I've been thinking. Uh oh. Opinions wanted.

Gracie

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Feb 13, 2013
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I am 60. I will turn 62 in october of 2014. I am guaranteed to live in this rental home until then. When I turn 62 and get my SSI, the landlord wants his house back. So...instead of renting another house and renting out rooms and being "stuck" with roomie after roomie, I have been pondering an idea and I do not know if it is a possibility of a good idea or if it is more than I can handle since I am inexperienced in this. Which is where you guys come in. Advice.

My plan? Hubby and I purchase an RV. Not too big because we want to be able to haul the truck with it on a car rack so once we park it somewhere, we are free to take the Ranger to get groceries, go to doctors, etc. No roomies. We stay at RV over night or monthly parks for a few months or however long we like it there, then move on. We hook up to tv, wifi, sewer, water, etc. We also have a generator for emergencies. We also must learn how to empty the black water tank and the gray water tanks periodically. We can travel to warmer climes when it is winter and hunker down somewhere until summer then go wherever we want to go as long as we stick to being in California..which is a big state. This way I can keep my medi-cal for medical needs. We sell all we own and buy two laptops...one for him, one for me. We also have smaller tvs..one for him, one for me. I do not sleep in a bed..I sleep in a recliner due to my back. So hubby would have the bedroom and I would either have the couch or the passenger seat that reclines which would suit me fine. The only thing we would be paying is gas to move the RV when it is time to move on and the space rent weekly or monthly. The RV would have air conditioning on the roof for hotter weather. We would have a shower, toilet, propane stove and maybe a hibachi for warm nights for barbeque. Doctors would be whomever was in the town we are currently in and we would have all our current records of meds we are on, our ailments so these new strange doctors can see what is going on with us health wise. No paying a deposit for gas, electric, cable companies (we would have a satelite dish on the RV hopefully), water, etc. In parks that do not have full hookups, we would have the generator.

The only thing that makes me nervous is...finding dumping stations to empty the sewage and refill the gray water tanks....finding a place that allows dogs...and keeping the RV in excellent motor condition (and the roof solid from leaks). I would have to find such places in this state and if we traveled out of the state for a month or two, we have to find out how long we can be out of the state before I lose my benefits...and lastly, a bank that is common everywhere where we can have our SSI deposited and be able to withdraw funds.

Is this a difficult thing to do for newbies who have never done this before and will it save us money that we are forking out now? It sounds good in my head, but in reality....is it a pipe dream? Or is it a feasible option for us since we cannot afford to pay 1500 bucks per month rent in a house where we have to haul furniture around, rent rooms to strangers and in general are stuck in one spot?

And if you were in my shoes...not owning a house and just renting someone elses...would YOU go this route?
 
I am 60. I will turn 62 in october of 2014. I am guaranteed to live in this rental home until then. When I turn 62 and get my SSI, the landlord wants his house back. So...instead of renting another house and renting out rooms and being "stuck" with roomie after roomie, I have been pondering an idea and I do not know if it is a possibility of a good idea or if it is more than I can handle since I am inexperienced in this. Which is where you guys come in. Advice.

My plan? Hubby and I purchase an RV. Not too big because we want to be able to haul the truck with it on a car rack so once we park it somewhere, we are free to take the Ranger to get groceries, go to doctors, etc. No roomies. We stay at RV over night or monthly parks for a few months or however long we like it there, then move on. We hook up to tv, wifi, sewer, water, etc. We also have a generator for emergencies. We also must learn how to empty the black water tank and the gray water tanks periodically. We can travel to warmer climes when it is winter and hunker down somewhere until summer then go wherever we want to go as long as we stick to being in California..which is a big state. This way I can keep my medi-cal for medical needs. We sell all we own and buy two laptops...one for him, one for me. We also have smaller tvs..one for him, one for me. I do not sleep in a bed..I sleep in a recliner due to my back. So hubby would have the bedroom and I would either have the couch or the passenger seat that reclines which would suit me fine. The only thing we would be paying is gas to move the RV when it is time to move on and the space rent weekly or monthly. The RV would have air conditioning on the roof for hotter weather. We would have a shower, toilet, propane stove and maybe a hibachi for warm nights for barbeque. Doctors would be whomever was in the town we are currently in and we would have all our current records of meds we are on, our ailments so these new strange doctors can see what is going on with us health wise. No paying a deposit for gas, electric, cable companies (we would have a satelite dish on the RV hopefully), water, etc. In parks that do not have full hookups, we would have the generator.

