TORONTO, CANADA — Paying S$875 to share a bed with a total stranger is what some people have been doing. Soaring rental costs have given rise to "hot bedding", a bedtime arrangement between roommates to help pinch pennies. 

A viral TikTok video posted by Toronto-based realtor and digital content creator Anya Ettinger on Oct 22 shows her reaction to a supposed "hot bedding" rental listing in Toronto, Canada on Facebook Marketplace. 

"Just when you thought the Toronto market couldn't get any worse, it did," she says. 

The rental posting, titled “Shared bedroom in a lake-facing downtown condo”, was listed for CA$900 (S$876.70) a month.

The original post specified that the person was looking for an "easy-going female" to "share" a singular queen-sized bed in the condominium’s master bedroom, and claimed that a similar previous arrangement, also sourced through Facebook Marketplace, had worked out "perfectly well". 

“Nine hundred dollars a month to share — not even a (king-sized bed), where you can comfortably put a pillow barrier — a queen-sized bed with someone, who’s not your partner,” Ms Ettinge continues, describing the arrangement as "unhinged". 

“No wonder so many people hate it here," she concludes. 

Ms Ettinger’s video quickly went viral, attracting more than 611,300 views, 39,700 likes and 1,673 comments as of Tuesday (Nov 21) afternoon.

"Hot bedding" is not exactly a new trend, with reports from several media outlets on its growing popularity in Australia earlier this year. 

The arrangement also turns out to be rather amicable, because rather than sleeping on the same bed at the same time every night, roommates sharing the bed typically take shifts to avoid potentially awkward encounters. 

Australian media outlet SBS World News reported that a 19-year-old student, who wanted to be known only as “Priyanka”, said that her "hot bedding" experience involved an arrangement with a truck driver who works the night shift.

Splitting the cost of the rent with him, “Priyanka” paid A$550 (S$483) a month and slept on the bed at night, while the truck driver would sleep during the day after returning from work. 

An increase in the living cost index in Australia has caused students and young adults such as “Priyanka” to use such unconventional methods to save money.

Financial and business news website Business Insider reported that a 2021 survey polling 7,000 international students in Sydney and Melbourne found that 3 per cent resorted to "hot bedding" to save on rental costs.

Social media insights platform Tubular Labs stated that discussions on "hot bedding" have been gaining traction across Australia, Canada and the United States, with 37 videos on the topic amassing more than 880,000 views in total across various social media platforms.

Despite similarly increasing rental prices in Singapore, an online search by TODAY did not show immediate results for obvious "hot bedding" arrangements.

One potential "hot bedding" listing, although not outrightly stated as such, looked for a male roommate for "room sharing". The listing had a picture of just one queen- or king-sized bed and specified that a "non-night shift" roommate was preferred.

Many TikTok users were sceptical of the rental listing in Ms Ettinger’s video, with some questioning the intentions of the "landlord", calling it "super sketchy" and a "red flag". 

Referring to the landlord’s claim about the previous roommate, one user wrote: “I need to know what the definition of ‘worked perfectly well’ is because I highly doubt it did.”

Another user shared her harrowing experience: “I went to see a place like this. The advertisement said US$1,200 (S$1,603) for a bedroom. Turns out it was a one-bedroom condo and the 60-year-old man renting wanted to share the bed.”

Others could not fathom paying to lose their privacy. 

One wrote: “I rent a two-bedroom apartment by myself. I could look for a roommate because it’s expensive, but I value my privacy too much. This is insane.”

Another remarked: “Paying to share a bed is crazy.” 

Other viewers also wrote about encountering similar arrangements in various cities such as London, New York City, California, Montreal and Vancouver.

One commented: “This is nothing compared to Vancouver. Try a couch for CA$1,000 that doesn’t include kitchen or bathroom access.”

Another claimed: “In Vancouver, (it’s) worse. There's like 30 people in a four-bedroom house. Yup, all cash, and people working illegally.”

EXPERT WEIGHS IN

You probably do not need an expert to tell you that sharing a bed with a stranger might be a bad idea. However, some people may find benefits in "hot bedding".

Mr Hafiz Shariff, founder and chief executive office of bedding accessories firm Owl+Lark and sleep expert, was quoted on sleep-health information site Sleepopolis as saying that "hot bedding" might work for individuals who want to save on costs while also meeting new people.

"Some people might find comfort and companionship in sharing a bed, while others might feel more stressed and uncomfortable," he said. 

He added that considerations such as personal space, temperature preferences and hygiene practices need to be discussed with your roommate to set clear boundaries.

“You’ll have to be comfortable with sharing your personal space and adjusting your sleeping habits to accommodate someone else. It might take some time to find the right balance and establish boundaries, but open communication is key here."