As a traveling nurse practitioner for 9 years now, I have never taken a housing stipend while on assignment. I have always just had the agency and site cover and book my housing. I know many traveling NPs that have taken housing stipends and some of them ask why I have never pursued that option. There are many reasons I have never asked for or opted for a housing stipend. Having a housing stipend can be beneficial, because you can find housing on your own at a cheaper rate and pocket the extra money.
Personally, the extra profit isn’t worth it to me. I prefer to have my agency book my housing. Initially, I had them find housing options for me and I selected one of them. But nowadays I find my own housing and then have the agency book it for me.
One reason I don’t choose the housing stipend is because I rarely work 13 weeks straight on an assignment. I tend to have other social activities that require me to take at least 1 week off per assignment. When the agency covers my housing, they will pay monthly for my housing including the week I am off. When an agency offers a housing stipend, they often try to give you only 75% of your housing stipend for the month that you take 1 week off. In their eyes, since you aren’t working the entire month then they will not reimburse you for housing for the entire month.
Another reason I do not prefer the housing stipend is because I tend to be non-committal. After working over 26 different assignments, I know that not every assignment will be a good one. I have left assignments early several times when it was not the right fit. I have found that when an agency pays for your housing, you can easily break the apartment lease and suffer no repercussions. This may be different if you have your own contract that you are using the housing stipend to pay for, and may have difficulty ending the lease early or would have to pay some extra fees. Although I have gotten better at selecting the ideal assignments for me over the years, (I haven’t had to leave an assignment early in the last 7 years), I like to know I have the option to do so if needed.
Additionally, I already save 90% of my income so I don’t think I need to nickel and dime every last dollar or opportunity. For example, sometimes I am given a 2-bedroom house or apartment, and I don’t even consider renting out the second bedroom because I prefer my privacy. Most of the time I stay in really nice places such as apartments on the beach, condos with a city view, or spacious houses with extra rooms for guests. These places tend to be expensive about $4-5k per month in inexpensive states such as Florida and Kentucky. If I asked for a housing stipend in these type of states, they would only offer half of that as a stipend, about ~$2k/month, because they know I could easily find housing in that range. Since I am a nomad, I like to have a comfortable place to live.
Although I find housing on my own but have the agency pay for it, I don’t want the added responsibility. I don’t want to have to set up the contract and give a deposit. I don’t want to pay up front and have to wait weeks to be reimbursed. I often find housing on furnishedfinder.com. It has a reputation for being reliable but I do not want the risk of paying a deposit/1st month’s rent for a place that might be a scam.
Some locations such as California can be expensive and have limited housing options. I prefer that the ultimate responsibility of housing falls on the agency and not on me. So, if there are no options they will just have to increase their budget until they find me something, which has definitely happened in the past. In addition, I like to stay at extended stay hotels occasionally so that I can earn elite status and points for travel during my leisure time. Sometimes these hotels (such as Marriott residence inn) can cost $150/night which would equal to $4600/month. Most of the time, this would be more expensive than a housing stipend provided.
Anyways, I have shared many of my personal reasons for never taking a housing stipend. I may be open to it in the future though if I find housing on my own that would allow me to profit at least $1k/month from the housing stipend. I know several traveling NPs that have profited a similar amount before.
Please share in the comments below, your experiences and preferences between taking a housing stipend vs having the agency book your housing.
