Just a little advice.

[rderito]

Hi to everyone, I would like to get some advice from you full timers out there. OK here goes.
I am a 56 year old self employed carpenter, live with only a dog and I own my home outright,  ( i think I can sell it for about $100,000 )
I haven't been able to get repeat jobs because I guess I don't work as fast as I used to and , so my work slowed down quite a bit, and im only working about one day a week on average.
I think its time to make a change in my life and live like you guys before I get to far in debt and maby loose my house.
I hate to tell you this but I'm kinda afraid.
I have been watching bobs videos for a couple years now and have been learning about the things that I need, and here's what I have so far.
  
2014 Chevy express van with 35,000 miles.
dometic cf40 refrigerator.
320 Watts of solar on my van.             
two older AGM batteries.
and a bunch of camping stuff.

I had a meeting with my family last week and told them my situation to see if any of them wanted to buy or rent my house if I ever had to move away but nobody was interested.
I can't collect social security but can live off of the money I get from my house and small jobs that I get.
I think if I had one small opportunity to push me in the right direction I would be gone.
so what would you guys do if you were in my shoes.

 

[rvwandering]

Welcome to the CRVL forums rderito! Thinking ahead as you are doing is very smart. You have a newer vehicle and the basics for vandwelling so you could jump in right now if you wanted to do that. Don't buy anything else until you actually try it out by taking a few short trips and working up to longer ones. You'll probably find that you don't need some of the things that you've already bought. This will also help you decide if vandwelling is right for you or if you should look at other options.

Since you believe that you will not be able to keep up financially, fix anything in your house that will make it more attractive to buyers and put it on the market. Try to save the profits from your house sale for future expenses and pick up jobs to provide a living as you travel. With your skills, you may be able to get a job working in a campground.

Big changes are always scary but you can do it! Keep us updated and feel free to ask questions about anything.

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips, Tricks and Rules" post lists some helpful information to get you started.

Most of our rules boil down to two simple over-riding principles: 1) What you post should provide good information (like your introductory post), and 2) Any response to someone else's post should make them feel glad they are part of this forum community.

We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[Qxxx]

The first thing I would do is rent the house and hit the road. Then you have a steady income with no mortgage payments. See how that goes. You can think about selling the house later. Reevaluate things. You can spend several years on the road, and come back to the house after SS kicks in, if you rent it now rather than sell. Keeps the options open.

 

[CityWoman]

It might be a good idea to keep your house as a rental property so you have steady income.  Maybe your family isn't interested, but someone might be.  You'd have to be willing to take on the responsibilities of being a landlord and would probably want someone managing the property for you, but it's a possibility.  A real estate agent could likely offer opinions and guidance on what the house needs for that to happen and how to find tenants and a property manager.  I know there are a few nomads who do this.

 

[Majorcache]

Your still young and it takes money to live on the road or off. Rent your home but hire a good management group so you won't have to run back every month or so to fix a leaky toilet. If you have absolutely No debt you might eek by.
I was self employed most my adult life thinking I had a nice successful business with tons of clients. A very nice commercial building I could sell it all and retire in comfort. It all went down the tubes in less than a year. Lost everything almost. Ended up with my trailer and pickup and hit the road. I was 63.
SS is just enough to get by, barely. I can only travel once a month then park and ride out the rest of the month.
I wish someone had booked me up side the head and explained about the reality of retiring. I would of worked where I could of had a pension or some supplemental income. Just a few hundred more a month would make a big difference.
I tried working odd jobs. It's like the gang you see down at Lowes. Hoping someone stops. And old fart doesn't stand a chance and besides that it's brutal backbreaking labor.
We all have that dream to just head somewhere and do our own thing. It's part of our heritage, in our dna. Unfortunately it's not the wild west anymore. You just can't live off the land. At least not very long.
You still have 11 years ahead of you before SS is even a possibility. Then if anything is left you might squeeze by. There are still tons of opportunities out there for young people to Prepare for that day when you can shove the finger to everything and go revel in the mystical land of Oz.
Your not getting any younger so it's time you came back to earth and made a plan that will give you at least a chance of doing some of your dreams.
You'll figure it out, just don't jump off the bridge until you absolutely know how deep the water is.
Good luck.

 

[RoamerRV428]

HI.....I would also keep the house right now for rental income. Use a management service. It controls that rental better than you can from the road and that is instant income for you. That only works if you can get a decent monthly wage from that rental tho for ya to live on.

but if you don't sell the home you have no big money to draw from....kinda a catch 22 on that one

Living off 100K, and you won't get 100K ya know between closing costs/taxes on sale etc.....say maybe in the high 80s area? You have at least 6 yrs to pull early SS so whatever money from the sale of the home MUST make it over a 6 yr period for you at least. Then I assume you are going to have health ins. over this period also but you can't get medicare til 65 so that is a 9 yr period to handle health ins.

working on the road is definitely an option you will need.

