Our full time rv experience journal

rkortes wrote:

American Roadtrip wrote:

rkortes wrote:

Old-Biscuit wrote:

American Roadtrip wrote:
Thanks all!

Old-biscuit, we also maintain a debt-free lifestyle which is what allows us do do this! Will never, ever get another credit card or loan. It's sad how many people of our generation and younger are completely saddled by debt.

Debt free is liberating.

But you do need 'credit'......everything works off 'credit'
I have excellent credit by having credit cards and getting loans.
Just use the CCs and pay them off at end of month (no different than pay as you go). Same with loans......get them then pay them off

Debt free allowed me to retire at 50. THE BEST! FTng was 2nd best.

Actually using CC is waaaay different than cash. With a credit card purchase you have much more recourse with a vendor if something goes awry. Also, when on the road, it makes more sense NOT to carry a bunch of cash. I agree to pay off monthly.

I hate to break it to you guys, but if you owe, even if you pay monthly you are still in debt. The idea that you need to build credit tricked a lot of people into usury and materialism. You never own anything until it is payed off. If you pay for it at once, regardless of economical collapse or bad fortune, it's yours. Most people end up paying more for things than what they are worth because of late fees and interest rates. If you have the cash to pay for everything in your life, you don't need a credit score. I am not saying that you guys haven't kept up, but the younger generation is out spending way more than what they have and owing more than what their "things" are worth. They aren't saving money.

Also, you can always use a debit card like a credit card. Having some cash isn't a bad idea, even in an rv. There are ways to hide your money. Just look at what happened in Greece when people couldn't get their money out of the banks. Anything can happen, even in the States.

Thanks for the breaking news! :-/

Suffice it to say, I'm cool using other people's money for free... Been working for me for the last 40 years. Aaaand, it I have a problem with a purchase, the CC company is (and has been) in my corner. To each his own I guess.

BTW... I'm not a worse case scenario guy... I live on the edge baby.

Thanks for sharing your point of view! I was in no means trying to preach. I have worked as a barber for years and have seen a lot of kids get stuck in debt with student loans, and then start working and not make what they expected to. It seems like a hard way to start. I have not always made the best decisions, while my wife on the other hand is genius with money.

rkortes wrote:

jorbill2or wrote:
I don't think most folks are making a lot off advertising .. Esp blogspot which is a free site to blog on but .....nothing is free! so the advertising pays for site to exist. Those that do monitize the site are doing it to afford the lifestyle and they aren't making much :-) esp since I don't click on the ad . But hey it can allow them to possibly write off their travel expense as research :-)
Personally I'm so used to reading several blogs that I pay no attention to the ads Just like watching a OTA. Tv station there are ads to pay the bills ( I go get a beer) :-)

X2... If they're making a few bucks, more power to them.

I'm with you guys. Thanks for your replies. A lot of people get down on people promoting their blogs on here. We have advertisements, but so does every other page on the web, including your email. I just ignore the ads. Nobody is making big bucks. I was once accused of "guerilla advertising"because I asked for suggestions. I took the time to write the content because I want to share it with people as opposed to have it sit in a corner unnoticed getting dusty. I worked full time most of my life and would do all my creative work late at night. I used to dream of having a schedule where I could write more. Now I have the time. It's not something I expect to make a lot of money off of, but if I can why not? Everyone has to promote themselves to make a living one way or another anyway. We have had hundreds view our page since I posted, as opposed to hardly any 6 months before. It's nice to see that people are reading. Thanks again for the positive feedback!

jorbill2or wrote:
I don't think most folks are making a lot off advertising .. Esp blogspot which is a free site to blog on but .....nothing is free! so the advertising pays for site to exist. Those that do monitize the site are doing it to afford the lifestyle and they aren't making much :-) esp since I don't click on the ad . But hey it can allow them to possibly write off their travel expense as research :-)
Personally I'm so used to reading several blogs that I pay no attention to the ads Just like watching a OTA. Tv station there are ads to pay the bills ( I go get a beer) :-)

X2... If they're making a few bucks, more power to them.

American Roadtrip wrote:

rkortes wrote:

Old-Biscuit wrote:

American Roadtrip wrote:
Thanks all!

Old-biscuit, we also maintain a debt-free lifestyle which is what allows us do do this! Will never, ever get another credit card or loan. It's sad how many people of our generation and younger are completely saddled by debt.

Debt free is liberating.

But you do need 'credit'......everything works off 'credit'
I have excellent credit by having credit cards and getting loans.
Just use the CCs and pay them off at end of month (no different than pay as you go). Same with loans......get them then pay them off

Debt free allowed me to retire at 50. THE BEST! FTng was 2nd best.

Actually using CC is waaaay different than cash. With a credit card purchase you have much more recourse with a vendor if something goes awry. Also, when on the road, it makes more sense NOT to carry a bunch of cash. I agree to pay off monthly.

I hate to break it to you guys, but if you owe, even if you pay monthly you are still in debt. The idea that you need to build credit tricked a lot of people into usury and materialism. You never own anything until it is payed off. If you pay for it at once, regardless of economical collapse or bad fortune, it's yours. Most people end up paying more for things than what they are worth because of late fees and interest rates. If you have the cash to pay for everything in your life, you don't need a credit score. I am not saying that you guys haven't kept up, but the younger generation is out spending way more than what they have and owing more than what their "things" are worth. They aren't saving money.

