Selling your house and most of your belongings to live in an RV full time is not something you take lightly. It’s a BIG decision and there are so many things to consider before you can even hit the road. And that’s why I want to help you avoid making the mistakes we made on our journey. It certainly all worked out for the best, but like I said in my last post, The Path to RV Life is Long + Twisty.
Mistake # 1: Not having a plan for income.
When we sold our house and moved in with family to get ready for our RV adventures, Charlie was still working full time at his in person job. He searched for remote jobs but there’s so much noise out there (not to mention scam job postings!) that it was very slow going. I was doing some freelance work here and there, but nothing that was going to pay all of our bills and still allow me to homeschool the boys.
Then, out of nowhere, his company made some big budget cuts and laid off his whole department. Suddenly, he was unemployed and we were uncertain how to proceed. He got some severance pay from his job and we had savings from when we sold our house, plus, we were so antsy to get going and hit the road. So, we did the impulsive thing that I don’t recommend you do which is to set off traveling without a plan. We knew savings would tide us over for a bit and we didn’t have to decide anything right away, so we just left.
I’m already a nervous nellie in everyday life, so making that leap was scary. That being said, it worked out really well for us. Charlie met an RV repair technician at one of the campgrounds we stayed at in Texas and got to talking about the job and realized that he could start his own business doing repairs as well. Charlie has always been mechanically inclined and fixed up cars for years, so it made sense. He loves being his own boss and setting his own schedule. And he really loves meeting new people, so it’s the perfect job for him. It’s still hard work and he’s out grinding every day, but he loves what he does and he’s much happier than he’s ever been. That’s all that matters to me!
Mistake #2: Living every day on vacation mode.
Before we made our way to Texas and figured out our income plan, we took advantage of the freedom that RV life provides. After years of scraping by and barely having any money leftover each month, plus Charlie spending most of his days commuting back and forth to his job in DC, we were ready for a break. We had no routines, no budgets, and it was nice. For a little while anyway. Most days would find us outside, enjoying nature and the comfort of a campfire. We’d go see nearby attractions and visit nice restaurants for dinner.
But eventually the vacation has to end. Real life sets in and you need some type of routine for homeschool, meal times, chores, groceries. The boring, but necessary stuff. The realization set in that this was our permanent life now and not just a temporary vacation. Thankfully, the adjustment wasn’t too bumpy, but maybe it could have happened a bit sooner.
Mistake #3: Overpacking. Yikes.
When you no longer have a garage, lots of closets, a crawlspace, or lots of cabinets to cram stuff in, you realize how much junk you have acquired in life. Sure, we sold off almost all of our belongings when we sold the house, but I had no idea how much stuff we still had left. And in an RV, you already have limited space to work with.
We weren’t sure exactly where we’d end up for our home base, so we brought all the hot and cold weather clothing, way too many small one-use kitchen appliances and utensils, endless coffee mugs, and more. When we were in Texas, we had our RV professionally weighed and found out we were grossly overweight which can lead to towing issues and damages if not corrected. So, we snapped into action and purged even further.
I have to say, even though I miss my bookshelves filled to the brim with books, I do like traveling lighter. We have only what we need and everything has a place. I guess all those Marie Kondo videos I watched during the pandemic came in handy.
I hope reading about our mistakes is helpful to you if you’re considering RV life. Or if you’re just curious and reading this because you care about us, then you rock. Either way, thanks for being here and I hope you’ll stay tuned for more musings.
Thanks for your vulnerability in sharing your experience! I think that living a minimalist lifestyle can be so freeing (but scary to take the plunge).
I love reading about this experience. Please keep writing about it!