Can I really do this? - RV-Dreams Community Forum

Patty Anne · RV-Dreams Community Member

Can I really do this?

SuzieQ · RV-Dreams Family Member

We haven't started yet but we've been researching for years. We seriously looked about 8 yrs ago but hubby found a great post-retirement job. Turns out it was a good thing that we didn't go on the road because my parents' health deteriorated (dementia/caregiver later got cancer). I'm glad I was there to take care of them.

Now we're at it again with a 12-18 month timeframe. Lots of research. Talk with as many people as you can and go to shows. We've found that RV people are very nice and willing to share their knowledge/experience.

Honeydeaux · RV-Dreams Family Member

Welcome Patty Ann,

The DW and I have been full time now since March. For us the biggest source of information guiding us to the full time life style was to read Howard's Journal from the beginning. We found Howard and Linda's experience as they transitioned into full timing to be invaluable. I think you will find the same.

Safe Journey's

The Bear II · RV-Dreams Family Member

Patty Anne,

Pay attention to the financial data posted each month on the RV-Dreams.com financials page. It will provide a true guide of just how much the full-time lifestyle costs.

Be sure the 5th wheel you get has lots of automatic gadgets... awnings, sat dish, leveling system, dump valves and cord reel. This will make it a lot easier to setup at a campsite and get ready to leave.

Once you get your 5th wheel and tow vehicle be sure to take the unit to a large empty parking lot and practice towing, parking, panic stops, backing up, tight turns, quick lane changes and evasive maneuvering.... practice makes perfect

Camper Chronicles · RV-Dreams Family Member

Patty Anne wrote:
What is the one thing you wish you had known or done before you started this adventure?
Patty Anne

-- Edited by Patty Anne on Thursday 15th of October 2015 12:57:21 PM

Welcome Patty Anne!!

Great question. I would have to say that the one thing is not necessarily everything you read is the absolute truth or certainly won't be your truth. I was never involved in a forum or read a blog until this lifestyle and I tended to take things people said as absolutes. This led to some frustration in the early months as some conventional wisdom turned out to not be the case, at least for us. Read everything you can, listen to opinions of people you find credible, but please always keep in mind is there is a ton of variation in this lifestyle and what works for some may not work for you. That's my best advice and good luck to you!!

Trace

BiggarView · RV-Dreams Family Member

Well, I don't have any of the "this adventure" part to call experience... yet, but in the kicking around of the "plan" and rearranging our lives to fit the goal of FTing, I have found that certain truths are applicable universally.

When the great recession hit us... having an adequate emergency fund of ready to access cash for those unexpected things that can really ruin your day was a "peace of mind" godsend. Scrambling to find ways to pay for those hiccups (understatement) will shorten your life by stressing you out beyond belief.

My advice for any newb is get the Emergency Fund in place or, at the very least, the routine to get it there well in place before hitting the road. 3-6 months of living expenses (depending on the nature of your income source - 3 months if your income source is stable, more if income varies significantly) has been recommended and from experience this appears to be a sound recommendation. Having the ability to pay cash (because you have it set aside just for that purpose) for an expensive repair in the middle of nowhere will save you a lot of grief.

JMHO, Brian

-- Edited by biggaRView on Friday 16th of October 2015 10:52:51 AM

Jcently · RV-Dreams Community Member

Hello Patty,

I am nowhere retirement just yet, I am 48 years old and working full time 50+ hours a week which is insane. During my long commute to and from work every day I kept reflecting on my life and wondering how is it that I am just working and working and not enjoying myself doing the things I want to do like traveling the U.S. and abroad. I have been toying with the idea for over a year now and about 8 months ago I made the final decision to just do it now. Everyone has different ideas as to how to do it or what works best, the truth is that what works the best is what works for you. You have to do it the way that will make you comfortable, at ease and not stressed out, so planning, planning and more planning I have found to be the best way for me to do this. The fact that I am still working is a plus for me because I can adjust, change plans, buy and fix things without worrying too much about not having an income or being on a fixed income. Not to make this too long and boring for you and others - here is what I have done thus far in no particular order:

1) Downsized from 2000 sqf to 800 sqf (Renting now).

2) Have been selling anything and everything I know that I don't or won't need.

3) Have a savings account (12 months emergency fund) I deposit into every month, have investments accounts in place and contribute to my work retirement account.

4) Requested my Social Security (I live in Florida) statement projection to know how much I will receive when I retire. (If we still have Social Security at that time).

5) Haven been studying, learning and writing down everything you good people out there are teaching us newbies about RV (I could not thank you enough).

6) Paid off all of my debt and just two weeks ago sold my brand new 2014 car and went back to my old faithful truck that was sitting in the driveway collecting dust for a year (No car payment now).

7) I began buying supplies for the RV when I see them on sale even though I don't have the RV yet.

8) I have been going to just about every RV dealer around me, looking around to see what would be good for me, something I can live in full time and more importantly something I can be comfortable living in it.

I have found and learned so much on this topic about dealers, the hidden truth, nightmares and what to stay away from I could write a book. I can tell you that in countless of occasions I know more than the sales man and can tell right away when they are lying to me - knowledge is a powerful too. Example; I have brought down prices from $86K on a fifth wheel to $54K just with what I have learned here. ( If you want more details let me know)

Bottom Line: I am going today to the dealer and hopefully walk out with a rig, I am moving in it full time (already negotiated my site with a local RV park - more on this if you want to know let me know) and will continue to work until I know what my true living expenses for an RV. Once I have 12 months of living expenses saved I will move one with the next step. Do not forget, plan ahead and you will do it just fine.

