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How to Maximize Your Housing Stipend as a Travel Nurse

Travel Nursing requires a hands-on and versatile approach to your nursing practice, but even more so, your entire life. To maximize earning potential, you can use your non-taxable stipends to help you make more take-home cash. Chief among these is the housing stipend, meant to help find lodging when traveling and working at a facility away from home. 

And, there are several ways to save cash and maximize your housing stipend as a Travel Nurse or Allied Healthcare Professional. 

What is a housing stipend?

So what is a housing stipend, and how does it work? Travel Nurses typically have two options when it comes to housing. They can either accept agency-provided housing, if available, or a housing stipend and find accommodation independently. 

When looking at the housing stipend, there are a few different ways to get paid. 

  • If you’re offered a monthly rate, your housing stipend is allotted each week based on the length of your assignment. The only concern with monthly rates is when you’re paying rent for longer than an assignment lasts. For example, if you have a two-week job, you will only be paid for those two weeks, which may not cover the entire month’s worth of rent. 
  • It’s essential to have enough money out of pocket to start living through a stipend. Because your stipend is typically paid out bi-weekly, you may be expected to cover the initial deposit and first month of rent before receiving your first paycheck. 
  • One of the most significant ways you can save big on your housing stipend is that it will be entirely tax-free if you have a valid tax home and are far away enough from that tax home when traveling. 
  • Stipend amounts vary, and it’s essential to look at the fine print on many of these contracts. Some agencies will pay very high stipends but offer lower hourly rates for your work, and prices will vary, of course, depending on where you’re living and the local housing markets in those regions. 

On top of these crucial points, you should look out for perks like included utilities or fully furnished accommodations when assessing a contract. 

Tips to maximize your Travel Nursing stipend

There are many different ways to maximize your Travel Nursing housing stipend. Below are several tips to help bolster your earnings and make your nursing housing stipend go the distance.

  • It’s important to remember that some assignments may be as short as a few weeks and as long as three months or more. With this in mind, life will be that much easier if you find fully furnished housing that includes utilities in the rent and doesn’t have exorbitant premiums on short-term leasing. 
  • If your nursing assignment is for more than six months, you will likely find traditional rentals through apartments, condos, townhomes, and so on. If you have a shorter contract, however, things like Airbnb, HomeAway, and VRBO, among others, have made it easier to find short-term housing. 
  • Extended hotel stays can be a good option if space isn’t a priority for you. Depending on the area you’re in, finding fully-furnished housing that includes utilities might be challenging. An extended hotel stay could make things a lot easier. Be sure to keep an eye out for hotels that offer special deals for extended stays. 
  • While these might not be for everyone, RVs are a very convenient and cheap solution that can be a lot of fun! RV parks and campsites are a lot cheaper than monthly rent, and the convenience of being able to pack and move on at a moment’s notice is a massive appeal to the RV route. 
  • Finding a roommate as you go from place to place is a great way to mitigate many of the challenges that come with travel nursing. Aside from your bedroom, the apartment will already be fully furnished, and utilities will be included in your rent. Living with a roommate is also typically much cheaper than living alone, so you will save costs on that end as well. 
  • Reach out to your friends and family members across the country. Living with a friend or family member for a short period is a great way to reunite with loved ones and save costs at the same time. 
  • House sitting almost sounds too good to be true. To live and watch over someone’s house and possibly their pets and plants, you may not have to pay a single dime and may even earn a little cash for your efforts. TrustedHousesitters, HouseSittersAmerica, MindMyHouse are just a few options for house sitting apps you could utilize. 

Whichever option you choose, know that there are a plethora of ways to maximize your stipend and save on housing costs. While it might require a little bit of research and effort, you could make significant earnings on your housing stipend over time and create your travel nursing experiences as cost-effective as they are liberating.

With Medely, your next nursing job is only a tap away. Travel nursing opportunities are brought directly to your phone, so you have the control to create your schedule based on your travel needs. 

Medley delivers premium pay, maxed out travel stipends, and the ability to book per diem shifts while on an assignment so you can maximize your earnings. 

Freedom, flexibility, and support come standard. Be where you want to be, when you want to be there with Medely today . 

