it, she would use the 'Inform' feature.
If Shreya wants to know if her roommates are okay with her hosting the party, she should use the 'Ask' feature.
And if Shreya hosted the party which led to a mess the other day, her roommate Rhea can 'Raise A Concern' about it.
"They changed the house lights without asking me!"
Living in shared spaces often involves making certain common decisions for the space. Certain users felt 'left out' during common discussions and decisions for the house. A feature like this ensures that roommates feel heard and acknowledged.
"I compromised because confronting was awkward"
Being an introvert and living with new people can be challenging. Users expressed their will to compromise instead of confronting. They can now use the "Raise Concern' feature with supporting images, video, emojis, and text to better express themselves.
tasks and groceries management
Assign, Manage, and View Shared Responsibilities.
"She doesn't wash her dishes regularly, I don't like an untidy house."
Having a task assigned to each roommate ensures fair distribution, accountability, and easier management.
Manage Shared and common groceries
Interviews highlighted groceries as one of the most common shared activities for roommates. This feature helps view personal and shared groceries as a checklist where once purchased, would disappear from the list.
Visual elements
Logo
The HomEase logo symbolizes the feeling of comfort and love inside a home.
Color Palette
Using bright pastel shades with a contrast of black for playfulness and uniqueness.
Typography
Outfit SemiBold brings modern structure and clarity, while Zilla Slab adds warmth and approachability
📱Testing the solution
To ensure HomEase met user needs, we conducted usability testing (UT) to evaluate core features and user interactions. We then targeted key features—Groceries, Notifications, Tasks, Announcements, Expenses, and Profile Management—and designed real-world scenarios and tasks around them.
✅ What worked well
80% of users liked the recurring tasks feature for long-term coordination.
90% found the expense tracking system more convenient for cost-splitting.
95% found the app navigation clear and easy to use.
85% appreciated the announcements feature for improved communication.
80% found the mood update feature helpful for reducing conflicts.
❌ What went wrong
40% had trouble recognizing the grocery list icon.
50% wanted a way to reject an assigned task and wanted that option.
45% of users found the “Update” button in groceries unclear.
60% of users expected notifications to be scrollable.
🔊 quotes that stood out
"I love the colors and flow of the app, looks so trendy!"
"Some of the features of the app are so cool and useful as a roommate!"
"If this gets published, I would use it. Even the logo of the app is extremely welcoming and it makes me want to come back to the app again in future!"
Could This Be a Business? Here’s How HomEase Could Grow
HomEase could become the go-to roommate management platform, not just for students, but for young professionals and co-living spaces. Some ideas for scaling:
💰 Freemium Model
Basic features for free, with premium features like automated bill-splitting as paid add-ons.
🛒 Grocery Store Partnerships
Users could add items directly from partner stores and get discounts.
🏷️ In-App Ads & Sponsored Deals
A tool for landlords to track and resolve tenant concerns.
🏠 Property Management Integration
Promotions for cleaning services, furniture, and food delivery.
Final Thoughts
HomEase started as a simple idea, but research led us in a completely different direction. This taught me that great UX doesn’t come from assumptions; it’s about listening, iterating, and solving real user problems. I learned the importance of empathy and flexibility in design, and how continuous feedback and adaptation lead to meaningful, user-centered solutions.
If we Could Do It Again..
Test with a Broader Audience – We focused on students, but testing with professionals & families could reveal new insights.
Add Gamification – A leaderboard or reward system could make household tasks more engaging.
Introduce AI-Powered Suggestions – Smart recommendations for chores & grocery lists based on roommate habits.
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