Terms of Service

A marketplace between members

ShareHouse is a venue where members offer their own goods to other members. The contract to sell or rent an item is between the two members. We are not the seller, the buyer, the lender or the renter, and the other member is not our employee, agent or partner.

We never take possession of an item, never store it, never ship it and never inspect it. Every listed item stays in its owner’s home until it is handed over in person.

The part that is genuinely different

Most marketplaces let the seller set the price. We do not — we set the Share Value ourselves, from photographs, using a model we built. And we credit you before anyone has agreed to take the item.

We would rather say plainly what that does and does not mean than hide behind the word “venue.” Setting the number does not make us the seller, does not make us the item’s owner, and does not make us a party to your contract with the other member. What it does mean is that section 5 and section 16 are about our own conduct, not somebody else’s, and we do not disclaim responsibility for the appraisal itself.

What you are promising

When you list an item you represent that:

• you own it outright, free of any lien, loan or lease;
• your photographs are of the actual item, taken recently, and not edited to hide a defect;
• the condition you selected is accurate, and you have disclosed every fault you know of;
• it is not on the list in section 12;
• it is safe to use for its ordinary purpose, and is not subject to a recall.

Committed inventory

You keep the item at home while it is listed, and you keep the risk of it — if it is damaged, lost, stolen or destroyed before handoff, that is on you, and the credits issued against it are reversed under section 7.

Taking a listing down

You may withdraw a listing at any time before somebody claims it. The credits issued for it are reversed. Once an item is claimed, you may no longer withdraw it.

What the number is

Share Value is our estimate of what your item will clear for on ShareHouse, near you. It is computed from the item we identify in your photographs, the condition we grade, how confident the model is, what comparable items are selling for, and how quickly things like it find a neighbor.

It is deliberately lower than an asking price elsewhere. Asking prices are not selling prices, and an item that may take months to move is worth less to a network that has already advanced value against it.

What we promise, and what we do not

We promise the appraisal is produced in good faith by the process described above, and that we will look at it again if you ask — section 5.3. We do not promise it is correct, that your item will sell, that it will sell at that value, or that you could obtain the same amount elsewhere. It is an estimate, and estimates are wrong sometimes.

Some appraisals are held for a person to review before credits are issued — high values, low confidence, or where our sources disagree. That is a feature, not a delay we apologise for.

Asking a person to look again

You can appeal any appraisal, and any trust tier, to a human reviewer at support@sharehouse.one. A person reviews the inputs and can change the result. You can also ask us what produced a particular number.

If we get it wrong

If an appraisal was wrong because of an error on our side, tell us and we will correct the ledger. If it was wrong because the photographs or the description were inaccurate, section 7 applies instead.

The rules, in full

• S$1 always equals $1 of Share Value. Credits do not fluctuate, do not earn interest and are not an investment.
• They never expire. We do not charge dormancy, maintenance or inactivity fees.
• The only way to obtain them is to list an item. We do not sell them.
• They buy physical goods on ShareHouse and nothing else — no services, no gift cards, no cash.

Why non-transferability is not negotiable

A credit that can be sent to another person, or sold for cash, stops being a way to move goods and becomes a currency — with the speculation, the fraud and the regulatory consequences that follow. If we ever change this we will tell you before it takes effect, and it will not be done quietly.

If we close

If ShareHouse ceases operating we will give you notice and a reasonable period to spend your balance. We do not hold your credits as cash in a separate account, because no cash was ever paid for them, and we cannot promise to redeem them in dollars.

What we will never do to collect it

A negative balance is settled in credits, by listing. We will not charge your card for it, will not send it to a debt collector, will not report it to a credit bureau, and will not charge interest or a late fee on it. The consequence of not settling is that your account stays restricted.

When the item simply does not sell

If you keep your listing up and nobody ever claims it, nothing is reversed. You keep the item and you keep the advance. That risk is ours, deliberately, and it is priced into Share Value.

What a claim does

Claiming reserves the item and holds the credits from your balance. You then have 72 hours to collect it. If you do not, the claim lapses, your credits and fees are returned, and the item goes back on the map.

Who owns it, and who carries the risk

Ownership passes to you at the handoff, when both sides confirm — not when you claim. Until then the item stays with its owner and so does the risk of loss: if it is damaged or stolen in that window, the claim is cancelled and you are made whole in credits.

This is deliberate, because the item sits in someone else’s home for up to 72 hours after you claim it, and you cannot protect what you cannot reach.

