Does anyone have experience with renting with Furnished Finder?
Real Estate Agent · Flagstaff, AZ · Member since 2020 · 6 posts · 4 votes
Does anyone have experience with renting with Furnished Finder?
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Don KonipolBusiness Member
Investor · The Woodlands TX / Avon, CT · Member since 2009 · 6k+ posts · 10k+ votes@Amber Welsch
We financed a project where the borrower retrofitted a property with two very large (8,000 square feet each) houses in a exurban area into luxury room rental, each with a large bedroom and attached private living room. Common area kitchen, game room, library, and living room. This property is on about four wooded acres, and includes fishing pond.
His target was traveling nurses, through local hospital contacts as well as furnished finder. Once completed he’s been near 95% occupancy, at rates 15% above projections.
Whenever I read someone say that these potential tenants are all unrealistic, they demand low prices or huge amenities, etc., it gives me pause. All real estate transactions, whether purchase, sale or rental, prices are determined by market supply and demand. If your property offers an individual the best deal for the price, she will rent from you. Now, different properties meet different peoples needs best; some want lowest price, some want closest proximately to work, some want largest accommodations, everyone has different evaluation to arrive at what will work and what rental they’re willing to pay. In this case, where they NEED to secure a new rental vs a case where they merely WANT to move, they’re expectations will become realistic VERY quickly.
If a property owner could net the same amount of money doing a long term rental, then that’s what they’d do so to avoid the more work and less uncertainty of 30-90 day rentals. So, there is a premium demanded by the property owner to lease his property short term rather than long term. This is of course market driven. Again, it doesn’t matter what a tenant “wants”; the market will determine what’s available and at what price.
34 Replies
- Investor · The worst town to live in, KS · Member since 2016 · 4k+ posts · 4k+ votes4y
It sucks donkey balls.
- Cambridge, MA · Member since 2015 · 651 posts · 736 votes4y
My experience with Furnished Finder is that nurses want the world without paying much for it.
- 4yMichael BaumPro MemberOlympia, WA · Member since 2016 · 8k+ posts · 7k+ votes
^^^^THIS^^^^
@Carolyn Fuller hit the nail on the head. We are quite rural but I have had 2 health care pro's ask about a long winter rental. Neither were interested in paying anything close to market rate for our house. Something like $750 a month. A pair of physical therapists and a pair of nurses.I wouldn't discount it if the area has the potential for a lot of traveling health care folks.
- 4yDon KonipolBusiness MemberInvestor · The Woodlands TX / Avon, CT · Member since 2009 · 6k+ posts · 10k+ votes
@Amber Welsch
We financed a project where the borrower retrofitted a property with two very large (8,000 square feet each) houses in a exurban area into luxury room rental, each with a large bedroom and attached private living room. Common area kitchen, game room, library, and living room. This property is on about four wooded acres, and includes fishing pond.
His target was traveling nurses, through local hospital contacts as well as furnished finder. Once completed he’s been near 95% occupancy, at rates 15% above projections.
Whenever I read someone say that these potential tenants are all unrealistic, they demand low prices or huge amenities, etc., it gives me pause. All real estate transactions, whether purchase, sale or rental, prices are determined by market supply and demand. If your property offers an individual the best deal for the price, she will rent from you. Now, different properties meet different peoples needs best; some want lowest price, some want closest proximately to work, some want largest accommodations, everyone has different evaluation to arrive at what will work and what rental they’re willing to pay. In this case, where they NEED to secure a new rental vs a case where they merely WANT to move, they’re expectations will become realistic VERY quickly.
If a property owner could net the same amount of money doing a long term rental, then that’s what they’d do so to avoid the more work and less uncertainty of 30-90 day rentals. So, there is a premium demanded by the property owner to lease his property short term rather than long term. This is of course market driven. Again, it doesn’t matter what a tenant “wants”; the market will determine what’s available and at what price.