You don't mention if you ever camped before or done any type of this lifestyle so don't sell the home til you hit the road and know this is for you. Don't sell your home til you KNOW this is the lifestyle you do want.

Getting too far into debt over ??? your home? your spending? Not sure on that one but even if you own a home you can cut expenses to live down severely to keep that home. So budgeting and sticking to it and more frugal ways about how you live can maybe keep you in your home and not have to sell and....well.....just keep thinking options

don't jump too fast just yet if my advice.

If this lifestyle is a true draw to you then your decision would be easier for you. AND also a lot of people do make exit plans off the road when older and need it. Exit plans usually involve money to get a small condo or something to get off the road so....

just things to think about and find the path your heart truly wants to follow you have time to think it all thru for yourself best of luck to you

 

[INTJohn]

Awrite Dude;
Your asking peeps to jump in ur boots but your not exactly givin a complete picture of the correct size or style & purpose of the boots.........

I need more data here to give some proper advice.
First, how much debt do you have? Yeah, the house is free n kleer but that doesn't mean your debt free.
2nd - whats the state of your health? R U a healthy 56 yr ole dude or are you a heart attack waiting to happen, diabetic or only ur Dr knowz 4 sure?
3rd- whaz ur geographic location? Where do you like to hang? i.e. Some semblance of the lifestyle you want.......

Now, I'll elaborate making my own assumptions re my q'z.
I''m not in the habit of giving advice or telling peeps how to live they life. Ur 56? You should have a pretty good handle on You by now.

But heers what I'ld do:
You've already attained the hardest thing to accomplish in order to have a positive nomadic Vagabond living experience: A late model healthy Vehicle with LOW MIleage - bed that thing out; fill up that tank and ROLL!

Get rid of that house. Theez peeps want you to Hire a Management group??? BWHAHAHahaha!!
Yeah lets make my life MORE complicated by needing to Hire & Manage a "Management Group" to manage my house & renters. You go down that road; I'll be in my truck enjoying a beach.

Take that hundred grand & split it up amongst various banks - at least 3 that are located in various parts of Murahka you'll be frequenting. Chase, B of A, etc Big Banks that are basically vrywhere.

Then - YOU'RE A CARPENTER. Dude this is one of the top skills to have if living on the road superseded only by tending bar and prostitution. Follow the disasters: hurricanes, etc. make some mun then go have fun...........

Awrite; gota go 4 now maybe I'll b bak wit more but I'm like kinda busy livin my own lyfe.
Ciao; INTJohnny Luzsha.

 

[bullfrog]

In today's world a $100,000 house can be any age in any condition. Mine was a newer house but I could not afford to keep it nor rent it for enough to maintain it so we sold it. In our case we spent most of what we made from the sale for purchasing my military time for my pension and a vehicle. Health insurance will be a big cost. I and my wife found working for the National Park Service most rewarding and profitable after years of doing odd jobs like security and campground host. Government employment gives you cheap health insurance and a retirement if you max out your options and are willing/able to work several more years. Many jobs are not that physically demanding but in remote places and therefore having your own mobile housing is a big plus when it comes to getting a job and a money saver. At you age many jobs are possible, you just have to look, apply, and maybe go live at the locations so you can be hired locally.

 

[Qxxx]

Awrite Dude;
Your asking peeps to jump in ur boots but your not exactly givin a complete picture of the correct size or style & purpose of the boots.........
.....
Get rid of that house.

Yeah, a lot depends on whether OP has any other income. The problem with selling the house outright is there is no Plan-B. In 8 years, the $100K from the house will be long gone on daily living and traveling expenses. Then after that, it's only Social Security and living in the van forever. If OP decides after a year or two he doesn't like living full time in a van, his Plan-B move back into the house is gone.

It's not so cheap living on the road either, depending upon how you travel. I went on a trip for 5 weeks in June-July, and spent $600-700 just on gas, and my van averages 18 MPG. To spend less on gas, you need to be planted a lot more. So, it's not quite like "retired and touring the country", if you have limited resources.

So, if you sell the house there is no going back, and that money will run out in a few years, even living cheap. A lot of people who are hard up start Soc. Security right at age 62, but if you wait until 70, you get 50% more every month. And the amount you get increases proportionately every month you wait past 62. A lot of tradeoffs. What you have in the bank, how much it costs to live, whether you can make money on the road, when to start SS, on and on. Not easy.

 

[Matlock]

The first thing I would do is rent the house and hit the road. Then you have a steady income with no mortgage payments.

