Corporate housing offers alternatives to hotels

"Everything but the food” is how Chris Moore, owner of Corridor Corporate Condos in Cedar Rapids, describes the experience corporate housing companies try to provide their customers.

Corridor Corporate Condos leases furnished one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and condos for business travelers, whether they're consulting with AEGON or working at Cargill.

Amenities there include high-speed Internet, cable TV and washer/dryers.

Guests at the Bostick House and University Guesthouses in Iowa City will find writing tables, wireless Internet and flat-screen TVs, but also front porches and backyard gardens.

Its location adjacent to the University of Iowa doesn't hurt - more than 50 percent of their clients either work at or visit the university. While owners Steve and Barbara van der Woude have hosted guests from every department of UI, as well as the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, they also serve corporate clients such as ACT, Pearson and West Liberty Foods.

Some 50 percent of their guests are international visitors, thus far from 27 different countries, Barbara van der Woude said.

High Property Management's Vice President Kerry Peyton counts corporate clients from Rockwell Collins, ADM and Genencor International, as well as having provided housing for AEGON, CRST, Skogman Realty, Mercy Hospital and St. Luke's Hospital.

These companies house more than just business travelers, though. Individuals who are relocating and searching for a new home often use temporary housing, as do families who are building new houses. That's where relationships with Realtors come in handy.

The van der Woudes lease 16 suites in the Bostick House and five other adjacent buildings. The number of units Moore leases for corporate housing “varies depending on the business climate” - from five to 25 units.

High Property Management, which has leased corporate housing for 10 of its 23 years in business, has companies “that come to us with a need for four to six units a year and other companies that need 20 to 40 units a year,” Peyton said.

High Property Management differ from the other two companies as it doesn't offer leases shorter than six months, Peyton explained.

Rates at such long-term stay venues vary on the individual suites. Nightly rates at Bostick House, for example, range from $89 to $159, with monthly rates running $950 to $1,200 for studios and up to $1,500 to $1,800 for executive suites.

Guests also have the option of renting a house, which requires a minimum one-year lease, and starts at $1,400.

None of the companies boast lots of employees. Only two of High Property Management's 15 employees work in corporate housing, and Corridor Corporate Condos employs three part-time workers.

The van der Woudes run their business without any employees, but their education and backgrounds seemed destined for them to open this business: Both graduated from the UI Henry B. Tippie College of Business.

In addition, Barbara worked in Human Resources Management, often dealing with employee transitions and temporary housing. Steve's background is in restoration and preservation work - fitting as they own and lease historical properties.

These companies offer varied reports on the bottom line for 2011.

“2009 was down, but 2010 and 2011 have been steady,” Peyton said.

High Property Management housed 160 interns and five to eight other corporate clients in 2011.

At the Bostick House, 15 of its 16 units were leased as of mid-December.

Moore saw a slower year - business is “down 25 to 30 percent from 2010 to 2011.”

But he is hopeful for 2012, though. He noticed an increase in inquiries starting in the middle of December, and while he thinks the first quarter of 2012 will be “soft,” he believes corporate leases will rebound by summer.

“Based on the projects starting up in the area, we think it will be back to 2010 levels,” he said.