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Understanding Your Travel Nursing Stipend

  • February 23, 2020
  • Myah Christenson

travel nurse housing stipend

Travel Nurse Stipend

So you’ve decided travel nursing is your next path or career move, or you’ve made the transition from traditional nursing to travel nursing. What’s next? There are a lot of components to consider when planning for your new life, applying to companies or hospitals, or accepting a job offer. While a lot of the fun and excitement of this career path is the chance for nurses to try out new cities and locations and get to explore more of the world while developing your career, the less appealing part can definitely be considering and comprehending your new pay package at each assignment or stop. One of the major parts of a travel nursing position and job offer is the stipend. This means it should be one of your primary concerns when planning for your life logistics and when choosing an agency or job to accept. 

What is this stipend?

In the simplest terms, it’s an amount of money provided upfront to travel nurses as a stipend to cover your housing, meals, and incidentals costs while you’re on a travel assignment (technically several stipends covering different needs). As you can imagine, when traveling to new cities for new assignments, travelers typically won’t have a built-in place to live, or even an idea of the housing options in your new locale. This stipend is a major part of your pay package with each new agency and assignment, and it’s an important factor. Also important are the stipend offerings for food and other expenses you’ll encounter on an assignment, including moving costs. However, it becomes more confusing to understand because each agency handles the housing stipend differently. 

Before exploring travel nurse housing stipend in more detail, it’s important to understand the concept of GSA Per Diem Rates. Essentially, the General Services Administration (GSA) has a variety of responsibilities, one of which is determining per diem rates for federal employees, the rates that cover official expenses during business travel and do so free of taxes. As travel nursing is often entirely “business travel” these per diem concepts come into play often. 

However, while the government powers that be refer to this sum as a per diem, the more accurate and typical terminology in the travel nursing field is a stipend, as that definition (a fixed sum paid as a salary or allowance for travel nurses) is a more accurate fit. Per diem implies “daily” and that’s not as much the case, as travel nursing stipends are typically paid weekly to monthly, depending on the agency and the purpose. 

Housing Stipend

The GSA provides standard per diem lodging rates for most locations and major cities. This means travel nurses can look up the governmental rate for federal employees, per day of business travel. For instance, if the GSA rate for a city is $100 per day, you’d have to expect $3000 per month (to meet that daily marker), but that will never be the case. The GSA rates are always assigned as maximum amounts, so it’s not a requirement these markers even be hit for short-term federal employee business travel, let alone long-term nursing workers. As opposed to a few days in a hotel, a contract like this generally spans about 13 weeks, and no less than 8. This means two plus months of lodging required for each travel nursing assignment. Travel healthcare workers like nurses can usually obtain affordable short-term apartments or great discounts at extended-stay hotels. When agencies assign stipend amounts, they have to believe that you’ll reasonably use the amount they’ve selected on monthly accommodations, and not substantially more or less. So agencies base their provided amounts on the general prices of short-term lodging in the city in question. 

In many instances, you’ll be offered either a housing stipend or company-provided lodging. Often, choosing the stipend is the smart financial move. If you take the stipend and manage to find a place that costs less than the allotment, you could walk away with some extra spending money in your pocket each month. There are other, more complicated, possible scenarios , but this is the primary one you’ll encounter with many agencies. It’s also fair to consider how much work you want to put into finding a place to live, and your standards for lodging. If you only want to live in a nice apartment in a particular area, it may be a challenge to hunt down a short-term option within your desired parameters. It may also create undue stress during the moving process, or take some time. In this case, the company-offered housing may be the safest and easiest option. But, if you’re willing to put in some extra work or you don’t mind more of a budget option that’s near or under an hour away from the hospital or facility you’ll be working at, you could easily end each month with plenty left in your stipend to use as you please.

Meals and Incidental Expenditures Stipend

Otherwise known as M&IE, this stipend is a completely separate entity of its own and covers food and other expenses incurred during work and business travel. It’s referred to by a few names, so it’s smart to confirm with a new agency how they refer to it in their pay package as you’re assessing options. As with lodging, the GSA has a daily M&IE rate established for cities around the country. You can look up those rates here to get a better idea. From there, it’s established on an agency by agency basis and is very dependent on the other components in the pay package. If an agency is offering a higher M&IE stipend, there’s a good chance they’re also giving you a lower base hourly pay. It’s got to come from somewhere. That’s why it’s crucial to compare and assess all components of any offered pay packages to see where the pros and cons lie and the sum total you’ll be earning and have available to spend on other expenses. 

