I seem to recall this topic coming up once or twice here. Does anyone here spend a lot of time in an RV? As I get closer to retirement, I'm looking at a variety of possible avenues to take. Spent a couple of hours today looking around at RVs (class As and Cs, in the 25' area) and seems like for a single guy, that could be a possibility.

For those of you who do summer/winter/live in these things, what's it like/ What sort of costs (aside from gasoline) come along with it?

Go on Youtube, there are literally hundreds of vlogs and videos covering every aspect of RV living, van living and boondocking. Something I am looking into when I retire.

I gave up and went full time in my RV long ago. I love it. I use RV parks most of the time, and that has been $400-$600 most months (plus electricity). Maintenance is just propane now and then and I like a yearly check up. I like to stay south in the winter and venture north in the warmer months. I use Escapees for an address in Texas so all is well.

Recommend you join RV.net, it's a good forum.

Me and my dog may be there before long...

dave and darla just purchased a lot in an rv park in Mesa Az,
and they will be selling the home that they have lived in for 37 years ( here in the mid west).

they plan on spending the winters in Fla, TX, So. Cal and Az,

and the summers in four states in the midwest.

they are both retired with two pensions each and on S.S.

My wife and I did it for 13.5 years; south in the winter and north in the summer. We were members of the Escapees RV club (for mail) and spent many summers as volunteers for the US Forest Service. The USFS stints were great....full hookups in the forest. We usually worked for their recreation section (not campground hosts) and inventoried trails (had to go hiking and take pictures); inspected remote campsites (had to go canoeing and take pictures); ran a visitors center; paddled with manatees; inspected bridges (had to hike/fly in to get to some).

Here's a link to an article I wrote for the Escapees magazine...

http://rvlifestyleexperts.com/.../101Tips-byRVers.pdf

I'm a "full timer", and have been for probably a decade or so. I live in an RV as I work projects. I do have a real "home" in New Mexico, but am there at best once every 2-3 months for a weekend or so. It's also one reason I sold my house in Denver last year. (My GF and her daughter is in NM, otherwise I'd re-think the home there.)

From about '07 to '12 or '13, I lived in a 36' fifth wheel. It stayed in the same place, I never never even had anything to pull it with. I stopped that project and lived "at home" for a while, then started another project and got a 38' Class A diesel pusher.

The Class A has more mechanical things to go wrong, but you're not as limited in terms of making it a home, in my opinion. For example, if I wanted to do the same in a 5th wheel, I'd need a 1-ton truck to pull it. Now, I have a Mazda3 I pull behind the Class A. I have two bikes (road and mountain) that store in one of the pass-throughs underneath. It's really like a home on wheels. Except no garage....

The flip side, maintenance. Right now, one of my leveling jacks is leaking (probably ~$700 fix), and I need to troubleshoot my coach water pump. That's not that big a deal, as I'm always hooked up to city water.

Lot rent is reasonable, depending where you are. I'm paying ~$300 right now (Jackson SC), although I've paid as high as $500 (Spartanburg SC). I looked into Denver (for grins, as I lived there from '88 until I sold my house last year, and really do like almost everything about Colorado except the politics), and that's higher still.

Buy used, preferably private sale. RVs are worse than cars, it seems, in terms of off-the-lot depreciation. Blue book values tend to be high too - I got my Class A for ~25% less than book. Diesel pushers seem to go for higher, but hold their value better. Plus, having the engine in the rear frees up a LOT of space in the pass-through storage area underneath - no driveshaft! A helpful resource is the book Buying a Used Motorhome. It's a quick read, and if you're not in a hurry, I can send you my copy. Call it a "near-instant" karma.

Email is in my profile if you want to know more, have specific questions, or want the book.

I still have 8 yrs till I can retire from the State.
We are gone on the weekends starting at Spring Break every year.
My wife's a teacher and we always start the RVing then.
We're out until the end of October.
We don't leave it parked but rather drive it back & forth each weekend.
Doing so has helped us find things we like & would like to change for our next purchase.
We currently have a 29' (28.8) class A motorhome.
We started with a 27' Winnebago with no slides & upgraded to our current Forest River Georgetown in 2012.
Love it but once the wife retires (5 yrs after I do) we'll be snowbirding in Tenn / NC area.
So we've been looking at the models with washer/dryers as it's more convenient than running to a laundromat if the RV Park does offer one.

