Are we insane?

[miles999]

Hi, everyone! Thank you in advance for taking the time to read this post and we hope to gather some good feedback with your responses. We have about 60 days in which to finalize our decision making process.

We live near Gilroy, California, relocated here in early 2017 from the Sacramento area; the job opp we moved down to the area is not working out as the company is going bankrupt. We are not waiting on the filing and have decided to relocate back to the Sacramento area, she is returning to the government sector and I the same; house goes on the market in mid/late February. So, theoretically the cash flow will be reliable again and if we decide on the house the Sacramento housing market has not gotten red hot, yet.

BUT…..there is a caveat to our plan. My wife is finishing her Nurse Practitioner program; grad date December 2019. California is near the bottom in regards to being NP friendly and we have found pretty much the Inter Mountain West to be NP friendly with the exception of Cali. Upon graduation we will be leaving Cali relocating to one of those states.

So our scenario has us determining if: we should purchase a home knowing it will be back on the market in two to three years, rent a house, or go ahead now and jump into full time RV’ing. We have some camping experience both in tent and fifth wheel with family so it is not a completely foreign world to us.

Key information: Just the two of us, two small dogs and a cat. Not quite to the 55 and older discount club. We will have to purchase truck and fifth wheel (largely financed, some down payment money) as the current truck (2004) won’t pull anything over ~24 footer. Thinking TH as we have two Hogs we love to ride. We are quite familiar with the Sac area as we owned a home near there and commuted for five years prior to moving south last year. Reliable internet connection is a must as part of her schooling is online (this could be a biggie).

Budget for housing: Purchasing and/or renting will put us in the $2500-3000/month plus utilities arena; renting is very challenging as we have two small dogs and a cat. A good reference for us is five years of data living in the area until 2017: avg. /mthly housing expense to include utilities, not internet, typically $3000 with a $2274 mortgage (includes Taxes/Insurance).

We think buying a house would carry the largest risk of all in that we might need to “bring our checkbook” to the closing when we sell due to the short time we have owned it. The Sac market should be good in 2020, but …… Renting is extremely unattractive for two reasons: difficulty of finding a house that allows that many pets and completely throwing away our money for someone else’s equity.

The full time aspect for us is intriguing in that we can “scout” the potential states, essentially those west of the Plains states and not have to make arrangements for a pet sitter, pet friendly hotels, stay an extra day, etc. Our eventual plan in 2020 will be to purchase land where we are going and build a house; having a fifth wheel would make it very convenient to live in while we build; taking into account climate and time of year.

Being stationed in Tokyo while AD we lived in an apartment not a whole lot bigger than some of the TH models we have visited, so downsizing has already been done once.

In our case I am not shy about saying “we don’t know what we don’t know”. Specifically, we are asking: Is our reasoning sound; are we out of our minds? Are we examining the right costs, can a full time setup be had with the payments, site rent, utilities and be at or below the housing average as mentioned above? How receptive are parks to long term tenants, I have found researching there are some that won’t allow a stay of more than 28 days. Those of you familiar with the parks in the Sacramento area, how hard is it to consistently find a spot; she being retired AD we have access to the Fam Camps at Beale and Travis AFB. We do have a few more questions, but I believe we have taken up way too much space in this post. Thanks.

[rockhillmanor]

....So our scenario has us determining if:

we should purchase a home knowing it will be back on the market in two to three years,

rent a house, or

go ahead now and jump into full time RV’ing.

...

Buy a house.

California real estate is back selling above list price with bidding wars and will continue to do so for 10 years+. Real estate market is cyclical we just had the crash and now it's on the rise and will stay there.
*THIS is an investment.

Buying an RV. Same as renting you will be eating up all your savings and monthly income as long as you stay and/or travel in an RV. The term Full Time RV'ing is traveling in an RV. Is sounds like you just want to 'live' in an RV.
*THIS is NOT an investment.

You don't just 'jump' into Full Timing 'RV'ing'. You plan and save for it period. And usually as a retirement choice not 'living' in an RV.

That's just the facts without coloring it with 'the allure of being free in an RV'. Because it is nothing further than the truth. :C

[ol__yeller]

I polled everyone else here in the asylum and we unanimously decided you are not insane. Good Luck in your adventure!

[miles999]

I'd like to thank everyone who has posted so far, as a group you have been providing relevant info and given us some additional factors to consider.

I do realize that we are asking RV folks for advice which may tilt in favor of the RV lifestyle; that is a given. But what we do know is that in our experiences with other RV folks in the past as a whole they will not hold back and provide you with the realities of choosing the lifestyle; this was our intent to solicit frank and honest feedback.

Thank you to all!

[miles999]

Once your spouse gets a job as a NP-how much time do you realistically think you will have to use an RV? Long term, yes, in the first couple of years after relocating, probably not as much as we would like.

Reliable internet will be important. From my experience you should not rely on a campground connection. Cable to a house or apartment is much more reliable and has faster speeds. This is a very big concern for us which is probably our biggest con for the next two years.

