Addressing the Cost of Living Crisis | Kal Merhi

From war-zone homelessness to building a global housing platform.

In this episode of Second Life Leader, I sit down with Cal Mary, founder of iRoomit, to unpack one of the most grounded, purpose-driven founder stories you’ll hear this year.

Kal grew up in Beirut during the civil war—years of homelessness, scarcity, and survival. He immigrated to Canada with his family and two dollars, built and sold multiple businesses, burned out chasing success without meaning… and then rebuilt again—this time with a mission.

That mission became iRoomit: a global platform designed to make finding roommates, shared housing, and co-living safer, more affordable, and scam-free—without squeezing users or playing VC growth games.

In this conversation, we cover:

What surviving war and homelessness teaches you about real security

Why most housing platforms are structurally broken

How iRoomit engineered a zero-scam ecosystem using ID + payment verification

The rise of co-living and why affordability—not ownership—is the future

Why bootstrapping forces better decisions than outside capital

How to scale a values-driven company without losing the plot

Rebuilding clarity after burnout, loss, and collapse

This isn’t a hype story.
It’s a rebuild story—for founders, operators, and leaders who’ve been hit and are choosing to build again with intention.

If you’re done pretending the old playbook still works, you’re in the right room.

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🌐 Learn more about the show: https://dougutberg.com
📍 Learn more about iRoomit: https://iroomit.com