Any one tried RV living to live their dream in SOCAL? (San Diego: to rent, motorhome)

[missionhome]

Go to the following:
RV.net- forum full of rv'ers.
rvsearch.com- to find an rv
woodalls.com- to find an rv park that will take you monthly.
Note: This could be more money than renting an apartment. One bedroom apartments can be rented for $1,200 bucks. An RV will cost you more expensive vehicle insurance, at least $600-1,000 for an RV depending on how new and the quality, and then at least $400-700 a month for monthly rent of a spot at an RV park. Add to that an average fill up price of $100-250 depending on the size of the RV.

[kmw]

My husband and I full time RV'd for 10 years....sold our house in NY State and became gypsies. We aren't retired and stayed for awhile in each place we visited while we worked. Parts of California had the strictest rules and highest prices for RV sites. Palm Springs was great....San Luis Obispo/Central Coast area wouldn't let you stay indefinitely on an RV site and the rates were quite high. But then again....it was the most gorgeous place in the US and we couldn't have afforded to live there otherwise. Buying a site would be one way to do it.....
We've since settled down and bought a house (in Nashville), but I'd do it again without a doubt.

[Out_of_Palmdale]

You will end up spending money to live no matter what you do. Even if you're a bum in the streets, you are still going to have to collect on your bottles and cans in order to eat. Having said that, RVing is more about the quality and flexibility of life rather than nickel and diming. In the two years that I RV'd en famille, I found it to be the most cost effective way of living for my circumstances and my own required minimum living conditions. Where else can you cook, sleep, bathe, (jacuzzi, even), watch big screen TV in a comfy living room, party on the beach, eat at different restaurants around town whenever the fancy takes you and not worry about the budget (at least, we didn't), meet some pretty darned friendly and interesting people, AND be in a city one day and the beach the next? Where else can you start your engine and move if you happen to be parked next to a bunch of drunken yahoos? I couldn't do that when I lived in a house, obviously. There are many cost effective ways to make RVing work to your budget - Walmart and Sams Club allow free overnight parking in their parking lots so, within reason, you could go night after night without paying any space fees whatsoever. You can also park along the streets at night without anyone bothering you. Just be sure to empty your black-n-gray tanks at a proper facility. Aside from that, I found space rentals to be very reasonable. If I didn't want to pay for full hook ups, I skated by on the generator without barely a blip on the radar. I plan to hit the road full time when I leave the Antelope Valley in 8 years, IF I haven't died by that time.

[wulfruna]

RV'S do have a tax right off by the way so long as it is financed even if you have a mortgage on a house. It is classed as a second home.
Just thought that I would correct that erroneous point made by another respondent.
You may have trouble finding a place in the summer season if you move around.
You could 'park' at one of those places that rent a month to month space but you may not like some of those places.
My suggestion; Get an RV and camp off and on year round in the area that you are considering going full time in. Get educated before making this brave move.

[Huckleberry3911948]

Originally Posted by formerlyhappenstance

Me being the resourceful frugal guy. I continue to try to come up with ways to live out southern cali without paying hefty cost. Here's my new idea I came up with after 2 days. What if I bought an RV and an RV lot resort in SoCal? I could live a fabulous lifestyle without the high cost. I can get a storage facility for my cars and miscillaneous items. Use the lot as my home base and move around freely and fairly cheap. An RV can cost as little as $120,000. They have lots in malibu, san diego, etc,. I figure it sounds good in theory but, I'd like to hear what you might think. If you have tried it or know someone who is or has done it. What are the pros and cons I might not be thinking about since this idea is fairly new in my mind.

FYI: I am single, have no kids, no responsibilities, and no family ties to hold me down.

trailers are better.
better yet a small studio condo in a decent neighborhood will appreciate big time. small places which are harder to sell, are getting very attractice price wise.
stephen s
san diego ca

[CLQ]

You might as well live in a trailer park. They are less than $100K and you can get one in Newport Beach and other desirable areas. Although, it most likely won't appreciate, you can pay less on a mortgage than rent in a good area and recoup some of that cash when you sell.

[GypsySunworshiper]

Nah , although a trailer park works for some i don't think that would be something I would be interested in. Since I posted this thread I have some what been talked out of the whole rv thing. Now I have a whole set of new concerns as to what I am going to ultimately do. Thanks for the post. I stumbled upon it today and realized I had responses still coming in. Thanks everyone for trying to help.

[John23]

It's a great idea.

Something else you may want to consider is living on a houseboat/living on water. Wasn't there a story about it in the LA Times....maybe a few months ago? It can be done. I'm not sure about the costs though.

But still plenty of pros and cons to weigh.

[ms_rebel]

I grew up in Oxnard, CA. It's a nice little beach town in between LA and Santa Barbara. Being a single mother of two, I always wanted a house but never thought I'd have one. Long story, but with lots of hard work and some smart decisions, I bought a mobile home -sold that-, bought a REAL home....but it was in the desert. YUCK! I had a BIG, gorgeous home but no family, friends or beach nearby. I lived there for 5 miserable years. I sold it in June '07 (just before things got REALLY bad) and moved back to Ventura County.

My oldest son lives on his own now but my teen still lives with me full time and we have two cats. I'd resigned my teaching position and thought of renting and waiting out the market a little longer while prices slipped down to a more affordable level (it's still going down). But I know I hate to rent, so I bought a gorgeous 2 y/o 40 ft. 5th wheel toy hauler with two large sliders for $31,000 cash. We pulled out the bike stands in the back, put down plywood, padding and carpet and made a room for my son. His old captain's bed and computer desk fit in there easily.

We've been here for nearly a year and I'm very happy. I pay $650 for the site, water, sewer, electric and wifi. The sites are large with a patio and small grassy area. It's very quiet and located next to "everything" in town! I can walk pretty much anywhere I need....including the storage shed where all of my furniture is!! It's in the school district that I wanted for my son. He takes the bus to the HS where I worked for over a decade. I'm back to really LIVING as far as I'm concerned. I go out to clubs, listen to live music usually 2-3 nights a week, take advantage of the beach and nearby foothills just about every day. It's great!

The only downside for Oxnard is that the city has an ordinance that says you must move out every 6 months for 3 days then come back to a different spot (this is not the case in near-by Ventura). It's a hassle for me because I don't have a truck to move this rig....I pay someone, but I knew that going into it.

Anyway, if I can do it with all of my complications and needs, you should be able to do it easily.

[sheri257]

We actually flirted with this same idea but ... one visit to a couple of RV lots changed our minds. We felt like sardines in a can ... and this was with the luxury, larger models.

Also ... hauling these things can be quite complicated. Turns out our even our new Toyota Tundra truck wouldn't be powerful enough ... at least for the larger 5th wheel models we were looking at.