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We will be retiring in about 5 yrs. I'd always thought that I would like to retire to an RV/ trailer and travel as the wind blows. My hubbie wants to retire to a "real" house. Anyone out there who retired "on the move"? How is it? Is it cheaper? How old are you and how long do you plan on traveling? Any and all info appreciated.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Quite a few comments on RV forum and some threads here.
I am not FT RV. (https://escapees.com/ is the place to meet them)
I keep a few rural places across USA that have main house rented, and a shop / with apartment RV hook-ups for me.
These are inexpensive (<$100k) and ez to rent. They are near major airports so I leave a CHEAP car there, as well as my RV might end up there if I decide to fly somewhere else for a season.
Fuel costs can be significant for fulltimers.
hint: Buy a USED platinum similar membership to Thousand Trails or the like (with 360 days "in park" allowed) Used are about 1/10th new price, and new memberships are very restrictive in stays. (need to move every 10 days - 2 weeks).
South Dakota is a good place to Domicile (one night / lifetime requirement + Income tax free) Montana is a preferred place to register RV (No sales tax, no emissions / no safety inspections) There are companies that will set up your MT LLC to own your vehicle(s).
RV configurations vary with taste, those who like to stay put enjoy 5th wheel, those on the move like a Class A and a 'toad' (jeep or car behind RV).
Buying NEW RV will cost a bundle, there are lots of used options.
I prefer a Class B (conversion Van) and I stay in Hospitality homes ($10/night) frequently. Usually I stay on farms, so plenty of RV parking and things to do and room to roam.. (I enjoy this, not for the more conventional traveler that has other preferences). In 25 yrs, I have had some great experiences, and only a couple that were memorable but no desire to repeat.) http://wikitravel.org/en/Hospitality_exchange
My FT friends lasted about 10 yrs on the road. Some prefer about 4 yrs and see 90% of what they desired. Some find an ideal spot to retire, Many do Workamper and church building / Habitat projects
If your husband wants to retire to a house, I don't see how you will pull off an RV lifestyle. RV living is not for everyone and full time RV living will appeal to an even smaller number of people.
If you are interested, the first issue will be downsizing. You really need to prune down to the essentials. You will probably still need storage for family photos, keepsakes, etc. Take a look at everything you think you will need for RV living and then cut it back again and again.
Next consider the RV and how you want to live. For a great many a full time RV needs to be a big class A or a 5th wheel. They often end up not traveling much and living in RV or trailer parks with all the hookups and often a pool, common area and nearby everything. Others of us want to travel and see the national parks and others places of great beauty. If that is the case consider going much smaller. Give up on towing an RV big enough to include a laundry. Consider a small trailer, well under 30'. My wife and I went even smaller and full timed for a couple of years in a truck camper. Consider getting by without hookups. Get a decent battery bank and add solar panels. Learn how to conserve water and do "Navy" showers. Seriously consider a used RV. New RVs depreciate at a very rapid rate and you can find great used units for well less than half the price of new.
Going small, light and avoiding RV and trailer parks will allow very low cost living. I spent an average of about $7/day for campsites. Some were the Walmart parking lot when traveling cross country. I also camped on BLM land, in national forests and national parks. I used hookups only a handful of times a year. I found I spent less money on food than when living in a house. We just ate differently with less fancy meals. Propane for cooking and daily showers and occasional use of the furnace averaged less than $10/month. Diesel fuel was the biggest expense especially at 13 mpg. Even so the cost of fuel was reasonable. We only traveled long distances a few days a month.
We will be retiring in about 5 yrs. I'd always thought that I would like to retire to an RV/ trailer and travel as the wind blows. My hubbie wants to retire to a "real" house. Anyone out there who retired "on the move"? How is it? Is it cheaper? How old are you and how long do you plan on traveling? Any and all info appreciated.
I can only tell you what happened to my parents after they both retired (Mom at 58 and Dad at 66)...BOTH healthy on retirement.
First they moved from Miami, FL to Sebring, FL so they be out of the 'Miami madness' and have a home base. Next, they bought an almost new 28ft Winnebago and towed my Dad's smaller pick-up truck behind it...and began to go camping between Sebring and AL/GA at different big campsights they found in one of the GNS type clubs. Life was really fun and good about 3 yrs, and then Mom began getting 'sores' in her mouth (like many canker sores) and bruises from nothing. Shortly after, she was diagnosed with MDS (Mylelodysplasia Syndrome which is one of the blood cancers...and it ends with turning into the worst of the Leukemias, AML). She began chemo and they took the Winnebago back and forth to the big teaching hospital where she had to have chemo and experimental drugs in clinical trials in Tampa, FL (Moffitt is one of the Centers of Excellence for MDS). I don't think they ever went 'camping' again.
The Winnebago sits in the driveway and was a good 'hotel' for family over the 7 years it took our mom to dwindle to AML and die. Dad is now 85, lives alone, and is too old and crippled from taking care of Mom for those 7 yrs and her falling on him several times, to drive very far. He cannot drive more than to the local Walmart 7 min away for groceries.
Sorry, it's not a wonderful story filled with tails of their travels, but it's the truth. My Mom wasn't sick a day in her life prior to her getting MDS, though she smoked for 50+ yrs (it might be a link to MDS).
This sort of story isn't all that UNcommon, and as a RN I have seen it happen many times to people who worked their whole lives, finally retired, and ended up in our ER or ICU with stroke or heart attacks, etc.
Just know this all more for the MONEY INVESTMENT and maybe save a ton by buying a 'camper' like my parents owned and truly didn't have a couple thousand miles on it when it became the HOTEL in the driveway. I hope you and hubby are both healthy and get to do a lot of fun things, regardless of where and how you do them.
I think it may be helpful to the OP to hear that only a fraction of people who think they will retire on the move in an RV actually end up doing it long term. Coupling that with the OP mentioning that her husband isn't on board with the idea and IMO some cautionary tales are in order.
I don't want to sidetrack the thread, but just some basic reading on MDS can be helpful.
It seems to be more prevalent in men, for one thing.
"Smoking increases the risk of MDS. Many people know that smoking can cause cancers of the lungs, mouth, throat, larynx, and other organs, but few realize that it can also affect areas that do not come into direct contact with smoke. Cancer-causing substances in tobacco smoke are absorbed into the blood as it passes through the lungs. Once in the bloodstream, these substances spread to many parts of the body."
Smoking also can cause bladder cancer. Lost my heavy smoking B-I-L due to this a few years back.
Getting back to the thread, I think, as most have already stated, that it would be a good idea to rent an RV and trial it for about 6 months. If you have no issues in that short period of time, try 6 more months and keep a running log on the pros and cons. Obviously, if there are more cons, it probably isn't a good venture.
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I can only tell you what happened to my parents after they both retired (Mom at 58 and Dad at 66)...BOTH healthy on retirement.
