How to Rent to Travel Nurses

Did you know- Travel nursing is a huge market for furnished short term rentals- along with about 40 other types of traveling healthcare workers. (We call ourselves ‘travelers’.) With an estimated 2 million of us on the road in the US at any given time, we need housing, and the supply has not yet caught up to demand. What's better, there is significantly less turnover than typical STRs, because we stay in 30 day increments (usually about 3-6 months) and we aren’t in your home to vacation, we are there to work. We also pay significantly more than annual tenants of unfurnished units.

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Here is how to set your rental up for success

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Renting a Studio/Condo/Apartment

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This is the ideal situation for almost all travelers. We almost always only need one bedroom, and having our own kitchen is ideal. 

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Renting a large luxury home

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We don't care how huge and glamorous your house is. We only need one bedroom. Trying to rent a 4 bedroom home to a travel nurse and expecting them not to balk at what you want to charge, is going to get you slaughtered in the facebook groups. Why? We are almost always 1 person. MAYBE 2 if traveling as a couple.

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What do do instead? If you have a large home, set it up to rent out by the room with shared common areas. Make sure each bedroom has a personal lock and that you hire weekly cleaning service for the common areas. 

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Renting a bedroom or Casita

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My biggest advice- You can charge more if we have a private entrance. We are bombarded with people all day and typically like to come home and isolate in a private space without having to entertain roommates or homeowner.

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If you are renting a bedroom, and can’t have a private entrance, expect that the rest of the house is open to us. Would you live somewhere if a homeowner lives with you and tells you that you can have kitchen or laundry room “privileges” or that the living room is for family only and that they need to go straight to their room when they get home? I think not.  (I say this only because I see it so often.) If this is your ideal situation, consider that you really want your home to yourself and find other ways to bring in a side income. 

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If you can't have a private entrance, consider setting up a kitchenette in the bedroom for your traveler. Having a mini fridge, microwave, coffee pot, and trash can gives us a little more personal space to not need to venture out at odd hours, or when we want to be in a hidey-hole. 

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I recommend not adding a hot plate or things like a cutting board if there is not kitchen sink in the area. A bathroom sink is not a wise substitution-. Food will go down the drain and possibly cause plumbing issues.  

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Things to consider

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Think of it like a hotel. Your new tenant will be showing up with a suitcase, and potentially some longer stay personal items. They will need you to provide: furniture, all common kitchen items and appliances, towels, bedding, hangers, starting TP and paper towels. 

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Speaking of. Do you use that pile of mismatched hangers that are bent out of shape? How about those rusted, scratched and mismatched pans and silverware? That 30 year old pillow with the yellow stains and that futon that is now posing as a bed? That old sofa that you had to throw an afghan on because it smells like cat pee? Those bunk beds? No? Is that why they are in your guesthouse now? If you want to host travelers, please have things for use that YOU would actually use daily. A comfy bed at the end of a grueling shift is a top request from travelers. 

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Cleaning supplies. Traveling across country 4x/year with a vacuum and bottles of chemicals isn’t a great idea for us. Do you want us to keep your house clean? WE also want to keep your house clean. A stick vacuum, some paper towels, cleaning rags, windex, sponges and dish soap goes a long way.

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Maintenance. When renting, its easy to forget about services that you provide for your home, but have let go of in the guest house. Hot water- have you checked it lately to make sure there is enough? (Tanks calcify over time and lack of enough hot water is very common in my travel experience). Pest control- remember to get it treated before you start renting and keep it up regularly. Septic- does it need special paper- you’ll want to provide that to prevent plumbing issues. Wifi- does it work everywhere in the unit? Do a speed test. 

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Storage. We will need places to put things away for a longer stay. Think empty closets and dressers. Please remove all of your personal and storage items from the living space before renting, so that your tenant can put their own things away. Remember, they are renting that space, so it can’t be your storage room. (Would you want to store your underwear mixed in with someone else's photo albums and Christmas decorations? I think not.) Again, it's so common that I have to say it. 

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Pets. If renting to people with pets isn't your thing, not to worry, just state this restriction in your ad. Consider though, about 1 in 3 travelers- travel with pets; and there is not 1/3 of housing that allows for furry friends. If you can accept pets, you will have more tennant options.

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General Preferences. These are things that we regularly look for when renting: Comfy bed- minimum full size, good WIFI everywhere in the living space, table or large desk, TV with streaming services, private entrance, kitchen or kitchenette, blackout curtains, laundry access on property, lots of natural lighting for us day-workers.

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Move out dates. Understand that we can not tell you a move-out date, only an approximation. Why? Because we can get canceled or extended, usually with 2 weeks notice. Best practice: Wait until your traveler gives you a firm move out date near the end of their stay, and re-list at that time. Travelers start and end quickly, we typically locate housing within a 2 week period of moving in anyway. 

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Security Deposits. Security deposits are almost always $500. Why? I don't know, but this is the industry standard. Do you charge one month security deposit for year long tenants who are residents of your state and could take you to court for not refunding it? Probably. Will travelers pay that? No. Why? Because we are staying for a short time and are not residents of your state who can take you to court if you do not return it. And just like you, are worried about being scammed. We are putting a deposit down from across the US without having met you, and are the only ones assuming risk until we get there. My advice- screen your travelers first, have a phone call and make sure you are comfortable with them, they should do the same with you. 

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Safety. Did you know that the place travelers report as feeling least safe is in the home that they rent while on assignment? Can you imagine your home being where you feel most vulnerable? That is because we live in several places each year and not all landlords feel/act safe. I shouldn't have to say these things, but I do, so I will. 

• No cameras should be inside of the home. 
• Please do not try to rent to travelers with a goal of having a romantic relationship with us. 
• We do not need to tell you our whereabouts or spend any required time with you. 
• Please do not go into our bedrooms unannounced. 

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If anything in this section does not shock you, please reconsider being a landlord, just in general. 

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Guests. Bear in mind that we don't know anyone in your town. Also, we are there to work, make money and then go home in a few short months. Unless you are having super long term rentals and creating a ‘traveler house’ with many tenants, the likelihood of parties or frequent guests is negligible. I have very rarely had a guest over, unless it was another traveler stopping by on their way through town. That said, your tenant is renting that space as their own. If they are in a non-shared unit and them having an occasional guest will be an issue for you, think about if you are really wanting to be a host. Creating rules around permission for guests will likely deter travelers. Not because we have many, but because it is an indicator of how the rest of the tenant landlord relationship might go. 

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Leases. We almost always start an assignment with a 13 week contract. SO expect us to stay that long, on average. Our leases are almost always month-to month with a 2 week cancellation notice. Why? Because that is what we receive from the hospital. In fact we could be canceled at any time before we step foot into the hospital, and will be given a 2 week notice after day 1. We assume the risk as soon as we send you our deposit. However, most landlords are understanding and will refund it if we never move it. (Which, us not starting the contract is honestly super rare these days.) Also, there is such a demand for housing that most landlords (who follow my guidelines) stay fully booked throughout the year. 

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Where to list

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Travelers almost exclusively find their rentals on facebook groups and on www.furnishedfinder.com. Go into facebook and type in ‘travel nurse housing’ and 2-3 huge groups will come up. Those are your new people. 

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Good luck out there!

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Thank you for reading about how to rent to Travel Nurses from our perspective. For more information on travel healthcare read our other blogs at https://www.thelistjobs.com/blog/blog