This^

That is what I did. I asked top dollar for rent and that kept out the lazy-late payers. Better class of folks pay their bills. I found a single female RN that was on-call 24/7. She was too tired to party and kept the place clean. Set-up a month to month agreement for renting if possible. Ask what others are doing in your state/area on renting and see what will work for you.

Once you have a renter, store your stuff and load-up what you think you need and hit the road locally. Within 3-4 months you will have things paired down and a better handle on how to proceed.

Good luck.

 

[tamewolf]

I expect that if you are a carpenter your house is in really good condition with many useful built ins and custom closets/cabinets.  Don’ Shortchange yourself with a low asking price just because the people you know already have a good house.  Those who need a new place in your community will be delighted.  And brought there by the realtors.  
I sold my house and left home just before I turned fifty.  I was able to work short term jobs, then I wanted to explore the continent so picked up work here and there as I went along.  I can tell you that $100000 goes a long way if you can keep the gov’t away from it.  If you are concerned about rolling over the capital gains from the house, an RV counts as a primary residence if you live in it at least two weeks of the year.  I bought an trailer for half of what I ‘d have paid in taxes.  I am enjoying its comforts right now, fourteen years later.
Many people on the road spend time in a place they like by work camping or camp hosting.  You exchange about 24 hours a week for a site with hookups.  Skilled labor can often get a small salary in addition.

 

[DannyB1954]

Like others have said, I would keep the house. For one thing, if you later decide that the road is not for you, you have a place to go. I have known people who sold their home, bought an RV and after a couple years got tired of it. Prices of homes generally go up, values of RV's always go down. They could not afford a house anywhere near what they had just a couple of year earlier, and ended up in a small apartment. Finding good tenants is a challenge, but money coming in from rent will make things a lot easier on you.

As a nomad, you can go where there is more work. It looks like a Hurricane is headed up to Florida. That should create a need for carpenters.

I retired at 55, (almost 10 years ago). Medical insurance is important to keep. I needed open heart surgery at 62. Without insurance I would have been up a creek. You might want to work for someone else that gets insurance at a group rate. I have seen property management companies looking for people and offer it. A government job would be the best.

 

[Qxxx]

Just an addendum. I'm not saying don't sell the house under any circumstances, but try to have a Plan-B. If you rent and spend a year on the road, you can always sell the house next year, and still get your $100K. Being on the road gives you a lot of time to sort things out.

 

[maki2]

For the moment I would say try and look at a situation where you have a room mate to offset not having enough income. That will give you some extra time for decision making.

 

[Gr8ful]

I'd sell the house as who knows how the market will be next year & here if you don't live in no homested exeption on taxes, insurance may be higher, etc. I had a cabin & acreage & bought a 2nd farm. I couldn't insure it as a 2nd vacation property so I rented it to a single man just retirering out of the Navy. Local guy everyone recomended. You guessed it, he trashed the place. We got to be friends, he got married & my wife & I were in the wedding then she got a brain tumor so I knew he was having a hard time & she was dying so I said wait on the rent & catch up when she passes. I had a very hard time collecting so the only ways I ever be a landlord is have several properties or own a duplex because long distance just doesn't work IMHO. Good luck!

 

[Qxxx]

Maki has a Plan-C, get a roommate.

If occurred to me there another one, Plan-D, just lock the front door and hit the road for 3 or 6 months full time. Then you'll have a pretty good feel for what's going on.

 

[Rojo Zoso]

You are in a better situation than I am. I concur, rent the house out and travel. You can re-assess next year. You might stumble across a property/area that you'd like to stay in. Best to keep all options available during transition.

 

[DLTooley]

Renting takes some skill - including being able to talk people out at the right time and avoiding court. How far you plan to travel away from the location is very important.

Airbnb is also a management option.

The market is likely near a peak. You might want to see if you can get a good price while you try out the road. Just camping out of a van is a good way to start and you can figure out your design. A van build is a marketable skill.

Resort areas are a good place to work, construction, maintenance including Airbnb, etc.

If you have health issues explore disability. It does get easier after 55.

Selling now could provide you enough cash to buy another place in the next downturn. Resort and near resort property cycles more and is better to Airbnb

 

[maki2]

Selling now could provide you enough cash to buy another place in the next downturn.  Resort and near resort property cycles more and is better to Airbnb

We just hit the next downturn, housing prices are dropping like crazy. Gold prices are up.

 

[Qxxx]

We just hit the next downturn, housing prices are dropping like crazy. Gold prices are up.

[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]That may only be in Seattle.

https://mynorthwest.com/1493254/seattle-housing-prices-decline-august-2019/[/font]

[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]This bubble is definitely bigger than the one in 2008, in most places.[/font]

[font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]https://wolfstreet.com/2019/08/27/t...te-western-markets-see-the-dip/[/font][/SIZE]