Living situations have changed a lot in recent years due to many reasons. Now, many people have transitioned into working from home, and some are even thinking of making this change permanent. Some people are even using this time to explore new areas due to the freedom of remote work. Sure, traveling from place to place sounds like a great opportunity, but what about rental situations? We’ve broken down the logistics for both short and long-term rentals to help you decide which is best for you and your lifestyle.
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What is a short-term rental?
Short-term rentals are furnished living spaces that are available as living accommodations for short periods of time. They can often be rented for as little as a few days to as much as a few weeks on end. Also, they are often used as alternative options for vacation use and hotel stays. Typically, anything under 6 months is considered short-term.
Pros of short-term rentals
- No lease agreement keeping you in a particular place
- Can explore many different areas and destinations
- Great for remote workers or those constantly on the move for their jobs
- Sometimes more economical than hotels
- Also, often provide more living space than hotels
Where can I find short-term rentals?
Luckily, short-term rentals can be found in many different places online, such as:
What is a long-term rental?
Long-term rentals from places like Airbnb provide renters with the ability to live in one space for an extended period of time. Typically, long-term Airbnb rentals require tenants to sign a lease agreement and are usually one year in length.
Pros of a long-term rentals
- Often, offer cheaper day-to-day living costs
- Stable living environment for those looking to remain in one location
- Good for renters that must be in-person for work
- Also, able to be personalized to fit the renters
Where can I find long-term rentals?
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How do I tackle moving and storage for rentals?
There are a lot of ways that moving and storing certain items can be beneficial when thinking about either long-term or short-term rentals. Hiring movers may be a good option. They can help ensure that you keep everything that you need with you, as well as help you put away all items that aren’t necessities. Below, we’ve collected some helpful information about moving and storage for different rentals. We’ve provided the pros of hiring professional movers for both long-term and short-term rental situations.
What about storage and moving for short-term rentals?
Handling storage for short-term rentals
If you’re planning on moving into a short-term rental, you may not have to worry about storage as much as long-term renters. However, if you have a couple of frisky cats at your place, you may want to pack away and store more fragile items that may potentially be damaged when you are gone. Packing these items up and moving them into storage is an easy way to ensure that they stay safe while you are away.
Pros of storage for short-term rentals
- Keep fragile items safe while you are away
- Also, give you more peace of mind on your trip
Storing items when living the short-term rental lifestyle
If you work remotely, living in short-term rentals as a full-time lifestyle may be something you’re interested in. Especially if you have a travel bug. To do this, you may need to give up your long-term rental to free up your finances and allow yourself to roam. Additionally, this may also mean that you will need to reduce the number of items you have since a couch can be hard to take with you as you backpack through Europe.
Storing your items with friends and family can be a good option. They may be able to house some of your items. If you have more things than homes for them, you may want to look into ways of storing your items until you have decided to return to a long-term rental situation. Self-storage facilities located near friends or family are a good way to make sure your items have a place to stay. In addition, you will be able to have people check in on them. Choosing a storage facility near friends and family will also allow them to possibly send you anything you may need that you have left behind.
Handling moving for short-term renting
If you are planning on renting a space for the short term, you may have some items that you want to bring along with you. For example, maybe you need help packing up your at-home office and getting it ready to transport to your new home for the time being. Or, maybe your short-term rental is on more of the longer side, and you want to bring a lot of items with you for more of an extended stay. Also, maybe your short-term rental doesn’t provide some of the items that you could see yourself needing. In these cases, you may need to think about how you are going to move these items into your temporary space.
What can be helpful in these situations where you may not have a whole lot to pack is labor-only moving companies. This would keep the costs of moving low, while also making sure that your work-from-home desk is properly packed and still standing when you arrive at your new destination.
Pros of hiring movers for short-term rentals
- Save time and energy by not packing things yourself
- Don’t leave items behind that you need or want because you don’t know how to pack them
- Make sure the important items you are taking with you are secure
- Keep costs low with labor-only moving companies for your fewer items
- Reduce the stress of the moving process
What about storage and moving for long-term rentals?
Handling storage for long-term rentals
If you’re planning on moving into a long-term rental from Airbnb, then thinking about storage options may be a good idea for you. Often, unpacking everything at once can be overwhelming. It may also make your new living area cluttered, which can add to the stress of a move. Placing some items in storage is a good way of preventing this. Several smaller, non-essential items, such as knickknacks, fancy dishware, etc. can be placed in storage until the foundations of your new home are in place.
Pros of storage for long-term rentals
- Keep your home clutter-free during the move-in process
- Allow yourself to focus on unpacking larger items first
- Also, give yourself more time to decide if you want to keep the items you place in storage
- Importantly, place fragile items in storage during the move to ensure safety
Handling moving for long-term renting
If you are planning on moving into a long-term rental, hiring movers can be even more helpful. Typically, long-term rentals require a lot more items to be moved in the process. Usually, renters move from one place to another and need to pack up all of their belongings in the process. This can be a difficult feat, especially when moving and packing heavy items.
Hiring movers can be particularly helpful for people moving into long-term rentals. It ensures that you have professionals handling your items who are well equipped to get the job done. Professional movers will be able to help you wrap, pack, and protect everything that you want to take with you to your new home. This means that you probably won’t have to worry about getting moving blankets, dollies, and lots and lots of packing tape. Also, not to mention, they’ll actually provide you with the muscle to move all of your items. If you’ve got a bed, dresser, dining room set, or just a lot of items in general, hiring movers may be a big help to you in the moving process.
Pros of hiring movers for long-term rentals
- Save time not doing the packing yourself
- Save energy by not moving heavy items alone for a DIY move
- Have professionals pack and secure your items
- Also, creates less stress on you during the moving process
- Importantly, skip the struggle of having to gather all of the supplies and save money on them
FAQs
Yes. Airbnb offers monthly/long-term rentals on some of its listings. This may help provide the best of both worlds for remote workers that are looking for a mix of both the freedom to travel, as well as the stability to return to the same work/living area for a while. Also, long-term rentals on Airbnb may be beneficial for workers that travel for their jobs and may be heading out on an extended-stay project.
It depends! Many factors may go into your decision. For example, if you are a remote worker and are looking to travel a bit while you have the opportunity, then something short-term may be for you. If you are looking for a stable place to live that is close to your work location, then maybe something long-term is for you.
Actually, no. People that rent long-term often also rent short-term. For example, if your job requires you to be in person for work, you can rent long-term on Airbnb for your housing situation, and then rent a place short-term for any vacation you plan.
It depends. You may be an avid mover and have the supplies, time, and energy to pull off a DIY move. If this sounds like you and you can recruit the manpower for help then you may not need to worry. This may be your first big move and you may want to put your time and energy into different things. If this sounds like you, then hiring movers can be a good option.
Typically, short-term rentals last a few weeks to a month. However, some short-term rentals allow tenants to rent for up to six months. This variation in time depends on the specific rules for the city and the state in which the rental unit resides. When looking into your specific rental unit, be sure to check the available dates for more information about how long you can extend your stay. Often, short-term rentals have options that allow tenants to extend their stay from a few days to up to a few more additional weeks depending on when they are notified.
