Wow.... amazing what you can find with google. Searching for van living content and I end up back at my old hang out
I like the opposing view points. I like this in all facets of my life. I tend to get overly optimistic on the ideas I become interested in. It's good to find balance.
I have to say that I tend to lean towards bigato's view here. There are other factors to consider than merely financial benefit. If van living was pursued in hopes of finding a way to cut expenses, then it probably is not the best course of action. There are some incoveniences that have to be weighed carefully before embarking on such a course of living.
I think that because I've lived such a minimalist fashion for the last few years, living in a van doesn't seem so extreme. Plus I like the ability to have mobile living arrangements. I'm thinking seriously of pursuing this when I get back.
Besides the inconvience of not having a bathroom, what else you got? Seriously, I want more negatives so that I know I'm considering everything.
If you want the negatives of living in a van (along with some good advice on avoiding or minimizing them), I strongly recommend the site Survival Guide to Homelessness: http://guide2homelessness.blogspot.com/
The blog is dedicated to making homelessness (living in a car or van) as painless, comfortable and even enjoyable as possible, without glossing over problems or romanticizing. It's based on the author's personal experience of living long term in a car in place, i.e., not traveling. His expenses were around $3000 per year. I think that the worst negatives fall into the categories of hassles with authorities and hassles with criminals. He also addresses some of the social damage, analogous to what some on this forum complain about; lack of understanding or acceptance of a different lifestyle.
Also consider your threshold level of comfort. If your the minority of people who is psychologically able to live in a car comfortable, then go for it. But you have to honestly consider if you're truly the type who can hack it. If you go too extreme, you could go crazy, become sick or worse.
You should also look at truckers blogs and boards. I think they give a better picture of life on the road at the spending level of ERE (as opposed to blogs about people in their $250K+ RVs).
Quite right about the personal fit; the blogger Mobile Homemaker devotes a number of posts to maintaining health, physical and psychological, with special attention to maintaining personal hygene and appearance. And he points out that decisions are sometimes irrevocable; you can't undo or unsee the things you experience living in a car.
Crazy comes in different flavors; certainly one to avoid is going feral, sometimes referred to (inaptly in my opinion) as Diogenes Syndrome:
Negatives for me were getting woken up by the cops (rare), not being able to get laid in my own bed, not enough space to do yoga, boxed sine wave might have been hard on electronics, not being able to stand up. Some of that is lessened or eliminated in a bigger van. I lived in an astro for the gas mileage.
Thanks guys for sharing your thoughts on this, it has helped clarify some things for me. After reading this thread yesterday I sat down and really thought hard about my options. With the cons of van living I'm leaning more towards what the guy at www.simplify.net has done. Looks like he started with a larger camper van before upgrading to what he has now.
Guess I need to investigate the RV living thread eh?
What I'm farily certain of is not wanting to be tied down to housing. Mobile housing seems best suited for me at this juncture
Get a 24 hr fitness gym membership and park nearby the gym, so you can poop and washup when needed. Also, having access to all the gyms nationally is convenient.
I live in a VW Westfalia and I am in Houston. Been doing it now for 10 months. Yes, my fuel costs are up but less then $100/mo more then what it was when I had my apt. There are no cheap places to rent when I work. Ive been looking and the ones that exists are far far away.
I like the van but would rather have a cheap place near work.
My favorite part is not having to pay bills and the feeling of freedom that accompanies it. All savings from vandwelling go directly to my portfolio.
The worst part is having to move the van all the time. Find a parking spot to rent out and it will be the best lifestyle. www.project11k.com
Given the option between the van and a place that costs about as much as the van per month, I would chose the apt, but only if I didn't have a car and could bike everywhere. It is an either/or situation, low cost apt with biking and public transport or van dwelling.
Since I dislike my job, I have no intention of giving up the van. It gives me a sense of freedom which I can only imagine is what is similar to being financially independent. Plus, I get to travel to interesting locations on weekends and stay for the entire time. A couple weeks back, I took a trip to Galveston beach and stayed from thursday night through sunday afternoon. The entire time I was parked within 50ft of the ocean.
@George
If fuel prices double or quadruple then I have worse things to worry about then my lost sense of freedom.
It is why I said that I would take an apt with bike lifestyle over van life. Cars, vans, RV, etc are inherently expensive, if I stopped driving I would save a ton and be in better physical condition. However, to stop driving, it would require me to be comfortable with what I do for employment.
I've been looking into this and I think it really depends on where you live and if you are planning on moving around a lot.
For me, I live in a VERY high cost of living area and I am considering vandwelling in-town during the week for work and then spending the weekends exploring the vast outdoor options.
In comparison to a bare-bones SHARE-a-room cost here (350-500/mo), I will be saving 200-350 a month, including the extra gas money for traveling on the weekends AND upping my car maintenance fund by 75 dollars a month. If I stayed in town, the savings would be almost 500 dollars a month.
Now, I haven't actually DONE it yet, but according to my research, it can be a lot less expensive and afford the privacy and flexibility someone like me appreciates (if you don't mind giving up some living space and a little safety).
If Jacob really was able to live in an RV for only $500/month then he was definatly getting by easily. Jacob I have been searching for hours and calling offices and I CANNOT FIND any RV/Trailer parks in or near San Francisco that is even close to $500, most RV places wanted $50 per day, and trailer parks wanted $750 a month.
Could anybody in this area please give me some insight onto how you can live in an RV for so cheap ? I prefer to be within 45 minutes of San Francisco state college (I use public trans) and I don't care about cable or any of that, infact my RV is fully self contained and i usually shower/shave at the gym. So yes i dont even care if i have hookups. Also I do not want to "stealth park" or do something that will cause me hassle, ive already read horror stories of people paying over $100 dollars in fines, or being tied up with police and not getting sleep. So please if anybody can give me some insight id be happy to listen. My RV is only 22ft and its a class B.
Okay in the San Francisco area most 1 bedroom for 1 single person to rent is usually $450 dollars at the lowest. So for 2 people thats not going to work.
P.S Id also like to say thank you Jacob for your inspiration, and id like to thank everybody else on this forum. I began to think Id never find other people so like minded as me. I feel like I am surrounded by real people, almost like this forum feels like a new home to me. I only wish I had discovered the forum early. My whole life has been dedicated to ERE so Im greatfull for any advice.
