It's all a big waste. House vs RV

[Fastfwd75]

I am in the process of getting the RV ready for a 2 month travel this summer. We are a family of 4 and currently live in a midsize house; nothing special. Average for the area.

The RV is 24' overall. 2 bunks, 1 queen bed and a single u-dinette; no sofa. Some storage under the bed and more in the 6,5' pickup bed.

It's really not that hard to bring everything we need for everyday life. Doing laundry at campgrounds will be somewhat inconvenient and not having high speed wifi daily. All the rest of the house and stuff is really just waste and luxury.

We can cook for 4 on a small portable grill. Should have got that with the foldable legs instead of the big grill we have at home. Now I have one huge extra grill with terrible resale value.
We can use the campground pools. Why maintain a pool at home for such little use?
So many chairs, sofas and areas around the house. Why have a whole bedroom just for sleeping?

We cannot fulltime with the family. Winter is coming 😉 and "mobile" home parks are not somewhere we want our kids to go to school near. We need separate space year round for cooking/working and to have the kids play inside during winter or rain. Still seems like a lot of waste.

[RetSgt7114]

BobR wrote:
I am getting to the point where "Less is More".

I hear ya.

[michigansandzil]

I know what you mean. We have 3 school aged kids and need a home, (bravo to those that full time with kids, it's not for us).

This spring we stayed in the 30 foot camper for 11 days. When we came home my kitchen seemed unnecessarily large. Too much stuff!

[Community Alumni]

We don't full-time, we half-time. We spend 6 months a year living in our rv which includes a 3 month stint south in the winter. It's surprising how little space and stuff you really need. At home we maintain a 2-story house with 7 1/2 rooms and have often thought about downsizing to a smaller condo. We've had friends say that we would find it very hard to downsize. I just simply state that we live in an rv half the year so downsizing would be a piece if cake for us! :C

[NYCgrrl]

BobR wrote:
I am getting to the point where "Less is More".

Getting to that point as well but surely enjoyed my Rococo periods.
Different times in life need different "stuff".

[BobR]

I am getting to the point where "Less is More".

[FunnyCamper]

too much stuff can be a waste.

but alot of the stuff I have I WANT AND AIN'T GIVING IT UP for nothing 🙂

it is up to the individual to choose how they want to live. their stuff is what they want. sure some is extra junk we don't need. I am a minimalist type. I got rid of the junk and kept what I want.

we work. we aren't going to up and live in an rv right now. pensions and all that are too good to walk away----just yet. and kid's friends etc. BUT when that time is right...oh baby I am getting rid of 'most of the stuff' and hitting the road for good!!

[RayGToo]

DutchmenSport wrote:
Well, although I often dream of full timing, when it really comes down to it, I think I do enjoy home ownership. We have property in the country, and a 2800 square foot house all on 1 floor. With corn fields and bean fields for neighbors, we really enjoy our privacy.

-snip-

I love my camper, but I also love my house, and I guess I still love to piddle around, but I do love to vegetate when camping. And really, sometimes I wonder why we go to State Parks to camp and such when we've got more privacy, solitude, peace and quiet, and DARK night right here at home! Oh well. I suppose we go because sometimes the hermits have to come out of their holes!

To each his own I guess!

X2. If I want peace and quiet, I stay home. Not going to find that at most campgrounds. Different strokes for different folks.

[Go_Dogs]

It was interesting reading the post about the elderly couple that had worked so hard to maintain their home, only to end up in a nursing home.

I grew up in a blue-collar neighborhood. Just about everyone worked in the steel industry. We all know what happened to those steel mills. Anyhow, I did home health nursing. Lots of my patients had lived in their homes for decades. They had replaced everything twice over, (roof, flooring, furnace, windows, etc). I saw a lot of widows that lived in really nice, well maintained homes in what had become a bad neighborhood.
Once the patient either died, or went to a nursing home-the grown kids had to deal with the house. None of the kids wanted to live there as neighborhood had gone downhill. The house was practically worthless to sell, and often became a rental property.
So, after the parents pumped tons of money into this home, over the years-the family saw it go to pot.

