Where to list furnished rentals

[Alexis Miller]

I own 1 and manage 1 furnished short term rental properties in Pittsburgh. I have been lucky in the past to get referrals for good tenants without having to list the property. When I do post, I have paid for some sites, but seem to get the most responses from the usual suspects - Zillow (and Hot Pads and Trulia) and Craigslist. I have also listed on Airbnb, Furnished Finder ($99 to list 1 unit), and Carnegie Mellon's Off-Campus Housing website ($75 for a limited listing for 1 unit). Those have not resulted in any tenants, but I got a handful of responses the last time I posted there.

Our rentals are between about 2 months and 6 months long, so we've had visiting professors, traveling nurses and students doing internships. Our places are in single family houses in residential neighborhoods, so it feels daunting competing with huge apartment complexes that rent furnished apartments.

Have people found other websites or sources for listing their furnished rental that get good bang for their buck or are free? Or if anyone has contacts at corporations or other businesses or universities that would be willing to pass on our listing to potential tenants, that would be pure gold.

Thanks for any suggestions!