No more rent moving to an RV

[IwantanRV25]

Hi everyone. My wife and I are planning to purchase a 5th wheel and pickup truck. We pay 2,000 a month for house rent plus utilities, hoa etc... we just decided to move to an RV rental parking place and finally I get to purchase a truck.
We won't travel allot, only on vacations because we have are jobs here in town.
Any tips on this idea? I was thinking of getting Ram 2500. They seem cheaper than a f250.

 

[Martian]

Great for you! Lots of us would like to live with no housing costs.
Please tell us where you can get free rv sites!

 

[rjshiflet]

My wife and I spend a month each year living in our fifth wheel in the same location for the entire period - and by the time the month is up, we are eager and ready to get back to our sticks-and-bricks home on 5 acres. The only "tips" I an give you is one word...PATIENCE.

Earlier this year we spent about three weeks in our fifth wheel, but that trip we were relocating on average every three to four days. That takes even more of a toll on you physically and mentally.

Figure you'll be living in approximately 1/10th of the space (thereabouts), not sure about your outside area but I suspect your outdoor space will be significantly less as well. If you have any issues with claustrophobia - get that worked out prior to embarking on this journey.

It can be done - and since you're renting not selling a home, you can always return to renting at some future point if it doesn't work out for the long haul.

Good luck - hopefully it will all go as planned.

 

[dabrooks]

I don't think anyone can give you advice on a truck until you tell us the size of your 5th wheel.

 

[NY_Dutch]

As a counterpoint to the previous negative post, my wife and I recently came off the road due to health reasons, after spending 13 years living full time in first a 33 foot no slide motorhome, and then a 34 foot super slide motorhome. At no time were we looking forward to moving out of the motorhome, and in fact we are still living in it parked next to our retirement cottage. We likely will move into the cottage shortly though due to the cold Upstate NY weather sucking propane too fast. Over the years, we moved on average every two weeks, favoring state and national parks except for occasional overnight stops enroute to our next park. We followed the weather, spending winters in southern Georgia and Florida, and summers mostly in Upstate NY, with spring and fall slowly moving from one to the other. Over the years, we found the parks we favored the most, and frequently returned to them, often getting the same sites. We don't regret a moment of those years on the road living in our RV, and have a lot of great memories to look back on.

 

[Larry N.]

Lots of good info for you above, both positive and negative. But your title for this thread says "No more rent." But, as Martian alludes to above, you'll still have rent somewhere unless you stay on BLM (mostly in the far west desert) in the no fee areas, or unless you own property that you'll park that trailer on. Many places could be as much as $40 to $80 or more a night, though weekly and monthly rates are often somewhat less.

On the other hand, if you're looking to see the country, to see the various beautiful areas that abound in this country, then an RV may be the way to go. Hope things work out well for you...

 

[Jackiemac]

Hi and welcome. You really need to know the weight of the 5th wheel before buying truck. You also need to consider the payload of the truck you buy.

You might need something bigger than a 2500 to allow you to safely tow it!

Note that salesmen don't always have sufficient knowledge to advise you on a truck. They often say anything to get you to buy.

Also consider getting a professional inspection of the 5th wheel you think about buying. Not cheap but might save you thousands.

Good luck.

 

[Ohiosnowbird]

Last year we traveled from December to April in our class C, with 5 cats. Our sticks-and-bricks is an off grid log cabin. While we like getting home, on the road is the best.

Since we got back we’ve just stayed in the camper on our property. Why? Off-grid means no electricity which means no air conditioning, not really. As we’ve gotta older we’ve realized that the heat really affects us. The past summer was unbearably hot so we attached the camper to our whole house generator, and slept and hung out in the RV where there was air conditioning. We used the log cabin kitchen for cooking which is a very nice kitchen but that’s it. The cats come and go when we’re here (but not when we travel). What we learned is that it is a real job to stay on top of all the systems on board the RV when using it full time. We don’t have full hookup, we transport waste water to our septic using “little jon” like in a campground. That gets old. When we travel we always try and most often get full hookup. We rigged up city water from the cabin which is nice, but the water pressure for showers is lacking so sometimes we used the shower in the cabin.

