Making Money While Travel Nursing With a Spouse

[swilliams89]

My husband and I have really given some thought to travel nursing in the next year. It has always been a dream of ours to travel the country. I've been a nurse for 5 years now, with the last two in critical care. I want one more year of ICU under my belt and then I think I might be ready. My husband is a mechanic and will not be working while we are traveling. He has plans to either volunteer or go back to school online. (I know this probably sounds selfish, but I'd rather him not work because on my days off we'd actually like to go do things and see the places we're traveling to).

My question is this: Is it really possible to make a lot of money while traveling with a spouse who is not working? We have no children. We do not own a home so no house payments. However, we would like to buy a slightly used 4WD truck before our first assignment due to the fact that both of our cars are old and not in good enough shape to be traveling across the country in all kinds of weather. I'm worried about having a $400-500 car payment and having to buy health insurance for a spouse. I've been told travel nurses make good money but is it really that good? We'd actually like to be able to save several hundred dollars a month too. Any thoughts or advice?

[NedRN]

The money earned is exactly the same regardless of goldfish or husbands. How much you spend may vary. Exactly like being home.

Since quite a few travelers travel with spouse, it can certainly be done.

[cosmicmama, BSN, RN]

A lot of people think that travel nurses are rolling in the dough. Not true. The money is maybe slightly better than staff pay. The monetary benefits come in tax benefits, and some people pocket a lot of their housing costs if they travel alone and don't require private housing. However, the real benefits come from being able to travel and see the country.

So travel because you want to have an adventure, not because you want to make a ton of money.

[trackhead, APRN]

I'm travelling full time with wife/kid in an RV, our house is rented. We put 50+% of my take home into savings every paycheck. We live cheap, we have tons of time off, and it's a blast, for the most part. We started doing it for financial reasons (pay house off), but quickly realized that priority is second to just having fun in new places.

If you're worried about a $400 car payment and $400 for insurance, then you're a big spender............

Like NedRN emphasizes frequently, it's best to have at least a month or two of of saved income in the bank before you venture off. Bad things can, and do happen, don't get caught with your pants down, so to speak.

[aamy]

You mentioned that you do not have a house/house payment. In order to qualify for the tax-free benefits, you must have a "tax home". If you haven't researched this, you may want to. It has been my experience thus far that the hourly (taxed) amount is not anymore than what I made in my full time job back home. It's the money from the tax free housing and meals/incidental stipends that make your paycheck look better. But again, you have to qualify for this benefit by having a "tax home".