I have a friend doing a NP program on line here in NM. She needs quiet, uninterrupted time, and desk space. I am not sure if even a large 5er will have a quiet, stable, work space free of distractions, especially if you are trying to cook a meal, tend to dogs, etc while she is trying to study/concentrate. A very valid point!

Buy a house. If you loose some on the resale, it will not be as much as you will loose on the resale of a big 5er and truck.Not worried about the truck as much if we can go non dually, if dually, yeah not very practical driving a dually on a daily basis if it's not pulling.

One more thought: Do not limit your job search. Look into State Department/UN/Overseas construction company (Haliburton/Brown&Root/etc) positions overseas. State Dept. uses NP in many of the embassies and the pay, benefits, life style is great. I was on embassy duty, and while some places are harder than others, they are all pretty good living. UN and Construction Companies can give great pay but some of the locales are remote. Had not thought of that, thanks for the tip!

[wa8yxm]

Another advantage to the RV decision....

House I had went up and up and down in value. You see the neighborhood went to POT (yes that kind and the othe kind as well) House next door had a drive by and was later fire bombed. so property values got flushed.

Now with the motor home.. I get in a neighborhood like that.. Push a few puttons. Turn a key, PUll a lever, Push a pedal and I'm outta there.

[wanderingbob]

Better get a large trailer , 2 adults , 2 small dogs , a cat and two HOGS !

[DallasSteve]

I've owned 3 homes over 20 years in the generally stable Dallas market. I've spent the last 20 years renting apartments and I have been very happy to watch other people take care of the yard, the AC, the roof, the insurance, the taxes, yada, yada, yada. I've also saved enough money with my college degree to retire at 62.

When times are good people tell the world how stupid renters are to be throwing away their money. When the recession comes and housing prices crash you don't hear that song as much. When you own real estate you always have to pay the taxes, the insurance, the repairs, and when termites bloom in Spring (like they did for me 20 years ago) you'll think "How do I get out of this nightmare?"

Meanwhile, back to your main area of interest, you need to decide:

1 - Are you trying to live as cheaply as possible?
or
2 - Do you want to travel around in an RV?

You can live very cheap if you buy a used trailer with no tow vehicle and pay someone with a truck to tow it to a mobile home park where you lease long-term. If, on the other hand, you want to travel around in your RV life gets much more expensive. It's your choice.

[Jayco-noslide]

I glanced at your post but quickly quit because it's just too long. Try editing some.

[ppine]

It depends on how much you like living in an RV. They are small. It is like living on a boat. You trade the lack of space for the coolness factor and mobility. Plan to get rid of a lot of stuff and put the rest in storage. My brother lives in a motor home on his property. He house sits for people and relishes all the room and convenice of a regular house even it just for a few weeks.

For a short term stay in CA of 2-3 in a hot real estate market, the other good idea would be to buy a house that needs some work, and plan on doing some sweat equity by fixing it up. You would be flipping the house, and make some money for the next RV.

[DutchmenSport]

Um ... "insane?" You live in California ... I think your are probably in the middle of the "Bell Curve." :B

[DutchmenSport]

I vote for the camper scenario. But I'm biased too! Get it now and put the house up for sale immediately!

[kohai]

Realize you're asking about RVs on an RV site and you are going to get pro-RV answers. 🙂

RV's go down in value and are tiny. Houses take 2-5 years to recover your closing costs.

Rent a place. That gives you the most flexibility with the least commitment.

[wa8yxm]

You might want to check out Private RV parks near where you will be working/studying.. Many of them offer LONG TERM parking.. IF you move into a TRAILER, Well there are basically two issues with Trailers and long term parking.

1: Tires may need replacement (though 2 years I don't think so) and insect infestation.. Insects do not get into RV's that move all the time. But can with long term parking. (I found out the hard way) Well that is SOME (Crawlers) do not get in.

Wheel bearings may need repacking and jacks lubrication before you move (Routine maintenance, not and issue).

Now: Are you Insane?

The answer is yes. but there is Insane and INSANE. one is good, (The way you and I are) the other.. Well ... California is not Insane in the bad way.

[NMDriver]

Once your spouse gets a job as a NP-how much time do you realistically think you will have to use an RV?

Reliable internet will be important. From my experience you should not rely on a campground connection. Cable to a house or apartment is much more reliable and has faster speeds.

I have a friend doing a NP program on line here in NM. She needs quiet, uninterrupted time, and desk space. I am not sure if even a large 5er will have a quiet, stable, work space free of distractions, especially if you are trying to cook a meal, tend to dogs, etc while she is trying to study/concentrate.

Buy a house. If you loose some on the resale, it will not be as much as you will loose on the resale of a big 5er and truck.

One more thought: Do not limit your job search. Look into State Department/UN/Overseas construction company (Haliburton/Brown&Root/etc) positions overseas. State Dept. uses NP in many of the embassies and the pay, benefits, life style is great. I was on embassy duty, and while some places are harder than others, they are all pretty good living. UN and Construction Companies can give great pay but some of the locales are remote.