Update: The legislation referenced below that would allow up to 6 unrelated people to live in one dwelling unit has not yet passed. This legislation should absolutely be pushed through and I encourage people to support this by writing in to the Durham government (perhaps your local ward council member).I recently connected with an interesting local startup here in Durham. But before I get into their model, I should dive into a little history.In the United States, we used to have a number of solutions to the problem of affordable housing (affordable with a little "f" - not subsidized or public housing, just housing that more folks could afford). One of the simplest solutions was the boarding house.Those that owned houses with extra bedrooms, including empty nesters could rent space out on whatever terms made sense for the market. They could bring on one boarder or many. They could include meals or not. They could rent for long terms or short terms. They could create another i…