Awesome site with info on living out of a car

[JBREED]

http://guide2homelessness.blogspot.com/<br><br>It's called the guide to homelessness.&nbsp; I understand a lot of us on this website are doing this mainly out of our own choices, but this guy wrote this website for those who were caught in some unfortunate circumstances, like I almost did.&nbsp; He gives a lot of great advice on how to live out of a car.&nbsp; Not a van, not an SUV, truck, or trailer.&nbsp; Just a typical passenger car.<br><br>After having no where to go, this man had to resort to living out of his car.&nbsp; Instead of letting fear and hopelessness get the best of him, he persevered, and identified and utilized the advantages of mobile living, all on his own, before there were websites like this.&nbsp; He found ways to fake having an address, ways to get a job despite being homeless, avoided shelters like the plague, and even sent himself to college with all the money he ended up saving.<br><br>After not being able to find a job a year ago, I almost had to resort to this.&nbsp; This guy's website was the first I came across that addressed living a mobile lifestyle.&nbsp; I dug around the internet more and more, and found many other websites, including cheaprvliving.&nbsp; <br><br>Thankfully I did find a job, and thanks to other websites, my scope on the situation broadened.&nbsp; But this website started it all for me.&nbsp; Seeing there are no posts under this particular part of the forum, I figured there's no better way than posting the one website that made it all become a reality for me. <br><br>http://guide2homelessness.blogspot.com/<br><br><br><br><br>

 

[sl1966]

Talk about coming full circle. This was the first site I found when I started researching about how to be homeless. At the time I was out of work and fast running out of money. It was only a matter of months before I would have to break my lease and start living on the streets in order to pay my bills. After reading everything on that site I found a bunch of others like it that helped me prepare. Later a friend suggested getting a trailer which is what led me here and to other full timing/boondocking sites.

 

[1oleman]

One of the reasons I live in a motor home.&nbsp; Social Security only goes so far and my home has WHEELS. The man cannot forclose on me.<br>

 

[sl1966]

Amen! Although in 22 years there won't even SS for me.

 

[JBREED]

I was pretty much in the same situation.&nbsp; I had no job and no more money coming in, and I was running dangerously low.&nbsp; Luckily I didn't have any lease to break, as I had already been in my apartment for over a year, so I was living there on a month to month basis.&nbsp; <br> <br> Finally, after a couple weeks without receiving any rent, my landlord stopped by and asked me what was going on.&nbsp; I told him I wasn't going to have rent paid because I no longer had a job, and that I would just go ahead and be moving out within 24 hours.&nbsp; He was real nice about it, and even helped me move most of my belongings out.&nbsp; I was real close to moving into my Ford Taurus.&nbsp; Luckily, I had already been reading the website that I posted in this thread.<br> <br> Most of my belongings got thrown in the trash, however, because the entire apartment complex ended up being infested with bedbugs.&nbsp; That would have been great to know, but it was too late when I eventually found out.&nbsp; They are nasty little bugs, and it doesn't matter how clean you keep your place, they will be there no matter what you do.&nbsp; It didn't matter anymore, though, because bedbugs can't survive in a car.&nbsp; <br> <br> Yet another plus to mobile living!&nbsp; You think you have an infestation in the interior?&nbsp; No problem.&nbsp; Just park your car in the hot sun.&nbsp; Nothing will survive.&nbsp; I was actually quite relieved I wouldn't be taking them with me.<br> <br> We got everything moved out, and pretty much all I had were some clothes, some toiletries, and a few canned goods, and also $20 to my name.&nbsp; It was a very scary ordeal, and it made me learn a lot about things.&nbsp; More than anything, though, it was very eye opening.&nbsp; By the time this all happened, I was sick of living in an apartment and being a wage slave.&nbsp; I was actually kind of ready to live out of my car, and with the help of Michael's website, I was more than prepared with a plan.<br> <br> I didn't end up doing it, though, because one of my best friends from my hometown offered me to stay with him for free, just long enough to get back on my feet.&nbsp; I had been hiding it all from him, but finally told him, and he didn't want that kind of life for me.&nbsp; Still, though, I can't help but wonder all the things I would have gained from living from my car.<br><br>Now I view having an establishment that you're paying for to be quite scary.&nbsp; Most of us spend a good chunk of our income on rent or mortgages, and the rest to utilities and other bills.&nbsp; What if you lose your job?&nbsp; You can really get screwed that way.&nbsp; By living mobile, you're pretty much immune to all of that, and you will always have a good amount of money saved easily.&nbsp; So what if you lose your job?&nbsp; You can just drive somewhere else, to another state even.&nbsp; You could last several months on 1,000 dollars, as opposed to a couple weeks with an apartment.&nbsp; By far more than enough time to find some other revenue.&nbsp;&nbsp; I just don't see a good reason NOT to do it now, you know?<br>

 

[WanderingRonin]

It was great reading all your stories.<div>I came upon that realization a few months back. Not that I lost my job or anything like that. But the thought that most of us are really one or two paychecks away from being homeless anyway made me decide to build up my savings by not handing half my paycheck to a landlord each month.</div><div><br></div><div>That kind of freedom is something not a lot of people realize they have in them. Today, i can probably last 2 years just on my savings without having to worry about anything else. If I was renting, I'd only last 4 months. That kind of incredible flexibility is why I chose this.</div><div><br></div><div>Why wait for the paychecks to stop coming before leaving one's apartment? I made this choice not because I had to, but because I wanted to. And that has made this experience all the better for me... that I was doing this from a position of control and strength. At any given time, I can easily just sign up for a new lease... but I won't now. <img src="/images/boards/smilies/smile.gif" border="0" align="absmiddle">&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>Not when I have seen the possibilities of this kind of life.</div>

