Starting A New Life

[Spacedredd]

Hi All,

I have been planning to start a new life full-time RVing. My lease is up in June and by Apr I was going to have modest but new RV to live and travel around in.  However, life has a a habit of screwing up the best laid plans of mice and men. Last week I was informed that I am being layoff on 2/22. I will admit that I am bit anxious. I will get a severance package but will not be anything to write home about. I really am at a loss. I wanted to thrive not just survive.

So the plan is to find a used RV w/in my budget and buy it out right. I have an 05 Jeep Wrangler that is paid off, I would like to get a short class A w/the large Ford GMC engine.  So the Jeep can be my toad.  I will stay in my overly priced rental until Apr.  All of this is of course flexible and negotiable w/in the budget of my severance pkg. I do plan to collect unemployment for a while and I will be working w/the VA for disability.  Also looking for employment that isn't too crazy. (Review Bob's videos on jobs). Again I am in some shock over this whole situation...

So you the community I ask for any advice, leads on RVs, etc...  I have some anxiety about the full time RV life, however I feel its time for a transformation.

Thank you in advance,

 

[Wabbit]

I wish I could offer better advice, but find a link below that talks about class A rvs. Is it just you? Do you want to do this nomadlife, or is it necessity?

http://www.camperreport.com/rv-depreciation-everything-possibly-want-know/

I am not vouching for this article, but I have noticed, Class A's loss a lot of value. You can find them actually quite cheap. But what do repairs cost\ect....

Best of luck on whatever direction you go!

 

[frater secessus]

The universe is giving you encouragement, I think.

Something else to consider on the other end of the spectrum: a small egg (casita) or hardsided popup (a-liner) trailer towed by the jeep. Both hold their value well so you resell them later if you wanted and make the jeep the toad again. It might buy you more time to find the A you want.

 

[cyndi]

Welcome to the CRVL forums, Spacedredd! A low budget shouldn't necessarily keep you from thriving. There are plenty ty of us living a minimalistic life and loving it; whether or not it's been forced on us for one reason or another.

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[ArtW]

I would ditch the Class A idea for the 'egg' or Aliner, or a converted Cargo Trailer you can tow with your Jeep, a class A is going to eat fuel, the tires cost a mint. etc, etc
But then, if I were mobile, I'd be thinking of living out of a vehicle, not in it

 

[jimindenver]

Welcome to the forum!

Life threw me a few curve balls last year too. The only thing I could say for you is don't wait to buy if you decide to, prices are lowest off season if you can find something you like.

 

[DuneElliot]

I am also curious as to the reasoning behind your choice of a Class A; not to say it's wrong or right, just curious in light of what Bryan and frater and the others mention.

 

[Spacedredd]

I am also curious as to the reasoning behind your choice of a Class A; not to say it's wrong or right, just curious in light of what Bryan and frater and the others mention.

I have experience w/Class A's.  Parents had them while I was growing up. Plus looking for the towing capacity for my Jeep.

I can't the Casita/Egg option b/c my jeep doesn't have the towing capacity. I looked at the Casita's and met several owners.  They all agreed that my Jeep is too small even for 15' deluxe.

 

[akrvbob]

The universe is giving you encouragement, I think.  

Something else to consider on the other end of the spectrum:  a small egg (casita) or hardsided popup (a-liner) trailer towed by the jeep.  Both hold their value well so you resell them later if you wanted and make the jeep the toad again.  It might buy you more time to find the A you want.

That is really good advice!

 

[Gunny]

Your choice for a vehicle type is a personal one, you know what your needs are. I will address one of your comments about dealing with the Veterans Administration, I presume to file or follow up on a claim.

If you haven't already done so I very strongly suggest you get a Service Organization on your claim. I used the DAV and they fought hard on my claim; and I won.

Remember, the Veterans Service Officer at the VA also works for the VA. I haven't met one yet that I would trust as far as I could chunk my truck.

Rob

 

[DesertDweller]

Changes in life cause everyone a certain degree of anxiety. If you think about it, though, you can always "undo" getting the RV if it doesn't work out for you. Your post makes me believe you'll do just fine. There are SO many awesome people around the mobile living circuit, that most will help answer any questions you have. We find that's happening with us, we just got our RV and parked it just over a week ago. So far, so good. 

I like those shorty Class A's, and I wish it would have worked for us, but we needed a lot of space because of our business needs, so we got a Class A. Seems to me you could sell the Jeep, and use the extra money to fund the shorty you want. Those rigs look like you could park them almost anywhere. You also might have to get a diesel to tow the Jeep, the weight is an issue when towing. 

Whatever you decide to do, you're always among friends. Everyone around us is so eager to help, they know we're newbies and have been awesome. 

 

[Txjaybird]

    Hello and Welcome,  I have a 2004 Aliner with a full small kitchen and king size bed if I want it.  The factory specs show it's dry weight at 995lbs.  I don't know the towing weight for your jeep.  Until recently my tow vehicle was a Ford Ranger.  When my hubby was alive and kickin' we towed a 14ft fully loaded bass boat and camping equipment with our 1970 something Jeep.  I hope you find what you are looking for in a rig

Jewellann

 

[Ballenxj]

I have experience w/Class A's.  Parents had them while I was growing up. Plus looking for the towing capacity for my Jeep.

I like class A's. I've owned a couple over the years. One thing I like about a used class A over a used class C is the fact that they don't have that overhead front window that is prone to leaking, that if left unnoticed for a period of time leads to rotting the whole overhead wooden frame. That leads to having to do a major rebuild of the overhead.
Keep in mind that class A's can leak too, but is usually easier to spot in time. Think vents and windows here, albeit not as likely.
Do a search for which older class A's have a following due to build quality.
Also, I like the idea of a shorter class A with a big engine. This will equate to more towing capacity.
Oh, one more thing about short class A vs a long one, which would you rather be driving when you come to the end of that fire road, and have very little room to turn around, a 25 ft, or 31 ft MH?

 

[ceejay]

Hi All,

I have been planning to start a new life full-time RVing. My lease is up in June and by Apr I was going to have modest but new RV to live and travel around in.  However, life has a a habit of screwing up the best laid plans of mice and men. Last week I was informed that I am being layoff on 2/22. I will admit that I am bit anxious. I will get a severance package but will not be anything to write home about. I really am at a loss. I wanted to thrive not just survive.

I think maybe it is a sign to push you a little sooner ... as to Class A choice ... that is an individual thing.  I have yet to find the one .. thought I did but it was not meant to be ... tomorrow I am going to look at a class A 2008 30' Safari Simba... I am finding that most classes with low miles are expensive ...  personally I cannot do a van ... those that can are lucky since they can go almost everywhere ... I am not planning on driving cross country rapidly.  When Bob sets up next event I will just give myself lots of time to get there.  I am going to be the slow turtle on the road not the rabbit.  Good luck and welcome aboard ....

 

[hepcat]

I've had Class A's, Class B's and C's, and I settled on a Super-C that I tow my Jeep JKU with. My Super-C (see the link in my signature) has the Kodiak chassis with the 8.1L gas engine, a 7.5kw genset and is the perfect size for both travel and extended living. It can tow 10k lbs, but doesn't have the costly 22.5" tires and wheels of the big class As. The best part is that, because it's a tilt front end with easy access to the drivetrain, I have local mechanics who are willing to work on it so I don't have to take it to a medium-duty truck repair place for most of the routine maintenance. That's not the case with most Class As. The Super-Cs are a little harder to find as they haven't been bullt for too many years now, but I got mine for under $40k with only 32k miles on it. That's still not in the pocket change category I realize, but compared to anything new, it was an absolute steal.

Good luck!