- Real Estate Agent · Flagstaff, AZ · Member since 2020 · 6 posts · 4 votes4y
Thank you for all of your input. @Don Konipol, I especially appreciate your detailed response and perspective. Sounds like your clients had great idea...glad it's so successful!
I am reading mixed reviews of Furnished Finder. I also read that travel nurses have trouble finding a suitable living situation when contracting for travel nurse assignments. I would love to try this strategy and provide beautiful and safe accommodations to nurses and other health personnel as well as be able to enjoy the property a couple of times a year when visiting the area. It is in Tucson, AZ, which has three major hospitals and several small h/hospitals, a university, Raytheon, and a few tech companies. In our age of digital nomads, seems like a potentially lucrative endeavor. I love new perspectives. Thanks!
@Amber Welsch furnished finder has been good in my experience. I haven’t had any issues with nurses complaining or having lofty expectations like others have mentioned, but maybe that’s due to my area having zero inventory (perhaps they are more appreciative here than other locations?). Sabbatical homes dot com is another good one, catered towards professors on sabbatical, usually looking for 3-6 month stays. I’ve had some great medium-term tenants from that site. Probably wouldn’t be as good if there’s not a big university nearby though.
- Cambridge, MA · Member since 2015 · 651 posts · 736 votes4y
I suspect my poor experience with Furnished Finder is because my units are very close to Harvard & MIT and, as such, are very popular with visiting scholars who are willing to pay top dollar for the amenities and location. When the pandemic hit and the visiting scholars had to back out of their leases, I slashed the rents and advertised on Furnished Finder but my units are not particularly conveniently located near hospitals and the area hotels were offering to house visiting nurses for tax write offs. Ultimately, the only rental that went to a visiting nurse was for 2 months at half what I normally charge. Thereafter, I ended up renting to graduate students until the visiting scholars returned this past fall.
I suspect whether you do better with Sabbatical Homes dot com or Furnished Finder depends upon the location of your unit. I do think MIT & Harvard visiting scholars can afford significantly higher rents than visiting nurses. That might not be true for all universities.
- Temple, TX · Member since 2018 · 307 posts · 215 votes4y
@Carolyn Fuller I am a travel nurse as well as STR investor. I have not used Furnished Finder as an owner, but I have tried renting from FF as a travel nurse. My personal experience is that FF is not a great platform. It definitely targets a certain group, but I have found that most travel nurses will simply use AirBNB since it is much more user friendly. I also found that most host on FF did not have great descriptions or great pictures, so it seemed like "lower quality" stay's, at least where I was looking in FL.
As far as nurses low balling you, not everyone will be the right fit. There are a few different groups of travel nurses: 1) Those looking to save as much money as possible and willing to sacrifice accommodations to do so, 2) Those wanting to be comfortable for their stay and willing to pay for it, and 3) those traveling with others and needing larger accommodations. From a poll I did on a travel nurse FB group, most that answered fell into the 2nd group.
I think there is a misunderstanding from both sides most of the time. Nurses take their "normal" rents from one market to another, so they may be going to Cali from Ohio (used to $750/mo rental vs $2.5k). And most nurses don't understand the added cost it takes or a land lord to provide this type of rental, that all have in their mind that all land lords are rich. Owners on the other hand sometimes forget most travel nurses are paying two rents while they are traveling, and may just assume that all travel nurses are making $8k/wk, when that is sadly not true. Travel nurses have additional expenses as well, and some assignments may only be paying $1,800/wk, and when you calculate dual living expenses, paying for your own healthcare, no benefits, taxes, etc... it may not be as lucrative as some might think. So owners try renting out a 30-90 day stay at the same rate as a nightly/weekly rate.
As others have said, the market will determine what you can do. Just make sure to provide a nice, comfortable, clean, safe and furnished place.
- Cambridge, MA · Member since 2015 · 651 posts · 736 votes4y
Originally posted by @Chris Allen:
@Carolyn Fuller Nurses take their "normal" rents from one market to another, so they may be going to Cali from Ohio (used to $750/mo rental vs $2.5k).
That does explain the disconnect!
