Privacy Policy

1. Information we collect

We collect information you give us, information created when you use the Service, and information from a few trusted providers:

• Account information — your name, email address, and password. If you sign in with Google, we receive basic Google profile details such as your name, email, and profile picture.
• Profile & matching details — phone number, nationality, school, occupation, budget, desired move-in date, and preferred borough or neighborhood. You may also provide your date of birth, gender, and student ID number.
• Lifestyle preferences — your answers to our lifestyle questionnaire (such as sleep schedule, cleanliness, smoking, noise tolerance, guests, and social style), which we use to suggest rooms and roommates.
• Inquiries & leads — when you submit a “request to view” or contact form, the name, email, phone number, message, and move-in timing you provide. You can submit an inquiry as a guest, without an account.
• Activity & content — rooms you save or view, applications you submit, and messages you send in roommate group chats.
• Technical & usage data — IP address, device and browser type, pages viewed, and similar diagnostic data, including limited, privacy-friendly analytics.

2. How we use your information

We use your information to:

• create, secure, and manage your account;
• confirm your eligibility as a student, where applicable;
• match you with suitable rooms and roommates based on your preferences;
• pass your inquiry to our housing team so they can follow up and arrange a viewing;
• operate roommate group chats and other community features;
• send you service messages such as sign-in verification, application updates, and security notices;
• maintain, improve, and secure the Service, and detect and prevent fraud or abuse; and
• comply with our legal obligations.

If we ever send you promotional messages, we will rely on your consent where required, and you can opt out at any time.

3. How we share information

We do not sell your personal information, and we do not share it for cross-context behavioral advertising. We share information only in these limited ways:

• Service providers acting on our behalf under written agreements: Supabase (authentication, database, and storage), Vercel (hosting and privacy-friendly analytics), Resend (email delivery), Upstash (rate limiting and abuse prevention), and Google (Google Maps to display locations, and Google Sign-In if you choose it).
• Our housing team and the property operators we work with — only the details needed to respond to your inquiry and arrange a viewing.
• Other users — when you join a roommate group, members can see the profile details and messages you choose to share within that group.
• Legal & safety — when required by law, or to protect the rights, safety, and integrity of the Service, our users, or the public.
• Business transfers — in connection with a merger, acquisition, financing, or sale of assets, subject to this policy.

4. Cookies and analytics

We use essential cookies set by our authentication provider to keep you signed in and protect your session; these are required for the Service to work. We also use privacy-friendly analytics(Vercel Web Analytics and Speed Insights) to understand site performance and usage — these are designed not to track you across other websites. Pages that display maps load Google Maps, which may set its own cookies and is governed by Google’s privacy policy. You can control non-essential cookies through your browser settings. Because we do not run third-party advertising trackers, we do not use a separate cookie-consent banner.

5. Data retention

We keep your information for as long as your account is active and as needed to provide the Service. Guest inquiries are kept as long as needed to follow up and for our records. When you ask us to delete your account, we will do so, except for information we are required or permitted to retain by law (for example, for security, fraud-prevention, or accounting purposes).

6. How we protect your information

We protect your data with encryption in transit, access controls, least-privilege permissions, and rate limiting, and we restrict access to personal information to authorized staff. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security; please use a strong, unique password and keep your login details private.

7. Your rights and choices

You may access, correct, download, or delete your personal information, and you may object to or restrict certain processing or withdraw consent. You can update most details in your account, opt out of promotional messages at any time, and sign out and stop using the Service whenever you like. To make a request, email us at info@ihousingnyc.com. We will not discriminate against you for exercising these rights. Depending on where you live (for example, California, or the EEA/UK), you may have additional rights; we honor those that apply to you.

8. Sensitive information

Some information we collect — such as your nationality — may be considered sensitive in certain regions. We collect it only to provide the Service, keep it with restricted access, and never use it for advertising or sell it.

9. International users

iHousing is operated from the United States, and your information is processed and stored there. If you access the Service from outside the United States, you understand and agree that your information will be transferred to and processed in the United States, where data-protection laws may differ from those in your country.

10. Children

The Service is intended for users who are at least 18 years old. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. If you believe a minor has provided us with information, please contact us and we will delete it.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “Last updated” date above and, for material changes, provide a more prominent notice where appropriate. Your continued use of the Service after an update means you accept the revised policy.

12. Contact us

Questions about this policy or your personal information? Contact us at info@ihousingnyc.com.