Also, you can always use a debit card like a credit card. Having some cash isn't a bad idea, even in an rv. There are ways to hide your money. Just look at what happened in Greece when people couldn't get their money out of the banks. Anything can happen, even in the States.

Thanks for the breaking news! :-/

Suffice it to say, I'm cool using other people's money for free... Been working for me for the last 40 years. Aaaand, it I have a problem with a purchase, the CC company is (and has been) in my corner. To each his own I guess.

BTW... I'm not a worse case scenario guy... I live on the edge baby.

I don't think most folks are making a lot off advertising .. Esp blogspot which is a free site to blog on but .....nothing is free! so the advertising pays for site to exist. Those that do monitize the site are doing it to afford the lifestyle and they aren't making much :-) esp since I don't click on the ad . But hey it can allow them to possibly write off their travel expense as research :-)
Personally I'm so used to reading several blogs that I pay no attention to the ads Just like watching a OTA. Tv station there are ads to pay the bills ( I go get a beer) :-)

rkortes wrote:

Old-Biscuit wrote:

American Roadtrip wrote:
Thanks all!

Old-biscuit, we also maintain a debt-free lifestyle which is what allows us do do this! Will never, ever get another credit card or loan. It's sad how many people of our generation and younger are completely saddled by debt.

Debt free is liberating.

But you do need 'credit'......everything works off 'credit'
I have excellent credit by having credit cards and getting loans.
Just use the CCs and pay them off at end of month (no different than pay as you go). Same with loans......get them then pay them off

Debt free allowed me to retire at 50. THE BEST! FTng was 2nd best.

Actually using CC is waaaay different than cash. With a credit card purchase you have much more recourse with a vendor if something goes awry. Also, when on the road, it makes more sense NOT to carry a bunch of cash. I agree to pay off monthly.

I hate to break it to you guys, but if you owe, even if you pay monthly you are still in debt. The idea that you need to build credit tricked a lot of people into usury and materialism. You never own anything until it is payed off. If you pay for it at once, regardless of economical collapse or bad fortune, it's yours. Most people end up paying more for things than what they are worth because of late fees and interest rates. If you have the cash to pay for everything in your life, you don't need a credit score. I am not saying that you guys haven't kept up, but the younger generation is out spending way more than what they have and owing more than what their "things" are worth. They aren't saving money.

Also, you can always use a debit card like a credit card. Having some cash isn't a bad idea, even in an rv. There are ways to hide your money. Just look at what happened in Greece when people couldn't get their money out of the banks. Anything can happen, even in the States.

Old-Biscuit wrote:
...

Sorry but I don't go to blogs.

...

I don't mind the blogs, per se. It's the bloggers who use their blogs to generate income by including advertising, usually down the righthand side of the screen, that annoy me.

I like to think that a blog is like someone's diary/journal and not something to be monetized.

Old-Biscuit wrote:

American Roadtrip wrote:
Thanks all!

Old-biscuit, we also maintain a debt-free lifestyle which is what allows us do do this! Will never, ever get another credit card or loan. It's sad how many people of our generation and younger are completely saddled by debt.

Debt free is liberating.

But you do need 'credit'......everything works off 'credit'
I have excellent credit by having credit cards and getting loans.
Just use the CCs and pay them off at end of month (no different than pay as you go). Same with loans......get them then pay them off

Debt free allowed me to retire at 50. THE BEST! FTng was 2nd best.

Actually using CC is waaaay different than cash. With a credit card purchase you have much more recourse with a vendor if something goes awry. Also, when on the road, it makes more sense NOT to carry a bunch of cash. I agree to pay off monthly.

Steeljag wrote:
Road trip - Have you estimated a monthly cost ? Gas, campgrounds, food, entertainment, etc ? Wife and I are investigating a 30 foot C class mainly due to us prefering state, national and county parks which seem to have smaller sites, and we have covered parking for 35 feet.

No plans on our part to go full time, but just to expand our travels to a few months at a time!

I plan to read some more of your blog in the morning over coffee. It's been an interesting read so far!

Safe travels!

Thanks for reading! It is about the same if you are moving a lot, but if you find a decent campground and stay longer it is cheaper. Longer stays in one place so far seems to be a way to keep the budget down. We are on the move now so it isn't cheap. Next year we will be moving a lot less. Food is our biggest expense. Getting a fishing license in most states is also expensive. I don't want to feel like I need to catch a lot all of the time to make it worth it, but when I can I try to keep the freezer at least three quarters full. We go out to eat when it seems like a place will really be worth it, otherwise if we are in a state or national park I wood hawk and put some potatoes, fish, and corn on the grill. The dogs get the fish heads grilled and love it.

Road trip - Have you estimated a monthly cost ? Gas, campgrounds, food, entertainment, etc ? Wife and I are investigating a 30 foot C class mainly due to us prefering state, national and county parks which seem to have smaller sites, and we have covered parking for 35 feet.

No plans on our part to go full time, but just to expand our travels to a few months at a time!

I plan to read some more of your blog in the morning over coffee. It's been an interesting read so far!

Safe travels!