26 questions to ask before joining a builder residency or hacker house

A beautiful house and a focused month are not enough information for a travel or financial commitment. Builder residencies, hacker houses and coliving cohorts for founders are easy to like from a landing page, and much harder to check before you send a deposit or book a flight. I wrote this checklist for Crucible CLUB, a builder residency project at IVRYN, from its public participation methodology and from the decision-critical gaps that any cohort-specific offer must resolve. It gives prospective participants, organisers and journalists a shared set of 26 questions. Every item asks for evidence rather than awarding a score, and the framework is independent of the status of any current Crucible cohort (cohort details are still pending). Operator BRD-01. The legal or responsible operator is named. A participant needs to know who accepts money and carries obligations. Evidence to record: Record the operator name, registration or legal status and service address. BRD-02. A monitored contact and escalation route are provided. Questions and urgent issues need more than a social profile. Evidence to record: Test the ordinary and urgent contact routes. Status BRD-03. Application status and decision dates are current. An open label can become misleading when dates have passed or a cohort has started. Evidence to record: Capture the page, timestamp and stated decision timeline. BRD-04. Exact arrival, departure and program dates are stated. Travel and accommodation decisions depend on unambiguous dates and time zones. Evidence to record: Record dates, check-in windows and time zone. Venue BRD-05. The city and venue status are confirmed. A concept image or provisional city is not a confirmed accommodation booking. Evidence to record: Request the address or a documented disclosure of when it will be supplied. BRD-06. Room allocation, occupancy and accessibility are described. Shared-room assumptions materially affect fit, privacy and cost. Evidence to record: Record bed type, room sharing, bathrooms, stairs and accessibility constraints. BRD-07. Capacity and minimum viable cohort are disclosed. A residency can change or cancel if too few or too many people join. Evidence to record: Record maximum capacity, minimum cohort and the consequence if unmet. Money BRD-08. The total price, currency and taxes are stated. A headline price may omit taxes, deposits or mandatory extras. Evidence to record: Request an itemized total in the payment currency. BRD-09. Included and excluded services are itemized. Accommodation, food, transport, workspace and activities should not be inferred. Evidence to record: Create an inclusion and exclusion list. BRD-10. Payment recipient, schedule and method are verifiable. The payee should match the responsible operator or a disclosed agent. Evidence to record: Record invoice issuer, payee, due dates and payment protection. BRD-11. Cancellation, refund and organiser-cancellation terms are supplied before payment. A participant needs to understand losses under each cancellation scenario. Evidence to record: Save the terms version accepted at payment. Travel BRD-12. Visa and work-authorisation responsibility is explicit. A residency invitation does not determine immigration or work rights. Evidence to record: Check current official authority guidance for the participant’s nationality and activity. BRD-13. Insurance expectations and exclusions are explicit. Travel, health, equipment and cancellation risks may require different cover. Evidence to record: Record required cover and who bears uninsured costs. Safety BRD-14. Emergency contacts and evacuation procedures exist. Shared accommodation in an unfamiliar place needs a practical incident plan. Evidence to record: Request emergency numbers, exits, assembly point and hospital route. BRD-15. Health, accessibility and accommodation needs have a private route. Participants need a way to discuss needs without public disclosure. Evidence to record: Test the confidential request and response process. Community BRD-16. House rules cover guests, noise, substances and shared spaces. Common expectations reduce avoidable conflict in a live-work house. Evidence to record: Review the cohort-specific house rules before acceptance. BRD-17. Conflict, harassment and removal procedures are defined. A community promise needs a safe route for complaints and proportionate action. Evidence to record: Record reporter options, decision owner and consequences. Privacy BRD-18. Photography and public-content participation require separate agreement. Joining a residency is not consent to marketing or documentary content. Evidence to record: Review release wording and the opt-out path. BRD-19. Confidential projects and intellectual property remain under participant control. Proximity should not force disclosure or transfer of project rights. Evidence to record: Review confidentiality and intellectual-property clauses. Work BRD-20. The expected work rhythm and mandatory activities are stated. A participant cannot assess fit without knowing the balance of focus and group time. Evidence to record: Record mandatory sessions, quiet hours and uninterrupted blocks. BRD-21. Each participant controls their project and milestone. Selection should not imply employment, investment or transfer of decision rights. Evidence to record: Review the agreement and milestone process. Selection BRD-22. Selection criteria and conflicts of interest are described. Applicants should understand what is assessed and whether sponsors influence selection. Evidence to record: Record criteria, reviewers and material relationships. Claims BRD-23. Testimonials identify the cohort and have publication permission. A quote without context or consent cannot establish a repeatable outcome. Evidence to record: Verify the speaker, cohort, approved wording and date. BRD-24. Launch, revenue, funding and partnership claims link to a verifiable record. Residency association should not be confused with causation or endorsement. Evidence to record: Request the public artifact and participant-approved attribution. BRD-25. Outcomes state starting point, time horizon and limitations. Without a baseline and timeframe, progress claims are easy to overread. Evidence to record: Record milestone, observed deliverable, later result and external factors. Decision BRD-26. Unresolved questions are listed before payment or travel. A visible open-questions list prevents enthusiasm from becoming assumed fact. Evidence to record: Publish or retain a dated decision log with owner and due date. Limits This is a due-diligence aid, not legal, immigration, tax, medical, insurance or financial advice. It does not verify a venue, operator or cohort and it does not guarantee safety or project outcomes. Time-sensitive details must be checked directly with the organiser and relevant authorities before commitment. The checklist is published under CC BY 4.0, with CSV and JSON downloads and checksums, on the original page: Builder Residency Due-Diligence Checklist v1.0. If you have run or joined a residency, which question would you add? Top comments (0)