Travel Nurse Housing

RENTAL EXPENSES FROM MY FIRST THREE CONTRACTS

The most expensive part of being a travel nurse usually isn't the travel–it's your rental during the contract. And before you think, “I can just cancel my lease and move across the country for a travel gig!, you need to be aware of the BIG rule that applies to contract workers taking government stipends for living.

You are legally required to have a “tax-home” and “contract lodging”. These are two separate expenses. This is touched on in Topic no. 511 of the IRS code (https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc511) .If you don’t have both expense categories, you may not qualify for the tax-free stipend that comes along with you travel nurse contract.

Your “tax-home” is your permanent residence– where you live full time. This can be a room rental from a family member, a shared apartment with a friend, or your own rental or home. You have to be paying FAIR market rent, your portion of expenses, or you have to be able to provide receipts showing mortgage payments, utility bills, etc. in the event of an audit.

“Contract lodging” is the place you pay to live in for the duration of your contract. It has to start on or before the first day of the contract work, and end on or after the last day of work. The place of work must be more than a reasonable commuting distance from your “tax-home” to justify the need for a stipend and “contract lodging”. Some companies push the “100-mile radius”, but the IRS doesn't have a specific radius, and the consensus is about 1.5 hours minimum distance from home to be “travel stipend worthy”. That is why some contracts are considered local and are paid at different rates, because the hourly AND stipend must be taxed in full due to the fact the employee could reasonably commute back home after shift.

YES, you must be paying for your “tax-home” and “contract lodging” at the SAME TIME. You cannot stop paying your parents your portion of rent just because you move out for three months. That's the whole point of the stipend–to pay for your secondary housing cost brought on by the travel job since you are already paying for your living expenses at home. If you cannot prove that you are following the stipend rules during an audit, you could be hit with hefty tax fines (I’ve heard stories of up to $20,000!)

AIRBNB EXPENSES FROM MY FIRST CONTRACT

(MARIETTA GA , ATL) Feb2022

Payments: 451.38+312.25+1343.43

• TOTAL: $2,107.06

• Monthly: $1,053.53

AIRBNB EXPENSES FROM MY SECOND CONTRACT

North Alabama (May-August, 2022)

Payments: 421.68+414.18+285.88+324.32+326.64+670.95+709.00+353.13 = 3505.78

HOTEL STAY: $650

• TOTAL: $4,155.78

• MONTHLY: $1,385.26

FBMP ROOM RENTAL FOR MY THIRD CONTRACT

SOUTH CAROLINA (Sept-Dec 2022)

• TOTAL: $2,700

• MONTHLY: $900