Torn between FT or House/Condo

Buy the Condo, you are obviously not sure. We have purchased a condo in the lakes region of NH and will fully retire and move there after we put the S&B for sale in the spring. The Condo allows us to just pick up and go or instead of coming home from Florida (Where we snowbird)in the spring. We can then head west, north,or northwest and spend a couple more months seeing this country. We know that there will come a day when one or both of us will no longer be able to go and it will be nice have a place that either one can stay without any worry.

I purchased a good used 33 foot Travel Trailer for about $20K Plus I had to purchase a 3/4 ton Pickup truck as a tow truck (I need to replace my older car any way).

My yearly budget is $3K for fuel, $3K for Camping I stay at NP COE and other Federal Land with the Senior discount. I also boondock often. and $3K for food since I do not eat out often. I like to cook. $3K to cover other expenses. Total $12K a year.

One can purchase a lot of fuel for what you pay or taxes, insurances, upkeep and utilities on a home/condo . . . . :B

Hi,

Buy the condo. Use the residue of the selling price to buy a modest RV. Go camping!

If you are not sure about the RV lifestyle, you're not ready. For us, depreciation is of no consequence; it's the grand appreciation we have for all the new places we've been able to see and appreciate. It's the moving on to that new adventure many times every year. It's the Appreciation in lifestyle which greatly increases every time we hitch up. Just thinking about having to stay put at the same address or feeling like we have to "get back" just because it's there, makes me Appreciate what we now have even more.

Unless you are the lead dog, the view never changes...:) :)

Cobra21 wrote:
I would look at clean 4-6 year old units that have already taken the Big Hit.
Tour and host a few years, if you have had enough of that life style, you'll
come out a lot better!

X2

Airstreams seem to be increasing in value especially the older ones.

Here's the way my DW and I look at it....we keep our RVs for a long time.
17 years for our previous TT and our current 5th wheel is 20 years old.

We feel we got our money's worth out of both of them. We actually sold the TT for nearly what we paid for it due to a good economy at the time. Our 5th wheel after 20 years would sell for about 1/3 of what we paid.

A buddy bought a vacation home and after several years he said he wished he had bought an RV. The reason--- he felt compelled to use the vacation house and was tired of always going to the same place. The RV would have provided variety.

Do some calculating, what would a 24 month vacation cost you in hotel rooms and 3 meals a day. Compare that to what the depreciation would be on a 2 year old mh, 5er or tt if you already own a pickup, don't buy new, you lose 20%+ the minute you sign the paper. See what the difference is. The balance of your money can be in a 24 month CD getting interest while you try out the FT experience. If you don't like it, sell the RV and buy your condo. It is better to have tried and know than to not have tried and always wonder. Life is short enough without adding in the "I wishes".

We are 3/4 timers, we have a grandparents trailer (12X60) on our oldest daughter's property and she handles all our mail. We pay everything by credit card and have auto withdraw set up on the cards so there is only the taxes and misc medical bills that have to be handled. Our daughter forwards us these if she is too busy to handle them for us, otherwise she pays everything as she is on all our accounts. We are "home" 1 month out of every 4. The rest of the time we follow the weather and visit family and do all the things we did not have time for while working. We are on a tight budget, but it is worth it, we are not rich in monetary means, but we are in experiences and friendships. After all, I have never seen a brinks armor truck behind a hearse.

So much depends upon your finances, age, abilities, etc, etc.

Where are you located?