- Investor · Huntersville, NC · Member since 2021 · 52 posts · 30 votes4y
Hey Amber, I have been using Furnished Finder to list my room for rent since late summer and have pretty decent luck with it so far. It does have it's downfalls and it quite out of date, but my current tenant is from FF and is fantastic. One of the main complaints I have heard is that the communication on the message board sucks. To avoid this, I set up alerts to be sent to my phone and I also check my tenant lead messages about 1x per week. I also post on several facebook groups associated with travel nursing and travel nurse housing. FF is not a perfect platform or system, and I don't believe it should be relied on 100%, but it can be a useful tool
- Investor · Millburn, NJ · Member since 2018 · 141 posts · 100 votes4y
@Chris Allen
Hi, I'm new to FF, do you use their service for background and credit check? Do you ask the guests for their assignment letters? How about leases? Do you find a template somewhere? I'm in VA and new to FF and would like to know how to screen and also protect myself since I'm renting out the whole place.
Thanks!
- Investor · The worst town to live in, KS · Member since 2016 · 4k+ posts · 4k+ votes4y
Get away from travel nurses. They are either psychotic or a mutt. In my STR world, they are the equivalent of a welder or a pipefitter. They are either psychotic or a mutt. I prefer inspectors or boilermakers. They make better money and don't require much maintenance.
- Temple, TX · Member since 2018 · 307 posts · 215 votes4y
@Joanne Tsai I have not used furnished finder as a LL, so I can't help you there, but you should be able to find an attorney and see if they can draft you a good short term lease contract. As far as the background check and credit check goes, it is really up to you. I have personally only rented from AirBNB, and honestly if a LL asked for my background check, credit check, AND my assignment letter, I would probably just pass on that property. As a travel nurse, we have to do all kinds of background checks, drug tests, and other compliance items. While saying "dont worry about a background check or credit check" is probably bad advice when signing a 3mo lease, I would say it is at least reasonable to be more lenient on that if they can provide you a contact with the company they are working for to verify they are working for the dates requested. Do your due diligence, but don't go overboard. If the nurse gives you push back, they are likely accustom to renting from AirBNB, so just explain to them that you are not AirBNB, and some type of lease and pre-screening must take place in order stay at the property.
- Temple, TX · Member since 2018 · 307 posts · 215 votes4y
@Paul Sandhu I have seen several of your post, and I am sorry that you have had bad luck with renting to travel nurses. But I don't think that speaking bad of an entire tenant pool is in good taste, or advice for investors in a prime location to rent to this group. As a travel nurse, I know just how crappy some travel nurses can be, but that is for sure the exception and not the rule. I would say majority of travel nurses are hard working, well educated, well paid, and overall great people and tenants just looking for a clean, comfortable, and safe place to stay at a reasonable price.
- New to Real Estate · sarasota, FL · Member since 2021 · 1 post · 0 votes3y
Hey @Amber Welsch
My husband and I have worked with Furnish Finder and have noticed that the travelers are also looking for spaces big enough for families and pets. We used it to rent out an En-suite in our home and had good luck with a surgical tech. There have been bloggers and IT workers that are able to work remotely that have also inquired but the dates didn't work. Yes the healthcare workers demand a lot for little rent, I believe that may be due to such a high demand in their fields. Hope this helped.
- Real Estate Agent · Emerald Coast, FL · Member since 2016 · 820 posts · 486 votes3y
All travel nurses, in my personal experience, seem to have a dog and be a little bit crazy...
- 3yMichael BaumPro MemberOlympia, WA · Member since 2016 · 8k+ posts · 7k+ votes
Quote from @January Johnson:
All travel nurses, in my personal experience, seem to have a dog and be a little bit crazy...
Channeling @Paul Sandhu!
- Member since 2021 · 1 post · 1 vote3y
I tried to use them, but their website is garbage, I spent several hours trying to build a listing on their clunky platform then their system was unable to "verify" my account. I spent over 1 hour on the phone with their tech support, and at the end they said they could not help me because I use a mac and iphone!
