What are some of the disadvantages of beginning full timing?

You gotta get rid of all the stuff in your home.

^^ that. It's a real pita.

If you have a paid for home, you would be stupid to sell it. You could either rent it out but you have to get rid of your stuff or store it. You could do like we do. We are on the road about 9 months and then are home for the rest

Call me.
We can discuss.

dons2346 wrote:
If you have a paid for home, you would be stupid to sell it. You could either rent it out...

I don't think I'd go so far as to call it stupid. If you're in your golden years it's nice to cash out and have all the money to do what you want.

Many think it's stupid to rent it out. Being an absentee landlord is not something I'd consider a great idea.

dons2346 wrote:
If you have a paid for home, you would be stupid to sell it. You could either rent it out but you have to get rid of your stuff or store it. You could do like we do. We are on the road about 9 months and then are home for the rest

There are 3 problems with this plan.
1. If you keep the home you have the expense of the empty home.
2. Most insurance companies will not insure an empty for more than 30 days home.
3. When you sell the home you may not be able to deduct the capital gains on the home unless you have lived in the home for 2 of the last 5 years.

Do as I did, pretend you have died and get rid of the stuff your kids will need to get rid of when you really die -- they will thank you when you do die. As a fulltimeer for 10 years, my budget is $10 to $12 per night for camping since I camp at government land at half price and dry camp or boondock free often. My biggest expense is for fuel but I stay 7 to 14 days at a campsite. Thus I live on $10,000 to $15,000 a year.

You didn't say how old you are. Just remember that at some point, due to age and/or health issues, you will more than likely have to come off the road. What will you do then? Around here, it's referred to as having an exit plan.

It's a very BAD idea to sell a home and put the money into an RV. RVs depreciate quite badly, and it will be worth much less when you sell one, as opposed to real estate, which usually appreciates. Fortunately, you already HAVE an RV, so you don't need to sell your home in order to buy one.

You're in Miami. Do you LIKE spending winters there? It's an ideal place to 'reverse snowbird'. Visit Canada, Alaska, and the northern part of the US during warm weather and return to your home for the winter.

Would your home be a good place to spend your last years in? Does it have stairs you would need to climb to get to the bedrooms? Could the bathrooms be adapted to serve someone in a wheelchair or using a walker?

Maybe you should sell it and PUT THE MONEY IN SAFE INVESTMENTS so it would be there to buy a new, more suitable home, when you come off the road.

If you have a paid for home, you would be stupid to sell it. You could either rent it out

I would not call it stupid either; It's a personal decision, we rented
out our paid off house for 20 years. In reflection, we should have sold it 20 years ago.

Dealing with renters was an ok experience but our final rented was the
"renter from hell" - Was so glad we finally sold the house. Remember
you have to be "available" if something in the house needs attention,
tough when you're 2,000 miles away.

From a financial perspective - it was a wash; capital gains was a killer.

At the end income = expenses (just).

Optimistic Paranoid wrote:
It's a very BAD idea to sell a home and put the money into an RV. RVs depreciate quite badly, and it will be worth much less when you sell one, as opposed to real estate, which usually appreciates.

If all you're concerned with is appreciation on your money, then yes, it is a bad idea. If you're concerned with cashing out your life's work, hitting the road and having a carefree time, then no, it's not a BAD idea. It's certainly not universally, for everyone, a bad idea.

I also don't think it's a great idea to wish to be buried with your money,your house or your job.

As said Very personal decision and no "one fit" answer.
We Traveled for a year and kept our house but the hassles, repairs and worries weren't worth it! The value had skyrocketed the last few years,and the Value compared to almost anywhere we would settle was in some cases double. Withdrawing all that gain was a tax free gain. If you turn it into a rental there are possible tax consequences.
A year and a half ago we spent two months getting rid of, transferring to our kids what they wanted and sold our House. Paid off everybody and stashed the rest in a secure investment (our exit). I/We sleep very well now
No more taxes, insurance, upkeep etc etc on a place , a Tri Level large 4 bedroom home we came to realize we didn't want to deal with in our latter " Infirm" years and would sell anyway to buy a condo or small property.
The disadvantage if you have sold is you have no immediate place to return.You definitely cut ties with your church our other organizations etc that may be important to you. Was this one of you's dream home That selling wont set well? You run a risk that real estate will skyrocket and your safe investments will not buy a "equivalent" house if that is what you think you'll return to.
Good luck, and whatever you decide, make it together and review it frequently.