Where do most traveling nurses stay? And how do you fit all the things you'll need?

[Inlocd454]

So one of my recruiters recently told me that of about 200 nurses traveling for his agency, only 2 use the agency housing, and this was mostly because they had bad credit he said. Since this will be my first assignment I was initially planning on using company housing and just bringing clothing/basics. Now, I'm not so sure.

My question is do most travel nurses choose company or craigslist/padmapper housing? If using craigslist/padmapper, how do you bring all the things you'll need IE mattress? I must be missing something, because ideally I'd like to live alone in a place that has at least a mattress! Even rented rooms off Craigslist don't come with them, right? At this point all I can envision is an extended stay, and that doesnt entice me too much.

Any help?

[RNWhit07]

SpacecoastRN-- are you in the DC area.. was just reading these post, I am in that area as well, level I trauma center- wonder if its the same one lol small world, right

[Inlocd454]

Wow, that's fantastic! What section do you post this on in Craigslist? I like the idea of people coming to me to share their places. It's something I've never really considered. Thank you!

[NedRN]

Housing wanted.

[RNWhit07]

When I was looking I went under the housing section and looked under "Shared housing". I made sure the ones i looked at were furnished and accepted short term leases. I was very successful. I recommend emailing a bunch of people and slowly weed out your options and figure it out that way... keep an open mind tho :)

[NurseRies, BSN, RN]

My first assignment, I took provided housing and it was perfect, although 15-30 minutes to work. The 2nd, they wanted to put me in an extended stay. I found a few options on Craigslist instead, sent them to my housing coordinator, and they actually agreed they set it up for me. So I got a really nice condo with a pool and hot tub for my short 8 week assignment.

Then on this last assignment,( I switched to a new agency) I wanted the company to just do the housing for me- 14 week assignment. 2 days before I arrived, I still had no housing. I was extremely frustrated. Finally my company told me something fell through and now I have to be in an extended stay until they figure something else out. I said forget it, insisted on receiving the stipend and I am trying to find my own housing. I am at an assignment now with pending housing, staying with a cousin temporarily.

Moral of the story, from now on, I'm doing my own housing because no one can be trusted to give you what you want except you. Tons of ppl on Craigslist willing to rent their house to a travel nurse for a few months. Just rent from a home or condo owner, not a complex or condo association. They have too many rules sometimes. Of course, would be much harder if you smoke or have pets. My last agency only have $1200 a month for the stipend though, which is hardly enough I think. $1500 is much easier to work with when you factor in utilities, furniture, and background or credit check info.

In Florida, I've had a heck of a time because most places don't allow motorcycles!!! Are you kidding me?! But if I had more time and knew about this a week ago, would have been much easier.

[Inlocd454]

Thank you everyone for your input! This has been very helpful. I see now that company provided housing is generally pretty reliable and easy but not always assured/perfect. I also see that it's probably not as hard as I was expecting to find my own short term furnished or non-furnished housing through Craigslist or possibly airbnb, and there are a few different ways to do the craigslist route. Thanks all again!

[SteamboatRN]

Cross Country has a couple helpful pages regarding what to bring for housing and also prepping for an interview. Here's the link https://apply.cctc.com/appPortal/registration/applybymail_forms.jsp

[jodyangel, RN]

The problem is that without taking the stipend it's not enough pay. With it the pay is ok but I can't find a place to stay for less than $70/ night. Too much : (

[ixchel]

I used to be in property management, managing an apartment community. The travelers we saw were in apartments leased by the agency. The apartments were equipped with rental furniture, and the utilities were paid by the agency. The nurses were on 13-week contracts with the ability to renew usually (most did - made me feel bad charging the 3-month rent rate, but when you don't know if they'll renew, we had to follow our policies). They generally made $30-35 an hour, and were all RNs. We only had one traveler who did it himself, without an agency. He took care of the apartment, furniture and utilities. Since he skipped the agency, his rate was $55 per hour. Doing the math, probably it came out the about same.

[ixchel]

Also, if she couldn't find placement at our property fast enough, she would put them in a hotel until we had an opening for her (our agency contact, I mean). She would have 10-15 apartments with us at a time, and in the summer it was sometimes hard to get her something, since she'd sometimes only have a week's notice up front.

[jodyangel, RN]

I'm sort of panicking at this point lol...

[mclennan, BSN, RN]

I've never been a traveler but have worked closely with many and hosted 2 in my house as renters of my guest room. From this perspective, I recommend you be as organized as possible.

I had one travel nurse at my house for 4 months and she was amazing. She had an SUV with a travel box on top, plastic bins with labels identifying their contents, minimal, essential kitchen gear, her own bedding, her own clothes steamer, a big binder with all her licensure and CE info, all her bills on automatic pay through her bank, a new freestanding GPS unit she kept updated, and a healthy embrace of technology. She cooked all her own meals, rode her bike to work, and was fearless about exploring & making new friends. Her drama and stress quotients were low & she was a wonderful and respectful roommate.

Then I hosted the polar opposite. Her station wagon was crammed to the ceiling with trash bags stuffed with wrinkled clothes. She had no kitchen gear of her own and ruined a lot of mine. She had to buy all new bedding (I'd told her to provide her own in advance), toiletries, detergent etc. when she arrived. She was always screaming at her bank, the post office, or her agency over the phone about some bill or form or she'd failed to take care of. She had an ancient flip phone and refused to text or use GPS. She filled the trash with fast food wrappers and Starbucks venti cups and was always stressing out and complaining about getting lost and how much people in this town suck.

Both of these ladies were in their mid 30s with years of travel nursing experience. I guess everyone is different, but I got to see how unhappy this 2nd nurse was, mostly because she just could NOT get her poop in a pile. I saw a successful travel nurse really enjoy her choice, and make money because she was resourceful and organized. Just a tip :)