Define termination of full time rv ing

Definition.....

When you quit doing whatever it was that you were doing when you where full timing in your way of doing it.

noplace2 wrote:
We have been fulltime traveling RVers for nearly 14 years.

For the life of me I still don't understand the need to label and/or categorize what we or anyone else does.

X2

We have been fulltime traveling RVers for nearly 14 years.

For the life of me I still don't understand the need to label and/or categorize what we or anyone else does.

wildtoad wrote:
I'm not sure just because you use an RV as your full time residence that it is the same as being a full time rv'er. Just a thought.

I tend to define several classes of 'full-timers'

1) Workers with full-time jobs who use the RV to keep their family together as they move from workplace to workplace.

(I knew some families which did this during the summer back as long ago as 1962 - pipeline construction. They didn't have RVs, they pulled under 35' regular mobile homes because no permits were required in most states. Those were purchased cheap and usually trash after 2-3,000 miles of travel in a summer. They didn't have tanks, RV appliances, and a build to withstand frequent travel.)

2) Full-time workers whose jobs require having an RV and/or the ability to move from location to location and setup again quickly.

3) Work-campers who make their living on the road which allows them to move to various locations.

3.A.) Volunteers, park hosts, etc - who use the months in one place to help finance the rest of their travels.

4) Retirees who travel using their savings / retirement income to fund their travels. This group includes some snowbirds who spend several months in one location.

4.A.) Retirees who find traveling extensively no longer possible, either due to health or finances. They have settled in one place.

Almost all have sold the S&B home, and the RV is their only residence. Though groups 1 & 2 may not have sold the home.

The mental shift from a traditional home to a gypsy lifestyle. And almost all of us will end up in group 4.A. or going back to a S&B home.

We have the same issues with possible multiple state income taxes, where to establish a domicile, finding base doctors and health care on the road, etc.

Groups #1 and #2 are the largest number or people, and almost never visit forums like this.

#3 & #3A are most of us, with #4 being strong - but #4A is growing as we get older.

Joe & Kay Peterson, who founded Escapees, are examples of the transitions. They started in group #1 and started moving toward #3. Eventually they ended up as #4A before selling their last RV.

Welcome to the trailer hood.

It really begs the question of what is fulltiming? Is it that you spend your full time in an RV touring the country? Move from time to time, place to place. If you buy a fifth wheel ( as an example) park it in the woods, or campground and live in it, never move it. Is that "fultiming"? I'm not sure just because you use an RV as your full time residence that it is the same as being a full time rv'er. Just a thought.

Declining health is a big reason folks stop full-timing. We tend to be an older segment of the population.

Another reason is that replacing a 15-20 year old motorhome, or trailer, is fantastically more expensive that it was when folks started full-timing.

RV maintenance guys in snowbird areas have dozens of stories of folks who started out full-timing with a good income and cushion. It only takes a major few repairs to make a rig expensive. The loss of buying power from a fixed income and the escalating cost of rigs leave with them with a rig they cannot afford to fix, or replace.

Cant answer your question but I look upon those faded, worn, high mileage RV's with a sense of envy. Sure they look rough but they must have had a grand time getting that way.