Advice on finding own housing

[Underthemoonicp6]

Hello travelers. I wanted to get some feedback on how you go about finding your own housing. I'm still fairly new and my next assignment is in Vermont which is very rural. I've looked on craigslist and sites like hotpads and padmapper but there is virtually nothing for a furnished 3 month sublet. The company provided housing is WAY more expensive than market value for real estate so I want to avoid at all cost. How do all of you go about finding housing?

[NedRN]

Try posting a housing wanted ad on Craigslist and make sure to say you are a travel nurse. You will get a lot of responses you will not otherwise see. There is often a local realtor with a lock on most managed properties and those are often found online and can also work out.

[Underthemoonicp6]

Thanks Ned. Can I ask which agencies you travel with?

[NedRN]

You can ask! But the answer isn't going to help. I'm independent doing direct contracts. In any case, I'm agency agnostic. There isn't nor can there be a best agency. Every agency and every recruiter is going to work marvelously for some and horribly for others. It will never work well for you unless you communicate well with your recruiter and the only way you will discover that is by picking up the phone and spending a few hours talking to a dozen recruiters or so. Then pick the five best, because no single agency will have access to all the assignments you may want, nor can you do a reality check on compensation with only a single agency.

More on housing: I just noticed that you said rural Vermont (which is most of it of course). There should still be a local property management company to talk to, but they may not be online. In any case, if you don't get some good leads by proactively posting an ad on Craigslist, you may need to network locally, perhaps even working a week first. I look at local billboards including the hospital and any local colleges. Ask others in orientation. You may find someone compatible whose agency is supplying a 2 bedroom or house. Check in with HR and medical staffing. Find out what they do with new hires and locums. Network with staff members. Lots of vacation cottages empty for much of the year in Vermont. VRBO for that matter some travelers use successfully. Check the property your agency was going to use. They might be adding in overhead for their own trouble, or supplying furnishing and utilities over and above your actual needs, and you might get it direct for a better price. Check for local trailer parks - sometimes they have a vacancy. Do you have a relationship with any other agency? Ask them what they do for housing in the area. Do you have a good connection with the manager who interviewed you? Try asking her for some housing tips.

You might check out the VT forum on Allnurses and ask about housing for your area. There may be some fine line with TOS about commercial transactions with other members, but PMs are allowed if there is any interest.