Tired of the romanticized videos and socials out there covering RV life? Tim Eagle here, your favorite RV’er and author of a non-fleshed out, “super sniffer” story, Krae. I’m always asked what are the expenses of living in an RV full time? For those of you who want to join the RV lifestyle I've broken those expenses down.
Remember these tips to make the RV life simpler:
Have little to no debt or overhead.
Be budget minded.
Live with less.
Camping expenses. Keep in mind that eighty percent of my camping spots, places where Maria and I live, work and play, I work camp (coming soon in a blog of the future). I receive a job at a campground/resort or place nearby to pay for the site (sometimes free), and a paycheck. This is to cut down on what is known as a monthly recurring debt: rent, mortgage, or lot fee at a campground. I usually take work camp jobs that last no longer than five months (to avoid burn out), but have worked up to six months. I save, replenish, and plan travel time in between these jobs (usually getting to travel and take "vacation" for a month or more). Work camping saves on my annual camping budget. The first two and a half years, the average cost for camping each year is around $986.
Vehicle insurance and registration for the Class A (Mothership), and the Hyundai (Mario Kart). Total for a year, registration and insurance on both vehicles is: $3124
Propane, one of the main heating, cooking and sometimes water heating expenses is propane. The refrigerator runs on propane when I boondock (dry camp), propane is the main source of heating when there is no shore power (power from a campground). The biggest propane drain is the furnace when it is cold. If I have shore power, I use an electric heater, and if it’s above forty degrees I can use two heat pumps (mounted to the roof, built in with A/C, these are electric ) to use less propane. Propane costs for the year, since I try to seek out at least seventy degrees or warmer is approximately $300. (this changes based on cold weather patterns)
INTERNET, how do you connect being on the road? There are options, like Starlink (satellite internet, approximately $150 a month, (another Musk racket) and Amazon’s Project Kuiper (Bezos racket) will be competing in this market soon. I use T-Mobile 5G Home Internet. This works seamlessly and pretty much everywhere. You must register it to an address that qualifies, and there are some loop holes since they don’t advertise travelling with it. This works for us, and everyone’s needs are different, so do your research. I pay $50 dollars a month or $600 a year.
Give me FUEL. I donate plasma wherever I work camp. I save each donations money to a debit card. What I save to that card, I use for fuel. We have a large motorhome that runs on unleaded gasoline, so fuel is a big expense. An average for fuel costs in a year depends on where the travelling plans are. I’ve spent as little as $1500 dollars in a year to upwards of $4300 dollars for the year (approximately 8,300 miles that year) when I work camped out in Oregon (this is for the Mothership only). While in Oregon there wasn’t a plasma center nearby, so I saved tip money earned and used that for fuel. Yes, you can budget for fuel, but I’d rather work for it (a typical donation takes less than an hour and a half twice a week) I can usually save up approximately $2000 in a three-month period. That’s $2000 that I don’t have to budget. I calculated an average of about just under $2.00 a mile (this is an approximation) of travel.
Repairs. Prepare to have $3-6,000 dollars (at minimum) nested away for repairs, i.e. mechanical, vehicle and RV breakdowns. The more you can DIY, the more you save, I often fix RV issues, within my skill set and perform my own oil changes to avoid unnecessary costs. There is always something that comes up, just like in a sticks and bricks home. I hope you gained more insight into the full-time life with the expenses clarified. There are other things like groceries, hobbies, and the like but being fiscally responsible and spending less, is part of a successful journey.
Thanks for reading.
Tim Eagle
Tim Eagle is an author of the novellas Stolen Seed, Life Ship, and the Vasectomus Collection. He lives full time, on the road, with his wife, Maria and their dog, Cocoa. He grew up in Michigan and is inspired by the dysfunction of America. His books are available on Amazon, godless and this site timeaglefiction.com Thanks for reading!
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