The only thing that makes me nervous is...finding dumping stations to empty the sewage and refill the gray water tanks....finding a place that allows dogs...and keeping the RV in excellent motor condition (and the roof solid from leaks). I would have to find such places in this state and if we traveled out of the state for a month or two, we have to find out how long we can be out of the state before I lose my benefits...and lastly, a bank that is common everywhere where we can have our SSI deposited and be able to withdraw funds.

Is this a difficult thing to do for newbies who have never done this before and will it save us money that we are forking out now? It sounds good in my head, but in reality....is it a pipe dream? Or is it a feasible option for us since we cannot afford to pay 1500 bucks per month rent in a house where we have to haul furniture around, rent rooms to strangers and in general are stuck in one spot?

And if you were in my shoes...not owning a house and just renting someone elses...would YOU go this route?

You shouldn't really worry too much about finding a place that you can dump your grey and black water at, almost every truck stop has a station, and if not, you can always find one at your local KOA.

As far as the pooch? Why worry about where to keep him, you've got a mobile house on wheels and he can stay inside, or you can get a running line to put up wherever you go.

I've got the same dream as well. If I win the lotto, my roomie and I are gonna buy a Winnebago and hit the road until we decide to quit.
 
I have 3 pooches and a cat. By the time I do this, they will be ages 12, 9, 9 and 8 years old respectfully. I know some places have pet limits.

I also have lots of friends I have met online...and some real life friends I have not seen in forever. They travel and pay people to watch their property when they are gone on vacation. If we had an RV, hubby and I can park our house near theirs and watch their property during their absence so it is a win win for both of us.

RV's are expensive, so I would have to find one we can afford to buy, too. I do NOT want an overhead camper type RV. Neither of us can climb up there.
 
I like this but it might be too small. Unless it has a slide out or even a canvas patio type area.
2012-era.1-lg.jpg


But I would rather have this style but not so new and not so fancy. Just lower mileage:
3_RV.jpg
 
Or...sell the Ranger and keep my sidekick because it is smaller....which would make it look like this:
rv-towing-safety-1.jpg
 
I have 3 pooches and a cat. By the time I do this, they will be ages 12, 9, 9 and 8 years old respectfully. I know some places have pet limits.

I also have lots of friends I have met online...and some real life friends I have not seen in forever. They travel and pay people to watch their property when they are gone on vacation. If we had an RV, hubby and I can park our house near theirs and watch their property during their absence so it is a win win for both of us.

RV's are expensive, so I would have to find one we can afford to buy, too. I do NOT want an overhead camper type RV. Neither of us can climb up there.

Yeah...............with that many animals you may have an issue, and besides, cats aren't really fond of leashes, and if the animals weren't tied up, they may wander off from your RV and get lost.

However....................do a Google search for KOA campgrounds, and look to see what the rules are for them, and if you've got specific places in mind right now, do a search with the town name and "campgrounds", and you can look up the rules of the local ones as well.
 
This one is local...15,000.00.
Mileage doesn't look too shabby either. But that's still a big chunk.

3Kd3L83F15K85Fb5Jfd22d878755ccb001ae6.jpg
 
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My cat does fine with a leash. And they don't go anywhere even off the leash. They are my shadows. By the time we did this..IF we do this...they will be too old to run off anywhere and I doubt if they would even wander. Still...I would probably get a temporary folding fence sort of thing as an enclosure for them when outside. Enclose the front area by the door. IF they all make it to 2014. One has epilepsy.
 
