In the News.

Corporate housing is ‘In the News’ everywhere you look these days. Just a few years ago, there were only a handful of feature stories on corporate housing each year, and those often included industry publications such as relocation, real estate, or multi-family housing.



However, the recent media coverage of corporate housing is far broader, with a different slant and greater benefit. It is taking corporate housing beyond the desk of the business decision-maker. People that never before knew about corporate housing, or only vaguely understood its value, are now hearing about it in greater detail, and in a favorable light.



What’s All the Talk About?

Corporate housing is getting attention from a variety of angles here are a few examples;

• Travel managers, when being interviewed, are mentioning the cost-savings of corporate housing as an example of the positive changes being made to their travel programs and budgets. Kathy Hall-Zientek, Manager of Travel Services for Moog, Inc., East Aurora, NY, as interviewed in USA Today, April 2009.

• Real estate experts are suggesting that homeowners consider offering their vacant or unsold homes as corporate housing. Barbara Corcoran, NBC Real Estate Analyst, The Today Show, January 2009, Barbara Corcoran, NBC Real Estate Analyst.

• Builders are promoting corporate housing to investors, with the option of buying while prices are favorable, then renting the home as corporate housing until the market rebounds. BuilderNEWS, April 2009



This collective exposure will benefit all of us in the long run, as individuals and companies hear over and over that hotels are not the best option for extended stays. That is the message that will last. Whether you are selling to ‘choosers’ or ‘users’, the message is hitting home. In many industries, once a concept becomes popular, others find a way to offer it differently, with their own twist. Often this results in new ideas, new offerings, and improvements to that industry overall. The same will be true with corporate housing.



Companies today are not only looking to spend wisely. They are also careful to send the right ‘message’ to their employees and stockholders alike, in terms of business travel expenses. Anything that even suggests lavish spending is suddenly “out” – whether it is over-the-top meetings, corporate jets... or expensive hotels. Corporate housing certainly fits the bill, in terms of practicality and wise spending.



What’s Ahead?

Whether a guest stays in traditional corporate housing booked through their company, or a traveler chooses a private furnished home.... they are opting out of hotels for their longer stays. This is what many of us have worked so hard for, and it is exciting to watch our industry gain this exposure. Hotels are wonderful, and needed. They will never be out of favor for the business traveler. But for the longer term stay – my vote goes to corporate housing! I’m looking forward to the day when, for extended stays, hotels are an alternative to corporate housing, and not the other way around!



Corporate Choices Magazine

June 2009