Jack Freeman - A Practical Guide to Full-Time RV Living Motorhome & RV Retirement Startup

A Practical Guide to Full-Time RV Living

Motorhome & RV Retirement Startup

By

Jack Freeman

&

Shirley Freeman

Copyright 2019 Parma Books

All Rights Reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the proper written consent of the copyright holder, except as permitted under Sections 107 & 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Parma Books publishes its books and guides in a variety of electronic and print formats, Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic format, and vice versa.

Cover & Book Design by Rebecca Floyd

Introduction

T he freedom of the open road and retirement, two of the best things you can put together. If you raised a family, chances are those children are now adults and building lives of their own. They no longer need their parents to make them lunch or to soothe their cold or their fever; instead, your child may now seek out advice about more complex problems.

Essentially, there is no imminent economic responsibility since you are no longer feeding more individuals other than yourself (at least, that is how it goes in most situations). You may retire with a certain sense of peace of mind, knowing the world is your proverbial oyster and there are no bosses limiting your schedule, and no extra work hours needed during late nights.

Exactly six years ago my spouse Shirley and I have both retired from our previous careers, leaving us with quite a lot of extra time in a mostly empty house throughout the day. Thats when we decided we wanted to travel. The problem here is we did not know what the best way was to get from point A to point B.

For one, I have the beginnings of osteoarthritis, which mostly affects my knees. While it is manageable, Shirley always suggests I should not overexert myself. For another, she is not too fond of camping on the solid ground, since it tends to make her waist ache.

Needless to say, we needed to find a way that was comfortable for the two of us, given our conditions; we did not want our sense of adventure to be limited by something as unimportant as physical pain, after all. That is when we spoke to our neighbors, old family friends who had just returned from an RV camping trip with another couple.

The more we learned about traveling in an RV, the more my wife and I were convinced that was the solution to our conundrum. We had the money, we had the time, and we could go wherever we wanted in the world with the safety aspect of carrying a piece of home with you.

Now, while having an itinerary still helps, you dont have to limit your time and be back for work. If you want to stay a few extra days to hike that extra trail or see that extra site, then you can. Retirement is a chance to get out and see the areas you never had time to when you were working.

However, RV living isnt just for retirees; it can be for anyone who wants to enjoy the freedom of living on the road although this doesnt mean that full-time RV living is for everyone.

Whether you are retiring soon and want some adventure, have been retired for a while and want a change of scene, or simply want to change your way of life to something simpler, living full-time out of an RV can be your answer.

We have been living the RV life for the last five years now, and I must admit that these five years are the best years of our life so far. I also must admit that not everything was glorious and fun, yes, we have faced our fair share of problems and hiccups on various fronts, but at the end of the looking back, they all were great learning experiences.

In this book, we are going to show you what is involved in RV living, how you can get started and what you need to do to live an affordable full-time life on the road while enjoying the wonderful sights. So lets get started and take a look at whether or not this lifestyle is right for you.

Is RV Living Right For You?

L iving full-time in a motorhome, travel trailer, or camper is an appealing option to many but isnt for everyone. In order to determine if this lifestyle is right for you, you need to give it some serious thought and look into all the pros and cons involved before making a final decision. Some factors that may influence your choice include the following:

Age

Health

Family Situation

Mechanical Ability

Finances

Emotional and Physical Ability

Some of the reasons that people decide to live in an RV full-time include the following. Do any of them apply to you?

Travel without reservations.

Moving between places easily and at a low-cost.

A greater sense of freedom.

Increased flexibility.

More free time.

These are all good reasons to live full-time on the road, but a lot of these reasons are based on assumptions. Before you jump into full-time RV living it is important that you consider the facts. Consider the truth of the three biggest assumptions about life on the road.

First, people believe the fact that full-time RV living is cheaper than owning or renting a home or apartment. However, as we will see when we discuss costs later, depending on the choices a person makes, living in an RV can actually be more costly. From maintenance to actually acquiring one, that is.

Second, many people think that living in an RV is a very freeing experience that will always be enjoyable. However, not everyone can adapt to living in a small space, and it can actually be more difficult than you realize given the limitations you are given in those quarters. It might also be rough for those who suffer from sensitive motion sickness, as they would be spending most of the time on the road or in a moving vehicle as they explore a country or state.