Not sure of the mileae on this one...but the price is right.

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We would have 2 years to do light remodeling, too.
 
I really like the idea of being free to go. Nobody can take my roof from me. My house is on wheels. We could be traveling caretakers for people too...small fee, free space to park, people gone know their home is being protected and watched during their absense. Free to move on once they are back.
But will we be able to do it? What does it cost to spend a month someplace with full hookups? I know damn well it doesn't cost what a rental home would be, but still...living on SSI and a fixed income...we would have to be very careful money wise.
 
I really like the idea of being free to go. Nobody can take my roof from me. My house is on wheels. We could be traveling caretakers for people too...small fee, free space to park, people gone know their home is being protected and watched during their absense. Free to move on once they are back.
But will we be able to do it? What does it cost to spend a month someplace with full hookups? I know damn well it doesn't cost what a rental home would be, but still...living on SSI and a fixed income...we would have to be very careful money wise.

Most campgrounds are around 20-50 bucks/nite, although, I think you can get cheaper rates if you sign on by the month. 25 is the price I generally paid when I used them a couple of years back (spent a lot of time on a motorcycle with a tent), but if you're staying in a really touristy type area, it's gonna be closer to 50/nite.

So...................figure maybe 650 - 1000/month.
 
Is it illegal to park such a vehicle n the side of the road if a place cannot be found and we are both tired from driving? Do rest stops have a time limit for resting? Do truck stops? Are there fees? Two old people in a huge honkin' RV...its kind of scarey but also kind of exciting. However, it beats living under an overpass.
 
I really like the idea of being free to go. Nobody can take my roof from me. My house is on wheels. We could be traveling caretakers for people too...small fee, free space to park, people gone know their home is being protected and watched during their absense. Free to move on once they are back.
But will we be able to do it? What does it cost to spend a month someplace with full hookups? I know damn well it doesn't cost what a rental home would be, but still...living on SSI and a fixed income...we would have to be very careful money wise.

Most campgrounds are around 20-50 bucks/nite, although, I think you can get cheaper rates if you sign on by the month. 25 is the price I generally paid when I used them a couple of years back (spent a lot of time on a motorcycle with a tent), but if you're staying in a really touristy type area, it's gonna be closer to 50/nite.

So...................figure maybe 650 - 1000/month.

Ouch!!
 
Is it illegal to park such a vehicle n the side of the road if a place cannot be found and we are both tired from driving? Do rest stops have a time limit for resting? Do truck stops? Are there fees? Two old people in a huge honkin' RV...its kind of scarey but also kind of exciting. However, it beats living under an overpass.

You can generally stay in a rest area overnight if you need to, and some of them even have grey water stations. As far as a time limit? I think maybe 24 hours would be the max, and you really don't want to park a vehicle like that on the side of the road.

Truck stops? Dunno.................interesting question. Maybe some of them have stations you could hook up at.
 
I was reading that walmart allows RVs to camp in their back lot for a night and won't run folks off. That would suffice for us. I just want to be able to park the damn thing when both of us get worn out from driving to find a place to park for a few days or even a month.
 
I appreciate your input. It is something I will be thinking about during the next few years. I know I have less than 2 to figure out what we are going to do. Find another house here locally and keep with the roomies...or find a new town with less rent and still have to have at least one roomie.

Or...live on the road in an RV and move from spot to spot.
 
I dream about dumping the house and living on the road, too.

It's not a cheap way to live though.

And my dog and cat keep me housebound.

If DCK builds this damned TANK in Searport, and by doing so drives the RE values so low that my home mortgage goes under water, THEN I might consider life on the road.

No sense paying on a mortgage where every dollar invested in the property is throwing good money after bad, eh?
 

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