A manager in Chicago gets the news on a Tuesday: the New York project starts in three weeks and runs for at least three months. The employee who is going needs a bed, a desk, and a kitchen within reach of the office, and nobody in HR wants to sign a 12-month lease for a 90-day assignment.
One benchmark helps before comparing anything: the federal per diem rates, which cap what government agencies reimburse for lodging. For fiscal year 2027, the New York City lodging rate is $358 a night from October through December, $189 in January and February, and $296 from March through June. Thirty nights in November at that rate comes to $10,740, before meals. Here are six furnished options companies use instead of, or alongside, a hotel.
1. Extended-Stay Hotel
The fastest option to book, and often the simplest for the first week. There is housekeeping, a front desk, and no paperwork beyond a reservation. Many extended-stay properties add a kitchenette, which matters more than it sounds on a three-month assignment.
The trade-off is the pricing model. Hotels charge by the night, and New York rates move with the season, so a stay that starts in a quiet month can end in a busy one. For anything longer than a few weeks, finance teams tend to start asking for a monthly alternative.
2. Serviced Apartment
A serviced apartment sits between a hotel and a home: a full kitchen, a living area, and a bedroom, with cleaning and maintenance handled by the operator. Pricing can be nightly or monthly, and longer bookings often come with a lower rate.
It suits employees who will cook, work from home some days, or simply need more room than a hotel offers. Check the minimum stay and what the rate includes before booking, since cleaning frequency, utilities, and internet vary from building to building.
3. Corporate Housing Provider
Corporate housing companies lease furnished apartments and rent them to employers for the length of an assignment. The provider handles furniture, setup, utilities, and often the billing directly with the company, so the employee arrives at a home that is ready to live in.
This is the usual choice for senior staff and for employees relocating with a partner or children, because it provides a whole home rather than a room. Expect the price to reflect that: the company pays for an entire apartment in New York plus the service layer on top. Many providers set a 30-day minimum.
4. Furnished Sublet
A sublet from someone leaving town for a few months can be the lowest-priced furnished option on paper. The apartment comes with its owner’s furniture, and the person subletting may be glad to cover a gap in their own lease.
The risk is that the arrangement depends on another person’s lease. Before an employee moves in, confirm that the landlord has given written consent to the sublet, that the dates match the assignment, and who to call when something breaks. A company that pays directly also needs an invoice it can process, which not every private sublet can provide.
5. Furnished Room in a Coliving Home
For an individual employee on an assignment of one to several months, a room in a shared, fully furnished home covers the essentials at a different price point. Residents get their own bedroom and share the kitchen and living areas with a small group of housemates.
SharedEasy’s furnished rooms in Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens are one example of how this works for employers. A company can book a room for an employee and pay one all-in monthly amount that is simple to expense. Furniture, Wi-Fi, utilities, and weekly cleaning are included, contracts run month to month, and move-in and move-out can fall on any day of the month. On October 28, 2026, listings ranged from $840 to $1,129 a month for shared rooms and from $1,400 to $2,369 for private rooms, shown as totals with taxes and fees. Each listing has real photos, a floor plan, and a map, so the person approving the booking can see exactly what the employee is getting.
The format fits single employees, interns, and consultants. It is not set up for families, and an employee who wants a whole apartment should look at options 2 or 3.
6. A Housing Stipend the Employee Spends Their Way
Some companies skip booking altogether and give the employee a monthly housing allowance to spend as they see fit. It is simple to administer and gives the employee control, especially if they want to choose a neighborhood or bring a partner.
Budget it with tax in mind. According to IRS Publication 15-B, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act permanently eliminates the exclusion for qualified moving expense reimbursements from an employee’s income, with exceptions for active-duty military and certain intelligence community employees. Whether a specific temporary housing payment counts as taxable wages depends on how the assignment is structured, so confirm the treatment with your payroll provider or tax adviser before setting the amount.
| Option | How it is priced | Kitchen | Fits | Minimum stay |
| Extended-stay hotel | Per night, seasonal | Kitchenette at some properties | The first weeks | None |
| Serviced apartment | Nightly or monthly | Full kitchen | Employees who need space | Varies by building |
| Corporate housing provider | Monthly, whole apartment | Full kitchen | Senior staff, employees with families | Often 30 days |
| Furnished sublet | Monthly, set by the leaseholder | Full kitchen | Flexible dates, tighter budgets | Set by the sublet |
| Coliving room | Monthly, all-in | Shared kitchen | Individual employees, interns, consultants | 30 days at SharedEasy |
| Housing stipend | Fixed allowance | Depends on the choice | Employees who want to choose | None |
How to Choose
Three questions narrow the list quickly. How long is the assignment? Under a month points to a hotel; one to six months opens every option here. Is the employee moving alone or with family? A whole apartment matters in the second case. And who pays? If the company pays the provider directly, choose an option that issues a single invoice. If the employee pays from a stipend, share this list and let them pick.