 

[Safaribob]

I too have seen this blog before--very useful with practical tips.&nbsp; IMO, it's a perfect jump start for this area of the forum.&nbsp; People may not want to or can't give up their cars to make the transition to mobile living.&nbsp; <br><br>Thanks, JBreed for thinking of it.<br>

 

[WanderingRonin]

I hear ya, JBreed. Our desire to be mobile and not dependent on one spot reminds me of the story of&nbsp;<div>"Who moved my cheese?"</div><div><a href="http://www.magnacad.com/Printables/WhoMovedMyCheese.pdf" target="_blank">http://www.magnacad.com/Printables/WhoMovedMyCheese.pdf</a></div><div><br></div><div>It's a great way to think about it... We are always looking for new sources of income all the time which is the moral of that short story. Once the well dries up in one area, you move and seek new sources.&nbsp;</div>

 

[Butternut]

Talk about coming full circle. This was the first site I found when I started researching about how to be homeless. At the time I was out of work and fast running out of money. It was only a matter of months before I would have to break my lease and start living on the streets in order to pay my bills. After reading everything on that site I found a bunch of others like it that helped me prepare. Later a friend suggested getting a trailer which is what led me here and to other full timing/boondocking sites.

<br><br>This was the first site I found too!<br>

 

[sl1966]

This was the first site I found too!

<div><br></div><div>I love how he lays out how there is nothing wrong with doing it and it's gonna be ok first. That spoke volumes and put me at ease.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div>

 

[WanderingRonin]

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">

It was only a matter of months before I would have to break my lease and start living on the streets in order to pay my bills.

</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); "><br></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">This is what I also like about being proactive. If I was about to have no choice but to break my lease in a few months, why not pre-empt it by breaking it now? It makes all the difference in terms of having money in your pocket for the change that is to come. <img src="/images/boards/smilies/smile.gif" border="0" align="absmiddle"></span></div>

 

[sl1966]

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); ">This is what I also like about being proactive. If I was about to have no choice but to break my lease in a few months, why not pre-empt it by breaking it now? It makes all the difference in terms of having money in your pocket for the change that is to come. <img src="/images/boards/smilies/smile.gif" border="0" align="absmiddle"></span><br>

<div><br></div><div>Mainly it was a case of preparedness. I wasn't prepared and had only just researched what it was to be homeless. I was living in MN at the time, had 3 months left on my lease, and managed to secure a contract that let me out of it gracefully.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>Had I knew then what I've since learned, I might have hit the road sooner.&nbsp;</div>

 

[stude53]

<p style="margin: 0px;">Ronin,</p><p style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</p><p style="margin: 0px;">Thanks for posting the 'Who Moved My Cheese?' link.</p><p style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</p><p style="margin: 0px;">I enjoyed reading it. It should be mandatory reading for High School and college&nbsp;kids, to warn them of what they will encounter in the real world.</p><p style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</p><p style="margin: 0px;">Sure happened to me more than once during my working years. I was fortunate enough not to tarry waiting for the cheese to reappear, but went looking down new corridors for my next and New Cheeses before the old cheese ran out..</p><p style="margin: 0px;">&nbsp;</p><p style="margin: 0px;">Bob (aka stude53)</p>

 

[VanTramp]

I don't think I saw that site when I was considering doing this(for the second time in my life), but I am glad I found the info I did online. One quote that really got me started on pursuing self sufficiency was something to the effect of "a man who wants for nothing is invincible".&nbsp;<div><br></div><div>The less we have to rely on others for power, shelter, safety, etc. The more we can be free. Preaching to the choir I know <img src="/images/boards/smilies/smile.gif" border="0" align="absmiddle"></div>

 

[vangirllindsey]

Thank you so much for the link to that site. It is absolutely fantastic and full of useful information. I feel much more prepared for the time I will spend living in my car. <br><br>"You have a right to live. You have a right to be. You have these rights regardless of money, health, social status, or class. You have these rights, man, woman, or child. These rights can never be taken away from you, they can only be infringed. When someone violates your rights, remember, it is not your fault. <p>You were wronged."<br><br>Love it.<br><br></p><br><br>

 

[Wild_E]

I am self employed, live in my truck and love it. This is home like nothing I have felt for in years and that includes living in the sticks and bricks house with my ex-wife, even in the good times, the few there were.

 

[offroad]

have to bump this message. &nbsp;Definately a must read for all.

 

[Journeyman]

Definitely a keeper. Saved it and passed it on to my daughter.<br />Thanks for the story.

 

[wildmountainhoney]

These are some very empowering posts and links. I had a rough night last night. I have cervical dystonia which effects my neck and can be very painful. During these painful periods it is hard to feel hopeful and that is when the flood gates open. A month ago today I lost a dear friend to suicide. It has been very hard to move forward from this and it has amplified my challenges, pain and over all depression. This site and similar have really helped me feel not alone, and hopeful.<br /><br />I am very much considering my best option at this point is to take up the father in law's offer. The rent is about what it would cost for an RV site and includes all utilities. I am hoping to find myself some small jobs I can do, am thinking babysitting or home health sitting with the elderly. As long as I am mindful of my limitations and pace myself these are things I can not only do but feel good about doing. I am a caregiver by nature. Perhaps this will allow me to save money, pay off bills and figure out the best way to move forward.&nbsp; I know for sure I do not want to live putting money in a landlords pocket ever again. <br /><br />Hoping I can find a smaller RV or Van that I can handle and a spot to homestead. But, I know I can live in my car thanks to the posts here and the people generous enough to share their experiences. It has definitely given me options and for that I am truly grateful.&nbsp; Bob, you told me there is a fine line between adventure and tragedy. I am choosing adventure!

 

[Seraphim]

Bravo