Housing: apartment or hotel

David, I am right there with you.  For me traveling is all about location, location,location.  I want to travel to a destination that will be fun to explore during my days off.   I want to be housed in a comfortable, safe, convenient location.  Everything else matters very little if I am living in poor housing in a city I don't like.  Traveling is an opportunity to explore places I might not otherwise get to see. 
I have recently accepted my first assignment.  It will be in Tampa, Fl.  I have never been there so I find that exciting and I am praying for a good housing experience.  I will keep you all posted.
Pie

beckyboo:
This is my first travel assignment, and I have to say, if my housing is indicative of what I have to look forward to, I might as well stop now! I thought it wise to have them set me up for the first time since this is new to me. I have 2 bassett hounds, so they had to find something with a yard. When I arrived, I walked into a smelly, dirty ( carpets were filthy) and awkward townhouse. The frig leaked, bathtub was plugged and I felt as though I had to cover everything with bleached, white sheets just to sit down. The yard had glass in it and broken pottery, and huge gaps in the fence. I am in a "bad" neighborhood, and I can't go outside after dark ( I am scared to!). I filled out the initial survey for the company outlining all the issues, and they haven't followed through to help me. 

People have told me to make the company move me. I have 10 ( out of 13) weeks to go, and I can tolerate it for now. ... just don't want to move  again. I am teetering on not going with this company for my next assignment because of the housing situation and the manner in which they treated me during this process. My company and I had a really rough start ( my recruiter told me 3 days before that my assignment needed me to have ACLS and I had to figure a way to do it before I started! I crammed 11 hours and took an online course at my expense- they have not reimbursed me as yet!) He wondered why I was upset about it?

What would you do? Looking for suggestions.Thanks!

Dear beckyboo. Welcome to the world of crappy travel companies. All this and you are still "teetering" about making a move to a different company?

In my book, I relate an experience with my very first assignment with a new travel company. They had me in housing that was not exactly on the level to which I had become accustomed. I was still debating what to do when I thought, ah, a Whopper will cheer me up. As I drove back into the complex from my BK run, I saw half a dozen (literally) police cars along the main entrance road. I got out of my truck and went to approach one of the officers to see if this was a regular thing. Before I could get to him, he bolted around a corner. Stupid me, I followed.

Upon rounding the corner, I saw an episode of Cops playing out in the courtyard right in front of my building. About 10 cops with their guns drawn, all yelling, "Get the f**k down on the ground!!!" as they surrounded their suspect. I went up to my apartment, ate my BK, called the emergency pager for my travel company, and then calmly explained to the on call responder that they needed to have me the hell out of there by Monday.

Long story short, in a week I was in a lush apartment complex with a nice pool, workout room, handball court, and all the amenities I had come to expect during my travels. I learned after that experience to NEVER leave housing to chance. You must research the places where they will be sending you. Ask for photos or a website where you can actually see the place. Almost every assignment I have been on, I have been housed in a one-bedroom apartment. Apartments are easy because everyone has a website now days (if they don't have some way for you to see the place, beware).

Probably the biggest issue right now is your safety. You need to write an email to your housing coordinator with your travel company, outline the problems, and most importantly, tell them you do not feel safe. When they respond, print out that email and keep it. It could be used to show that they were aware of your situation should anything happen (if your email to them is not embedded in their response, print that one too). Then, you tell them you want different accomodations where you feel safe. If they wont listen, then you tell them that you have emails outlining your notification to them (which makes them aware of the situation) and that should anything happen, they might be held responsible (I must state that I am not an attorney and have no idea if this could be used as evidence in a legal matter). However, companies that never want to fix the situation get very nervous when they know that you have evidence of their position. This alone usually prompts many companies to respond. Bottom line, you need to do whatever it takes to get somewhere safe.

Lastly, if you have any question whatsoever about leaving this company, ask youself, "If they can't get basic things right (like the need for an ACLS card), then where do you think they will be when something REALLY bad goes wrong?" It's your choice, but you should know the adage, "screw me once, shame on you, screw me twice, sham on me (for letting you do it to me again)".

First, concentrate on getting somewhere safe. Then, concentrate on getting through your assignment. Then, we (all of the members of this site), can help you get with a travel company that will make you never want to stop traveling.

I hope this helps and please feel free to email me directly if you like.

David
 

So far , 6 assignments, I have always found my own housing, with pretty good results.  I like to get a bigger place so people can visit and prefer to have a look around the town before deciding. Yes, it might cost me a few dollars for a couple days before the job starts, but it is worth it.
  I am in Soldotna, Alaska now and am lucky to have arrived right at the end of tourist season, I have a great place at a fishing lodge that in season rents for $300 a night.  Off season price is well within my budget.  My neighbors include a moose and her baby.