But for one person, I'll say I could easily live in ours by myself and at that length towing a car is easy even in traffic.
I tow the Harley with us once the weather warms up.

Our first motorhome
1999 Brave




Our current 2012 Georgetown

Okay, signed up at RV.net.

Maintenance is something a couple of my friends have already mentioned. They suggest instead a 5th wheel.....which I don't really like the idea of. One, I don't want a new vehicle. Two, I don't want to pull anything.

Lot rent....is that per month? And I presume utilities are not included.

Lots to learn.

Years ago, at a local state park, I met a couple from TX , that were living in a pull trailer.

Just chatting with them, they said the one most important thing to RV living is you can't accumulate things(magazines, etc). And the other most important, is, if it's a couple, both have to want that lifestyle.

quote:

Originally posted by AllenInWV:
Two, I don't want to pull anything.

You either need to pull a vehicle or pull your RV. Pick one.

I've met several camp hosts that live that lifestyle, and I always have come away jealous. I have a good friend that will be retiring soon and he recently bought an RV and has his house on the market. His plan is to retire down on the Baja. He's found a place that'll rent out at around $200/month. With his 401K and SS, he'll be living large.

We sort of did it out of necessity for about a year. Otherwise we'd have been homeless.

Looking back, my wife and I have both agreed that despite the stress of our lives seemingly falling apart around us...we grew closer and generally remember it as some of the best times of our 16 years of marriage.

Kids have put an end to that dream. A part of us hoped they'd take to homeschooling so we could RV full time. Neither did though. If not moving fairly regularly...why RV? It isn't necessarily cheaper with a family.

I strongly suspect that my wife and I will full time RV when our son graduates high school.

quote:

You either need to pull a vehicle or pull your RV. Pick one.

This is the big pickle. Having had pickups my whole life I prefer the 5th wheel strategy. The amount of support available to deal with your tow vehicle issues dwarfs the Class A support. and I mean dwarfs.

Great info, I am on the road for work and have seriously thought about something around the 20' range instead of renting an apartment. It's just me so space is not a huge issue.

Only issue for me is in the size I am looking at it's hard to find a "normal" bathroom, I can deal with a shower only it's still pretty small...

The other side of the 5th wheel vs Class A coin is that if your truck breaks down while towing your trailer you're in a spot.
As the tow vehicle is your only means of transportation.
If my motorhome breaks down I disconnect my car & drive to a hotel while the motorhome is towed off for repairs.
We weighed the pros & cons before buying.
The class A fit our wants, needs & concerns.
Of course if you already have an HD truck it's certainly cheaper to just buy & tow a trailer.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: GrumpyBiker,

Is the difference between Class A and C just the "cabover" part?

Oh, and how do you all handle your firearms while traveling? Just hang out in gun-friendly states?

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:
You either need to pull a vehicle or pull your RV. Pick one.

The guy we talked to at an RV place, last summer, put it this way: If you're going to be moving around a lot, with short stays: Motorhome. If you're going to be travelling less and staying in one place for long periods: Travel Trailer.

We're thinking of about a 25' Class C motorhome after I retire. We'll keep the house.

We'll probably rent and try it out before buying. It seems a lot of people skip this phase, then find out RVing isn't for them. We already did that, once, with a sailboat in which we thought we were going to cruise. Don't need to repeat the mistake.

A class A has a continuous roof line from the driving portion thru to the back of the coach.
A class C is a van driving cabin that you climb / crawl thru to a living area.
Different chassis completely.
The class A has usable interior space from the dash to the back.
In a shorter RV the Class A has more usable interior space as the captain chairs spin around to add seating in th living room.


As for the guns, while closed up & driving all laws involving vehicle firearm transportation apply.
When set up for living ( parked, jacks down ) the RV becomes your home and you can act accordingly.

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:

quote:

Originally posted by AllenInWV:
Two, I don't want to pull anything.

You either need to pull a vehicle or pull your RV. Pick one.

Not true!!!!

I was watching some sort of RV-related TV show a few years back and they were trying to sell some dude on this monster Class A that actually had a "garage" in the back (but mostly under the main floor level) that you could winch a Mini into. Built in automatic ramp and everything.

The damned thing cost $500K, but the Mini came with it.

That's the only way I'd go, personally.

-Rob