Be well...

(Sorry for any typos and errors - haven't had coffee yet)

mds1 · RV-Dreams Family Member

Nice list Jcently!

I'm with you on getting out of the trap of long work weeks and wondering what the future will be. After watching my parents in adulthood then passing away, it was clear to me that I'd better start thinking about my own future. I made some changes.

Regarding the original poster's question "What is the one thing you wish you had known or done before you started this adventure?" As I'm not fulltime in a rig yet I can't give any qualified answers. What I'm doing is some serious planning in hopes it will limit the chance of failure.

It has also been great to find all the helpful people on the forums and in the RV community when I run into them while camping, at the RV shows or wherever. For example, one piece of advice that stuck with me when considering a fifth wheel over a motorhome was; did I want to be more comfortable while traveling (motorhome) or while stopped (fifth wheels). Our anticipation is that we will be stopped for longer periods of time so we are going with the fifth wheel.

I've also found reading blogs from start to finish has helped. Really enjoy it when they post consolidated yearly reports or what they have learned. Here is an example: camperchronicles.com/lessons-learned/

-- Edited by mds1 on Sunday 18th of October 2015 10:53:56 AM

Jcently · RV-Dreams Community Member

Hello MDS1,

The one thing I wish to have done before was to start earlier, the process of getting ready and planning has literally consummed my life in a good way. I have to say that choosing between class A or fifth wheel has been the more agonizing and stressful decision. I did a lot of driving around to RV parks in my area and have spoken with owners of both rigs. Everyone has good reasons for choosing one over the other. I did find however that most full timers prefer the fifth wheel because of space, comfrot and they tend to stay longer in one place. I also got feedback as to the difficulty of pulling a fifth wheel and didn't find anyone with negative comments about it. It is a matter of preference for the most part. I chose the fifth wheel for comfort, storage space and although the plan is to travel around, I am in no rush to get anywhere fast. I will be staying put in one place for as long as it takes me to enjoy what it has to offer and then on to the next.

Good Day..

tincanman · RV-Dreams Family Member

Patty Anne wrote:
What is the one thing you wish you had known or done before you started this adventure?
Patty Anne

-- Edited by Patty Anne on Thursday 15th of October 2015 12:57:21 PM

First off, welcome to the life - I am a new-bee too!

The one thing I wish I had know was that the size of your hauler, determines the size of your tow-able RV home. If I had to do it all over again, I would've upgraded my tow vehicle 1st to what I have now, Ram 3500 dually. Then this would've opened up my options to what I could get as opposed to what my ignorance caused me to wind-up with. I am in a 30' light TT because my old tow vehicle cap was 7000lbs, when I now know I want to be in a 40' > toy hauler. I hope this helps in some small way.

heyduke · RV-Dreams Family Member

We have been fulltiming nearly 5 years and the best piece of advice I can give is expect it to cost more your for your first year than you are planning due to a lot of first time purchases such as this must have item ( a surge protector for your rig)... then if you are similar to us you will experience that you spend less each year going forward as you become more efficient in the full timing lifestyle

Also always expect the unexpected and your life will be much simpler if you don't over plan... go with the flow and come on out and hit the road and join us all in this great (at least for us ) lifestyle...

Terry and Jo · RV-Dreams Family Member

With respect to HeyDuke's comment about a surge protector, I'd suggest going beyond "just" a surge protector. Progressive Industries has a number of devices, of which are the power protection devices that not only check and interrupt service for surges, but also for low voltages and other problems with one's electric supply. When we purchased our fifth wheel, we didn't get one of those. We might have saved a Whirlpool washing machine had we had one. Personally, I recommend one that is hard-wired into the RV's electric and has the remote display as to the condition of each leg of the RV's 50 amp circuitry.

Progressive Industries

PI Hardwired Systems

The EMS-HW50C is what we have in ours, and it comes with the remote display. If you don't get one installed with the purchase of your RV, look at other sources for purchasing one, because you can find the same thing at a cheaper price elsewhere. I think I remember us getting ours from Dyers.

Dyers EMS-HW50C

Terry

cherylbrv · RV-Dreams Family Member

I'm on the road now 1.5 years (how that even possible???). I have a fifth wheel. Sometimes I think about what I would do if (God forbid) something happened to my husband. I realize there's so much I need to learn about how this rig works, but one of the major headaches we still have is hitching and backing up. It takes both of us, and even then, it still takes us about 30-45 mins to hitch and 2 hours to park. I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, there's no way that if I was ever alone, I would be able to handle a fifth wheel due to that issue. Just something else to think about!

Solos - please pipe in!!!

BiggarView · RV-Dreams Family Member

Never say never Cheryl. Just give it time. (and practice) smile

Koop · RV-Dreams Community Member

Hey Patty,

I too am single....with kids gone, and am wondering the same question. I, however, will be towing my Bronco behind a Class A pusher. So good luck!!

PIEERE · RV-Dreams Family Member

Being a solo would lead me to a Class A or C with Slides. I had seen a Class C in 2010 with a toyhauler option; the people carries a Mini-Cooper car in it. more room in an A though! Fifth wheels are OK; but I believe the others are easier to park and set-up if you are staying solo! smile smile Just my two cents for what its worth! Every one needs to float their own boat! biggrin biggrin

-- Edited by PIEERE on Friday 6th of November 2015 10:22:11 AM