So, times change. It used to be wise to maintain your home as your biggest investment-that's not always the smartest way to go.

[DutchmenSport]

Well, although I often dream of full timing, when it really comes down to it, I think I do enjoy home ownership. We have property in the country, and a 2800 square foot house all on 1 floor. With corn fields and bean fields for neighbors, we really enjoy our privacy.

I've always been a "fixer-upper" person. If I don't have something to fiddle with, I go nuts. I love to vegetate around a campfire, maybe because I work hard with my brain on the job and my body at home. I'm currently remodeling our large family room. It's 37 feet long and 22 feet wide. Two of my campers would fit in that room. I just finished all the dry-wall work, and have the ceiling repainted and walls painted now. Next step is to lay the slate tiles on the floor (no vinyl or carpet this time!).. and that's a LOT of tile!

I guess I enjoy my "toys" too much too. I have 2 John Deere mowers, a 135 and a 735 model. The 735 has the mower deck and the 60 inch snow blower attachment. I have a Sears snow blower too, a 27 ton log splitter, 2 generators, and a push lawn mower. A utility trailer, a 4 car dis-attached garage and a 1 car attached garage that is my wood shop.

I installed a 30 amp service on my garage so I can hook up the camper, built a fire pit in the back yard, and redid my septic system so I can dump my black tank in the trailer. I've plumbed the house so I can connect the trailer through the filtered water - soft water system (that cost over $4000 to install - but worth every penny).

I love my camper, but I also love my house, and I guess I still love to piddle around, but I do love to vegetate when camping. And really, sometimes I wonder why we go to State Parks to camp and such when we've got more privacy, solitude, peace and quiet, and DARK night right here at home! Oh well. I suppose we go because sometimes the hermits have to come out of their holes!

To each his own I guess!

[Ragin_Cajun]

Great thoughts on this subject...If I had to live in a camper with kids...large toyhauler would be my choice, still smaller than the house 🙂

[Lantley]

For me the spirit of travel and adventure are a integral part of the full time experience vs. just being stationary living in a RV.

[2oldman]

restlesswind wrote:
fulltime means different things to different people.

I guess, but I don't think the spirit of the Fulltime forum is to talk about permanent residence with kids and jobs in a trailer park.

[restlesswind]

rockhillmanor wrote:

Fastfwd75 wrote:
....We cannot fulltime with the family. Winter is coming 😉 and "mobile" home parks are not somewhere we want our kids to go to school near. We need separate space year round for cooking/working and to have the kids play inside during winter or rain. .....

IMHO the confusion lies with just what Full Time "RV'ING" is.

Full Time RV'ING is 'traveling' in an RV. Often done upon retirement when the kids are all gone.

LIVING with a young family in an trailer permanently parked in a mobile home park does NOT constitute Full time "RV'ing".

So,just what would you call it.
Fulltime means different things to different people.Those who make two moves a year,south for winter,back north for the rest of the year,all the while living in their RV.That's fulltiming,whats the difference if they decide not to move.What would they then be called?
We have seen many folks that end up in one spot,for whatever reason,that have traveled "fulltime"in the past,and are now parked permanantly.Is there a name for them?

[rockhillmanor]

Fastfwd75 wrote:
....We cannot fulltime with the family. Winter is coming 😉 and "mobile" home parks are not somewhere we want our kids to go to school near. We need separate space year round for cooking/working and to have the kids play inside during winter or rain. .....

IMHO the confusion lies with just what Full Time "RV'ING" is.

Full Time RV'ING is 'traveling' in an RV. Often done upon retirement when the kids are all gone.

LIVING with a young family in an trailer permanently parked in a mobile home park does NOT constitute Full time "RV'ing".