Meeting in person

Handoffs happen in person between neighbors. Meet somewhere you are comfortable, bring someone if you would rather, and do not enter a home you do not want to enter. We do not screen members’ homes and we are not present at the handoff.

If you are renting an item out

The item stays yours throughout. You are letting someone use it, not selling it. You must disclose anything that affects safe use, and you may not rent out anything in section 12.

If you are renting an item

• You must take reasonable care of it — the care an ordinary person takes with a borrowed thing. You are responsible for damage beyond fair wear and tear, and for loss or theft while it is with you.
• Use it only for its ordinary purpose, personally. Do not sub-let it, lend it on, modify it, or take it out of the area without the owner’s agreement.
• Return it on time, in the condition you received it, minus fair wear.

Late returns and non-return

Rent continues to accrue while an item is late. After 14 days past the return date we treat the item as not coming back: you are charged its full Share Value in credits, and if your balance cannot cover it your account is restricted under section 7. Keeping something you rented and refusing to return it may also be a crime, and we will cooperate with law enforcement.

What a rental is not

A ShareHouse rental is not a rent-to-own or lease-purchase arrangement. Paying rent never builds equity, never leads to ownership and cannot be converted into a purchase. If you want the item, claim it outright.

The handoff

Handoffs are confirmed by scanning a QR code, and both sides confirm the condition within 24 hours. Inspect the item before you confirm. If it is not as described, decline at the handoff and your credits and fees come straight back.

Disputes

If a problem appears within the confirmation window, open a dispute with photographs. A person on our trust desk decides within two working days and can reverse the transaction, split it, or let it stand. That decision resolves the matter on ShareHouse — it does not take away any legal right either of you has against the other.

A condition report filed by the other member is recorded as their statement, not as our finding. You can always add your own account alongside it.

The two currencies

The item is paid for entirely in credits. You pay dollars only for our service fee — 5% of Share Value, minimum $2 — and the sales tax on the transaction. Listing is free.

Every price we display shows the credits and the dollar fee together, before you commit. We do not add a mandatory fee at checkout that was not in the price you first saw.

Sales tax

We collect and remit sales tax as a marketplace facilitator, so neither member has to. Tax is calculated on the Share Value of the item, because that is what the goods were exchanged for.

Refunds

Where a transaction is reversed, credits return to your balance and dollar fees are refunded to your payment method. Credits are never refunded as cash.

Conduct

Do not misrepresent an item, arrange transactions off ShareHouse to avoid fees, create listings for items you do not have, coordinate with others to mint credits against items that will never change hands, harass another member, or use the service for anything unlawful.

What we file

We report exchanges on Form 1099-B. There is no dollar threshold below which an exchange goes unreported. We file for the year the credits were issued, not the year the item was collected.

Because we must be able to report, we collect a taxpayer identification number before we issue any credits. We cannot make this optional or defer it.

What it probably means for you

Most people listing household things are disposing of personal property at less than they paid, which is generally not a deductible loss and often produces no tax owed — but you will still receive a 1099-B, and you still have to deal with it. Receiving one does not mean you owe tax.

We are not your tax advisor and nothing here is tax advice. The IRS explains bartering income at Topic no. 420. If you are unsure, talk to someone qualified.

Talk to us first

Write to legal@sharehouse.one describing the problem and what you want. Most things end here. If we have not resolved it within 60 days, either of us may start arbitration.

Arbitration, and the two ways out of it

Two carve-outs, both of which you keep automatically:

• Small claims. Either of us may bring a qualifying claim in small claims court instead.
• Injunctions. Either of us may go to court for an injunction over intellectual property or unauthorized access.

Opting out — 30 days, no consequences

You can reject arbitration entirely by emailing legal@sharehouse.one with your name and the words “opt out” within 30 days of first accepting these terms. That is the whole process. Opting out costs you nothing, changes nothing else in this agreement, and we will not treat you differently for it.

Who pays for it

We pay all arbitration filing and administrative fees beyond the first $250, which is roughly what a court filing would cost you. If the arbitrator finds your claim was not frivolous, we will not seek our fees from you. Arbitration is held where you live, or by phone or video if you prefer.

If this section fails

If the class-action waiver is held unenforceable, the whole of 18.2 falls away and the dispute goes to court. The rest of these terms survive. Governing law is California, without its conflict-of-laws rules, and the courts of Santa Clara County have jurisdiction over anything not arbitrated.