The Benefits of a Non-Preferential Temp Housing Aggregator

Temporary Housing (also called Corporate Housing) can look pretty simple from the outside. An employee needs a place to stay, we find an apartment, and we book it, but there’s a lot happening behind the scenes before an employee ever sees those housing options. We’re looking at inventory, pricing, location, amenities, availability, commute, pets, family needs, length of stay, and any number of other requirements. One of the biggest factors influencing the options an employee ultimately receives is something they may never see at all: how that temporary housing is sourced.

At NuCompass, we use a non-preferential approach.

The easiest way I explain it is that we’re not starting the search with a predetermined winner.

What Does “Non-Preferential” Actually Mean?

In a traditional preferred-provider model, an RMC may work primarily with one temporary housing provider or a small group of preferred providers and direct most of its business to them. There are certainly benefits to strong preferred relationships, but your view of the market can naturally be influenced by the inventory, pricing, and supplier relationships available through those providers.

Our approach gives us a broader view.

Through our global booking platform, we have access to options from hundreds of vetted corporate housing providers. Instead of deciding upfront who should receive the business, we start with what the employee actually needs and then look at the options available across the market.

And “non-preferential” doesn’t mean quality doesn’t matter or that every supplier is considered equal. Quite the opposite. Service, responsiveness, quality, and performance still matter tremendously. We’re simply not steering the business to one provider before we’ve had the opportunity to see what else is available.

The Same Apartment. Three Very Different Prices.

Here’s a real example that makes the value of that visibility pretty easy to understand.

We recently had essentially the exact same housing solution, with the same reservation terms, quoted by three different providers:

• $155 per night.
• $159 per night.
• $206 per night.

From the employee’s perspective, it was the same housing solution.

A $51 difference may not sound enormous at first, but temporary housing isn’t a one- or two-night stay. For essentially the same solution, that becomes a difference of…

• $1,530 for 30 nights
• $3,060 for 60 nights
• $4,590 for 90 nights
• And even $18,615 for an entire year

The larger consideration is that this service is typically offered across several moves, so assume this happens for 50 moves in a year, the reality is that the difference will be closer to…

• $76,500 for 30 nights
• $153,000 for 60 nights
• $229,500 for 90 nights

I repeat, all for essentially the same solution.

There can be several reasons for that. Providers may have different negotiated rates or different relationships and arrangements with a property. Inventory and timing can affect pricing as well from a certain supplier.

Does every search produce a $51-per-night difference? Of course not. Sometimes the pricing is very close, but we do see meaningful differences, and that’s exactly why visibility matters.

A negotiated rate can certainly be a good rate, but without something to compare it against, you don’t really know how competitive it is in that moment.

It’s Not Just About Finding the Lowest Rate

This is an important distinction because non-preferential sourcing isn’t simply about shopping around for the cheapest option.

If price were the only thing that mattered, this would be easy. We could sort everything from lowest to highest and pick the first one. But anyone who works in relocation knows it’s rarely that simple.

One provider may have something closer to the employee’s office; another may include parking or have a property that accommodates a large dog; and another might offer more flexibility if dates change.

Sometimes spending a few dollars more per night gets the employee a much better location, shorter commute, greater flexibility, or something else that makes a meaningful difference in their experience.

That’s why I tend to think in terms of overall value rather than simply the lowest rate.

More Visibility Means More Options

A broader network becomes even more important when a temporary housing request isn’t straightforward.

Maybe you have a family that needs three bedrooms, has two pets, needs parking, and wants to be within a reasonable commute of both an office and a particular school; or maybe you’re looking in a rural or remote location where there isn’t much traditional corporate housing inventory to begin with. One provider may come back with nothing that fits, while another may have access to a local property that works perfectly.

Having access to more suppliers obviously doesn’t create inventory that isn’t there, but it gives us a much better chance of finding the inventory that does exist. And for the employee, more inventory gives us a better opportunity to find something that actually fits their needs rather than asking them to make their needs fit whatever happens to be available.

So, How Is Your Temporary Housing Being Sourced?

If I could give mobility and procurement teams one question to ask about temporary housing sourcing, it would be this: “How do you know the housing option you’re recommending represents the best overall value?”

Then, I’d want to understand what happens behind the scenes before that recommendation reaches the employee.

Are multiple qualified providers being considered? How broad is the network being sourced? Are similar options being compared on an apples-to-apples basis? What happens if the first provider doesn’t have inventory or can’t meet the employee’s needs? And if one option is being recommended over another, can your RMC explain why?

I don’t think there’s necessarily one sourcing model that’s right for every mobility program, but I do think clients should understand the model their RMC is using and how they get from “we need temporary housing” to “here are the options we recommend.”

At the end of the day, finding a place for an employee to stay isn’t the hard part; the real value is having enough visibility, choice, and expertise to find the right solution at the right overall value.

For more information on the Supply Chain Management at NuCompass, start with our Supplier Management page.

About NuCompass

NuCompass Mobility is a veteran-owned, independent mobility management company, offering a comprehensive range of global mobility and U.S. domestic relocation services. For more information about how NuCompass and our CoPilot® or CoPilot Express™ platforms can support your global mobility needs, visit our technology center today!