- Member since 2023 · 2 posts · 0 votes2y
Furnish finders seem to me attack a lot of low level spoiled brats. I’ve run across some of the most demanding people I’ve ever experienced in my life. Next they want good place for super cheap like I’m gonna beg them to rent my house. Next I question is someone at furnish finders at home making up fake profiles ? I’m seriously considering deleting my account I don’t like the type of class furnish finders attracts !!
- Member since 2023 · 2 posts · 0 votes2y
Let them rent a hotel !! They don’t appreciate a house and want it dirt cheap but but wear and tear on your appliances while over loading your washer and dryer.
- Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes2y
I'm doing pretty well on AirBnb but listed of FF for the first few months of the year to see if I could do better for those months with an MTR guest. So far I've been underwhelmed by the lead generation capabilities. At this point I have it up as a test just to see if anyone follows through.
- Leander TX · Member since 2020 · 179 posts · 150 votes2y
FF has been a disappointment to us. We have a SFH in Pflugerville TX (just north of Austin) and most of the leads we see are 1-2 bedroom folks (ours is listed 3bed at $3200/mo).
The leads we get from people that want a SFH never materialize. We assume it's from the massive competition in the market.
We listed our place on Airbnb for funsies and got bookings there.
My conclusion is that the "traveling nurse" market is better suited for 1-2 bedroom townhomes and condos. And in Austin, the SFH market has a ton of competition.
We're ok because our home is paid for which is why we tipped our toe in this market. But as far as I'm concerned, the MTR market in north Austin is not worth it.
- 2yBonnie LowPro MemberLender · Asheville, NC · Member since 2016 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
I use Furnished Finder exclusively for midterm rentals and have had an excellent experience. However, it's important to understand that it is not an OTA (online travel agency) like Airbnb or VRBO. So you have to do all the work. FF is simply a lead gen funnel. It's on you to connect with the guest who is looking at your place and that means you reach out to them 99% of the time vs. them just instant-booking your place like they can on Airbnb. You also have to have a system in place to vet your guest (which Airbnb doesn't do anyway - all they do is "verify" their identity), create a lease agreement, accept deposits and payments and issue refunds of deposits. So it's a lot more work than using an OTA. There are still MANY medical professionals using FF since it's the OG of this kind of site. There are also MANY MORE people who are not travel nurses using FF now - in fact, non-medical travelers using FF now outnumber medical travelers. So the guest pool is broadening. As someone else mentioned, the heydays of COVID stipends for travel nurses is over so they can't afford high priced units. Most are looking for a reasonably priced place and, yes, some are looking to go very cheap. But I have found they are excellent guests who hardly use the property because they're either working or sleeping so there's very little wear and tear. And the #1 thing I prefer about FF over Airbnb is that YOU are in total control of your property and the payment terms. There is no risk that you have a guest in there for an extended stay who decides to complain about something and Airbnb refunds part or all of their payment and there's nothing you can do about it. This is why I won't advertise my midterms on Airbnb. So in a nutshell, it's more work, but you're only doing a lease 4x/year max if you're working with medical travlers on 13-week contracts.
- 2yBonnie LowPro MemberLender · Asheville, NC · Member since 2016 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
Quote from @Matt Mertz:
FF has been a disappointment to us. We have a SFH in Pflugerville TX (just north of Austin) and most of the leads we see are 1-2 bedroom folks (ours is listed 3bed at $3200/mo).
The leads we get from people that want a SFH never materialize. We assume it's from the massive competition in the market.
We listed our place on Airbnb for funsies and got bookings there.
My conclusion is that the "traveling nurse" market is better suited for 1-2 bedroom townhomes and condos. And in Austin, the SFH market has a ton of competition.
We're ok because our home is paid for which is why we tipped our toe in this market. But as far as I'm concerned, the MTR market in north Austin is not worth it.
Matt Mertz nailed it - 3+ bedroom units are difficult if you're marketing to travel nurses. Your sweet spot will be 1 and 2 bedroom units.
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