While what we’re doing isn’t really “full time”, it gives us an idea of what it might be like. Cold weather is a problem, which we’re dealing with now, but we’re heading out south in a few weeks so that issue will be gone. Not sure what we’ll do when we get back in April, but we found living aboard full time is harder than we thought. When you’re old, you want easy, not hard.

 

[IwantanRV25]

Thank you guys for replying. What I meant to say about no more rent, I was talking about house rent and utilities. Yes we will like to go full time her in AZ, I have a job here, we are in our early 30s and have kids together. theres a place that you can hook up and live there and pay 680 a month. We have good credit so we will be purchasing the 5th wheel and a truck. But will do a yard sale first and sell my sedan.
Im not experienced with these two giants. Here it gets really hot in the summer, winter doesnt last long but around February we can get below 30s.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Hi and welcome to a new phase of your lifestyle. As you can see from the replies, some people adapt well to small quarters while others get cabin fever after a while. And you will likely find that RV living isn't exactly cheap either, but maybe less than what you now pay. Hard to say.

A large 5W won't be inexpensive and neither will a truck that can move it around. Nor is a decent campground inexpensive, especially in a metro area. You need to do some serious shopping to figure out what 5W will work for your space needs (and your budget). Then determine where you can rent an RV space to hold it and what truck can handle it. Consider having the RV dealer deliver the trailer to your site so you can take your time choosing & buying the truck. Spread out the information overload somewhat.

You will undoubtedly have a lot of questions as you shop, so feel free to ask as you go along. And ask before you spend your money!

 

[IwantanRV25]

Consider having the RV dealer deliver the trailer to your site so you can take your time choosing & buying the truck. Spread out the information overload somewhat.

Thanks thats a good idea!

 

[bigbAZ]

Note that salesmen don't always never have sufficient knowledge to advise you on a truck. They often always say anything to get you to buy.

FIFY

 

[Derby6]

AZ winters will be easy. HOT summers will be your issue.
Good luck. Some full time very successfully. Others like snowbirding for 3-6 months—some move around —some sit tight.
Hopefully you guys have thought this all thru and it works out. You’re young and with kids involved living in a fiver will be TIGHT.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Two compatible adults can probably live comfortably in a 400 sq ft 5W. Add young children and a pet or two and it starts to feel really tiny. Especially when the weather is not conducive to outdoor living. Some of the things that even seasoned RVers miss are closet space, a laundry room, kitchen counter space, convenient places for a trash can and dirty laundry, a roomy bath area, and quiet & effective air conditioning & heating. An RV may have nice solutions for a couple of those things, but there simply isn't room for everything you are likely accustomed to in a house.

 

[IwantanRV25]

We talked and we are going to try it. If not we will go back to renting a house.
Right now it sounds like we can save some money by going this route.

 

[Kirk]

Where in AZ you are can make a big difference in what weather you can expect. If you are in Yuma winter will be minor but summer heat will be a challenge, while in Flagstaff you will need a lot of heat but summers are not bad. In Yuma, shade for the RV is very important as summers can be very difficult in an RV but keeping them warm in the winter is more issue in Flagstaff.

As a trial, you may be able to find one that can be rented in a year around park and you should also consider one of the park models.

 

[IwantanRV25]

Where in AZ you are can make a big difference in what weather you can expect. If you are in Yuma winter will be minor but summer heat will be a challenge, while in Flagstaff you will need a lot of heat but summers are not bad. In Yuma, shade for the RV is very important as summers can be very difficult in an RV but keeping them warm in the winter is more issue in Flagstaff.

As a trial, you may be able to find one that can be rented in a year around park and you should also consider one of the park models.

Hi, im in Tucson.

 

[Kirk]

That is probably one of the more weather friendly choices for year around. There are many long-term RV parks so I suggest you first check to see if you can rent one that is in-place first as a trial.

 

[IwantanRV25]

That is probably one of the more weather friendly choices for year around. There are many long-term RV parks so I suggest you first check to see if you can rent one that is in-place first as a trial.

Thank you Will look into it

 

[SMR]

Welcome to the forum, great advice above.
We started full-time in 2016 and still enjoy it. It was an easy transition for us going from the house to the RV. Getting rid of our stuff felt good too.

Enjoy your new adventure and get as much advice here on purchases and any other questions you might have.