Short-term assignees and commuters have more options than a sterile hotel room. We report on what you need to know about this growing market.

Corporate apartments, which combine the comfort and facilities of a hotel with the benefits of a private apartment, can be the perfect solution for business travelers or families relocating to new communities. A well-established market in the United States, corporate apartments are now becoming more popular in Europe, especially for weary Euro-commuters.

All the traveler needs to bring are clothes and toiletries. Personal touches, such as framed photos of family and favourite books and CDs, can add familiarity to a still-strange place.

Oftentimes, the corporate apartment is in a regular apartment complex alongside traditional apartments. For longer stays, the cost-savings can be significant when compared to a traditional hotel room.

Entan Raphay, who spent 15 years traveling around the world with her French husband, who worked for the French diplomatic service, has stayed in corporate apartments in Thailand, Japan and France.

“I wouldn’t say they were a home from home but I always felt comfortable,” she says. “Though furnishings were standard, everything was always in tip-top condition. I put some of my own things in to make it nicer."

Raphay, who also enjoyed being able to entertain guests, says the services were useful.

“The only downside is, if you have problems dealing with the agent — such as not getting precisely the service you have asked for — you cannot change them.

Search strategy

Walter Vermeeren, managing director of the PRS Europe Group, an independent, supplier of mobility management services, says you should follow a few, simple steps to make sure you choose the right corporate apartment.

How employees' ages affect their housing preferences Cam Marston, president of Marston Communications, offers more insights on generational differences: “We all have unique desires and preferences, which are a reflection of the values instilled into us as children," he explains. "They're not right or wrong, just different. “Generation Y (born between 1982 and 1995) will probably prefer to have all their technology immediately accessible to them at any point of the day. Therefore, they need space for desktop and laptop computers in the busy parts of the house like the kitchen or ‘den’. "A Mature (born before 1945), on the other hand, is more likely to put the technology (if they have any) away in a spare bedroom or ‘home-office’. “Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964) are a competitive group who view “winning” as possessing more and more. The Boomers have competed since they were children...in the home they’ll want large, well furnished rooms, and other visible signs of success. “Generation X (born between 1965 -1981) has made a significant commitment to being involved and active parents and view having their children close at hand as very important. They'll look for childcare that is easily accessible to home and work. They also want to get ‘more for their dollar’ and view multi-purpose, functional space as a way to achieve this. “People born in the ‘cusp’ (known as ‘tweeners’) will carry some characteristics of both surrounding generations.”

First define what you and your expatriates need, using pointers such as quality, location, availability, contract conditions, additional services and price.

Then, Vermeeren says, concentrate on building good relationships with preferred suppliers so that you can make overall contracts and benefit from mutual loyalty.

One of the oldest names in the corporate apartment business, Los Angeles-based Oakwood Worldwide, provides useful checklists on their website to help guide people in their selection of apartments.

The right price

Prices of corporate apartments are based on length of lease and type of contract. Generally, staying in a corporate apartment works out as more cost-effective, on a monthly basis, than a hotel room.

Charlotte Beal, who worked as HR coordinator at Netherlands-based Chello Broadband for two years, explains, “Booking a hotel room for an individual may be more cost-effective if you don’t know their precise length of stay, or if time between regular visits is unpredictable.”

Serviced apartments within hotels are worth looking into as prices will vary according to season, period in the business calendar, and length of stay. They are particularly well established in the UK and USA.

HR managers can also make the most of the contacts and networks they have built up through living and working in a country. Though renting an apartment directly from the owner cuts costs, it tends to limit apartment usage to those individuals named in the contract.

Using a reputable rental agency will give you immediate access to a pool of suitable quality accommodation in the region you choose, as well as contract flexibility.

More reasons to consider a corporate apartment

Says Pauline Kleijn, a senior consultant with Renthouse International, a company intermediating in short term lets of fully furnished apartments in the Netherlands, “The advantage of renting a corporate apartment is that it is always available. Because it is leased to a company rather than to an individual, a company can use it rather like a hotel room.”

Housing agencies can provide a variety of services.

Says Bernard Kerkhof, accommodation consultant with Brussels Business Flats (BBF), “We provide our clients with the services they require, such as cleaning, organising a telephone connection and a 24-hour emergency repair line and free them from the administrative side of flat rental.

“Our clients also appreciate the privacy our apartments give over alternative accommodation such as 'Flat-hotels', which have a reception and round-the-clock surveillance.”

Influences on choice

As employees become increasingly difficult to convince to take on an assignments away from home, they are making more demands about their living arrangements as transferees. Differences to consider are marital status, gender and generation.

“We can look at people’s needs in terms of which generation they come from. Each generation, has unique desires and preferences developed by the influences around them as children," says Cam Marston, president of Marston Communications, which specialises in age diversity issues.

“A person from the ‘Mature’ generation may desire a formal living area while a ‘Generation Y’ (born 1982 - 1995) would prefer a more functional, informal space," he explains. "'Generation X' people (born 1965 -1981) are most likely to put emphasis on functional space and proximity to facilities related to child care and education.”

Taking care of your employees

The first few weeks in a new country are often very difficult and staying in a corporate apartment, as well as being practical, can help alleviate feelings of alienation.

Erin Lap, a senior consultant with the Hay Group, an international professional services firm, says, “Invest in making the relocation process as easy as possible for your transferees. It motivates people to feel that their company has organised things effectively and efficiently for them.”

Therefore, explain the corporate housing process and options to both transferees and, if applicable, their spouses, to provide a clear picture of what they can expect in their temporary home.

February 2003

Natasha Gunn is the editor of Expatica HR.