After traveling full time for the past 5 years, I wanted to spend some time working close to home. I missed my family, my partner, my dogs (both of whom barely remembered me), and most of all, my own bed. What I didn't want to do was cut my pay in half to do it! But taking a travel assignment close to home, requires you to rethink how you set up your pay package. You have to be careful, especially if you are used to taking a tax advantaged pay package.

If you're working so close to home that it would not require an overnight stay, then you have to reduce the amount of tax free income that you bring in. You can't accept all that tax free housing money if you're not going to actually use it. Don't listen to a recruiter who tells you that it's okay to take the tax free money anyway, because it isn't. You have to be careful when dealing with recruiters, who often will encourage you to take a tax advantaged split that is way to high. They aren't doing this to help increase the amount of money that YOU make. They do it to DECREASE the amount of payroll taxes that THEY pay. If you're in doubt about how much you should ask for in tax free monies, my advice is to contact a reputable tax advisor who is familiar with travel nursing. They're out there, just do a google search for "travel nurse tax advisor" and several should pop up.

Remember, I am a travel nurse, and not a tax professional. You should talk to YOUR tax professional before changing anything. Don't take my word for it.

Working close to home is getting easier. Many hospitals are choosing to offer seasonal contracts to nurses looking for much higher pay rates without benefits. If you're one of the lucky nurses out there who don't need insurance, then this can really be a good way to land a position close to home for a while. Just call the hospitals in the area you want to work, and ask them if they seasonal contracts available.

The only downside that I've found to traveling close to home, is that I can't work as many hours when I'm living at home. Unlike being away from home where there are few distractions, being home means being available to the people that you came home to see in the first place. It's harder to just work and sleep every day when you have people around that you miss and want to spend time with. Still, it's worth it to reconnect with family and friends. It's also a good opportunity to network with other Nurses and hospitals near your home to keep doors open for you when you do decide to stop traveling.