Torn between FT or House/Condo

[sheripoms]

I am torn between going FT or putting the money from the sale of our house into another house/condo.
I wish that there was a RV/Motorhome that kept its value over the course of a year or two so that we could try out FT without losing so much equity.
Ughhh what to do?????

[NYCgrrl]

I'm not going to fulltime but am planning a 1-2 year RV vacation after selling our primary residence. Most of the net profit will going into other money making ventures for older age but a percentage is being set aside for an RV, TV and other costs associated with the longterm adventure. I already purchased a replacement primary residence some years back so have no concerns on that level.

I would NEVER invest all my funds in an RV unless I was 110% sure that is the direction I wanted to go in for the rest of my life in good and poor health.

[bilmarde]

We sold out house last year planning to fulltime again. We had done it for a couple of years with our house rented. We bought a truck and truck camper - not the one in my signature - I need to change that. After a few months we started to think what if one had a serious medical condition and needed a place live. We purchased a condo to have a place to go and also shelter some funds if Medicaid is needed. We are in our mid 70s and yes we can live in a truck camper. Ours has two slides and we spend most of the time out side anyway.

[CKNSLS]

DianneOK wrote:
In our area...prices are nearly back to pre-recession...no rentals available and houses are snapped up immediately. If we could get what we think our place is worth, we would hit the road again.

Then again....the fulltime road is a different place now....think I will stay in my little corner of paradise, which we never would have found if we hadn't fulltimed for 9 years.

That's why I asked the OP where he/she was located. So I could give him/her an educated answer as far as real estate was concerned.

They never answered me.......

[DianneOK]

In our area...prices are nearly back to pre-recession...no rentals available and houses are snapped up immediately. If we could get what we think our place is worth, we would hit the road again.

Then again....the fulltime road is a different place now....think I will stay in my little corner of paradise, which we never would have found if we hadn't fulltimed for 9 years.

[Kidsgone]

You don't say where you are located, but in our area (Space Coast, FL) property values are finally starting to climb. If you aren't 100% sure what you want to do, downsize to the condo, with enough left over to buy a MH/TT and travel months at a time. We did just that 3 yrs ago and use the condo as our home base, but don't blink twice if we want to close up and leave for 3-4 months. Last year, we were gone for 3 months, back for about 6 wks for doctors appts, then hit the road again. Great lifestyle by the way.
If you're not sure about full timing right away, in my opinion, go for the condo, travel when and as long as you want. Then if you decide to full time...rent the condo.
Safe travels
Andi

[John_Joey]

If all you're thinking about is a year or two of FT'ing then it's really not that hard of a decision. I would do the 5'ver/truck combo for the least amount of depreciation and still having an appropriate rig for long term living. Buy used and you should be fine when it comes to selling them in a couple of years.

If you decide to continue then you have the option of keeping them or upgrading to something better now that you had real life knowledge of what works and doesn't on the road. You can read all the forums and blogs each and every day, yet still never really understand what works for you until you live the life.

Very few FT'ers I've met have been on the road for over five years. So keep that in mind when you're planning on how to spend your house proceeds.

Good luck on your choice. I think you will do just fine, since you're being very honest, and not romancing the lifestyle.

[RoadLife]

pianotuna wrote:
Hi,

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

X2. Or buy an RV that's 5-10 years old and put the condo money in savings. You never know, on your journeys you may find that perfect town that you want to live in. And have your RV to go visiting family.

[loulou57]

n7bsn wrote:
Some years back a (retireing) co-worker took out a mortgage on their home, used the proceeds to buy a good used MH. They then leased out the home (their kids lived nearby and could watch it, repair, etc) and hit the road.

Some years later, the renters had paid enough for them to have enough equity for them to get a newer MH.

They did that cycle twice.

Later they then decided they had seen everything in North America, that they could drive to, that they wanted to. They terminated the lease, sold the DP and used that money to refurbish the house and moved back in.

During the years they were on the road the renters had paid off the mortgage and paid for some of their capital costs for the RVs.

They now have a small RV, suitable for short trips, and are back in their home the rest of the time

Sounds good to me. We only have to wait 20 years for hubby to retire. I hope this idea is still attainable then.

[n7bsn]

Some years back a (retireing) co-worker took out a mortgage on their home, used the proceeds to buy a good used MH. They then leased out the home (their kids lived nearby and could watch it, repair, etc) and hit the road.

Some years later, the renters had paid enough for them to have enough equity for them to get a newer MH.

They did that cycle twice.

Later they then decided they had seen everything in North America, that they could drive to, that they wanted to. They terminated the lease, sold the DP and used that money to refurbish the house and moved back in.

During the years they were on the road the renters had paid off the mortgage and paid for some of their capital costs for the RVs.

They now have a small RV, suitable for short trips, and are back in their home the rest of the time

[loulou57]

Grandpere wrote:
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.

It sounds like you have the best of both worlds. We are glad to hear you have found a way to enjoy life.

[JW_of_Opechee_S]

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.

[TenOC]

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

[pianotuna]

Hi,

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

[MTPockets1]

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.