Helpful Tips to Keep in Mind

  • If you’re offered a stipend amount and are wondering if it’s high, low, or average housing stipend for the area you’re assigned, there are online groups and message boards where you can easily reach out to others to see what they were offered in a similar area. 
  • According to one travel nurse, it’s smart to comparison shop. If you get an offer, compare it to other similar companies for similar locations. Agencies will usually try to match another agency’s travel nurse housing stipend if you can prove that it’s higher. If they want to hire you, they also don’t want to lose you right away over a low stipend issue. They’ll want to start off on a good foot as much as you do.
  • Travel nursing stipends and pay packages are like a pie : if the agency is offering nurses more for one portion, they will usually be offering less on another, whether that be another stipend, benefits, or overall salary. They will make up for a smaller rate on one benefit by providing more for something else. 
  • Different states allow different stipends. Just because you got something with an agency at your last location doesn’t mean you can automatically expect the same on a new assignment in a different state.
  • You’ll need to keep records to prove various expenses you’re using your stipend for. Keep records of your cost of living, rent, housing, mileage, food, and so on.

Remember to reach out to Stability or your recruiter to see if you have any questions regarding your travel nurse housing stipend . We are here to answer any questions you may have so you can make the most out of your travel nursing experience.

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Radio Iowa

Iowa House backs pay caps for traveling nurses

by O. Kay Henderson | Feb 28, 2024 | Health & Medicine , News , Politics & Government

travel nurse housing stipend

The Iowa House has voted to set limits for the pay of temporary nursing staff working in Iowa hospitals and nursing homes.

A traveling nurse could be paid no more than 150% of the statewide average wage being paid to full-time health care staff who provide nursing services. The bill is a priority for House Republicans, who contend temp agencies are reaping too much of the extra money the legislature has provided nursing homes.

Representative Timi Brown-Powers, a Democrat from Waterloo, is a therapist at Covenant Medical Center in Waterloo, She said the bill addresses a big budget problem for hospitals and nursing homes. “It’s a morale issue for health care workers that have been there, stuck in there …working alongside traveling nurses making three or four times what they’re making,” Brown-Powers said.

The bill passed on an 80-17 vote. Representative John Forbes, a Democrat from Urbandale who opposed the bill, said there appeared to be some price gouging going on as health care employment agencies responded to workforce vacancies during the pandemic. “My concern is that if, in the future, we are putting caps or telling businesses how much they can charge for services, the businesses may not want to do business in Iowa,” Forbes said.

None of the House Republicans outlined their reasons for voting for the pay caps during the six-minute-long debate of the bill, which now goes to the Senate for consideration.

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COMMENTS

  1. How to Maximize Your Housing Stipend as a Travel Nurse

    Travel Nurses typically have two options when it comes to housing. They can either accept agency-provided housing, if available, or a housing stipend and find accommodation independently. When looking at the housing stipend, there are a few different ways to get paid. Monthly rate.

  2. Understanding Your Travel Nursing Stipend

    In the simplest terms, it’s an amount of money provided upfront to travel nurses as a stipend to cover your housing, meals, and incidentals costs while you’re on a travel assignment (technically several stipends covering different needs).

  3. 2024 Update: Understanding 2023 Travel Nursing Tax Rules

    Feb 12, 2024. Deciphering travel nursing pay and tax rules is one of the most complicated aspects of being a travel healthcare provider (HCP). Tax homes, tax-free stipends, hourly wages, bonuses, benefits, housing and per diem reimbursements are all vital in understanding your travel nursing pay package and your taxes.

  4. Travel Nurse stipend research tool

    Travel Nurse Budgetary stats. Get housing budgetary information before your next assignment. I agree to the Furnished Finder Terms of Use. Please see the sample stats page below. Current housing rent prices. Find the top nursing specialities and staffing agencies in the area. Learn what amenities and options you can expect.

  5. Iowa House backs pay caps for traveling nurses

    The Iowa House has voted to set limits for the pay of temporary nursing staff working in Iowa hospitals and nursing homes. A traveling nurse could be paid no more than 150% of the statewide ...