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Old 05-10-2015, 03:33 PM   #1
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Living on $3.000 a month

Is it realistic assuming new 28' AS new truck no debt to live and travel comfortably within reason long term. Solo. What % is typical for rent, food, gas and maintenance?
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Old 05-10-2015, 03:51 PM   #2
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We live on that. It can be done. Nothing financed. Largest expense is realestate taxes and home insurance. We are over sixty five so on medicare with supplements. Auto ins, cable bill, and of course the highest utility rates in the state are other costs. If anything unusual comes up we have to pull the money from our small savings. I think we can do this for another few years before we will have to sell the Avion and quit traveling. So if circumstances are right, it can be done. Just be frugal. Wait, if you are living in the AS that would take away about 150 per month away from our expense but might add on more tow vehicle costs. Jim
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Old 05-10-2015, 03:58 PM   #3
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If you are full timing places like top,of ga are about two hundred a month for full hookups. You can stay there for extended periods. Jim
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Old 05-10-2015, 04:01 PM   #4
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Sounds reasonable to me. Check out these pages (note, not Airstreamer's but a dollar is a dollar!)

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Monthly Travel Expense & Cost Log for Full Time RVing | Technomadia

5 Ways To Camp For Under $500/year – Wheeling It
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Old 05-10-2015, 04:05 PM   #5
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Only you can tell whether you can live on that amount or not. Add up all of your fixed expenses (life insurance, health insurance, vehicle insurance, taxes, etc.), add in a grocery budget, eating out budget, entertainment budget, etc. Figure out an amount to set aside for maintenance, repairs, and upgrades.

Now comes the tricky part. How much should you budget for the campsite? If you like to stay in resorts you will need to budget more than if you are staying in city or county parks. COE, State, and Federal parks generally have a time limit for how long you can stay, while commercial campgrounds often offer a discounted monthly rate. Your tow vehicle will use more fuel when towing than when being driven without your Airstream, so you will need to estimate how much of each kind of driving you will do.

Once you have crunched all the numbers you will have a better idea of what income you will need. Oh yes, don't forget that someday you will want/need to replace one or both vehicles. Better budget something for that, too.
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Old 05-10-2015, 04:55 PM   #6
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If it is "take home" money. Yes. There are a lot of people in this country living on that and less. Extended stays can reduce the costs because of reduction in fuel expenses.



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Old 05-10-2015, 07:05 PM   #7
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Yup, we do that with a family of 4 and it comes to about 30% of our income, which is how I do it.

30% living expenses. 50% savings, 20% for play.
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Old 05-10-2015, 09:25 PM   #8
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Lots of variables

The data I have is 10-15 years old. But an expert single full timer for 5 years, spent 21 grand a year. Airstream Fred said he AVERAGED $8 a night for campsites. ( free camping/campground mix) Both could do vehicle repairs.

Some festivals can be a fun, and inexpensive option. I have stayed up to six days for $80. Work camping, friends driveways, BLM Lands, volunteering at festivals, riverside fishing parking spots, hunting ground parking lots, Truck Stops etc, all keep costs down.

It depends on how much you move around, price of fuel, weather, how much you eat out, where you spend the night. I would say you could do it on $36 K annually.

Figure out your fixed costs ( phone, internet, insurance etc ) and make a budget for food, gas, lodging, entertainment. don't forget repairs and bad luck expenses
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Old 05-11-2015, 07:02 AM   #9
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One thing in our research and now experience, it seems that camping is simply cheaper out west by and large than on the east coast. Even state parks and such, prices are hugely different. We're averaging 20~27 a night on the east coast here, and our friends out west are paying half that. If you want to live cheaper on the road, go west my friends.
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Old 05-11-2015, 07:06 AM   #10
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Check out:
rvsueandcrew.net
Although not in an airstream, she lives off much less and posts monthly financials.

Aluminarium.com
Also posts their expenses.

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Old 05-11-2015, 07:20 AM   #11
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Military retirees can take advantage of family/recreation camps located at or near many bases. Monthly fees can be much lower than commercial or state parks. Another alternative is work camping. Usually these opportunities run for three months and include free camping and utilities. The biggest budget eater of course is fuel if you do a lot of traveling. Gas prices are on the rise once again. In my area regular gas has passed diesel prices at the pump.
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Old 05-11-2015, 08:04 AM   #12
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Not terribly realistic for someone who can afford a new Airstream and truck, in my opinion. Probably depends a lot on your age and health and how much you want to move. I have thought about it because that is about what our gross SS checks are a year.
As senior citizens, our health insurance, including the nursing home insurance, is $9000 a year. You will be driving a truck so your fuel cost will be relatively high.
Could it be done? Sure. We have a leased lot in a very nice resort in Florida that is $3300 per year, including water, sewage, internet, storage shed, golf, and TV. Have to pay electric at a $25 a month minimum. So living there would be relatively cheap. But traveling the country would be more expensive. I expect you will have to work at keeping the costs down.
You might look into the Airstream parks in Lacy, WA, Texas, GA, PA, TN, GA, and Fl as low cost home bases or lengthy travel stops.
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Old 05-11-2015, 08:15 AM   #13
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Here in California camping fees have gone up quite a bit in last few years. Most state and federal parks are in the $35 plus per night range. Most nice private parks are closer to $50 a night. That's about $1000 to $1500 a month. Certainly you can find much cheaper in distant less desirable neighborhoods, but then again what's the point a being somewhere nice bit not being where it's nice.
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Old 05-11-2015, 08:25 AM   #14
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Another thing to consider in keeping your costs down is to plan for long term stays of a week or a month at a particular campground. Many CG's (especially the private ones) offer significant discounts for weekly and monthly stays. Often the cost of monthly stays are half or more the single night cost. Another economic side benefit of this approach is that you will use less fuel to drag your trailer around.
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Old 05-11-2015, 11:33 AM   #15
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Absolutely you can live on that and less. I live on less than that with debt.
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Old 05-11-2015, 12:14 PM   #16
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Basically no debt at all. Money in the bank. All new equipment all paid off. Looks like $4k may be more realistic. Thank you for all the inputs
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Old 05-12-2015, 06:01 AM   #17
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13 years of keeping a expense travel log & visiting all of the lower 48 states, I figure it's cost my husband & I an average of $1 per mile. We are part time, use our Interagency pass for Army corps of Engineers, national parks, national monuments, dry camp on BLM land, national forests along with www.freecampgrounds.com, our Passport America & least of all Good Sam's membership.
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Old 05-12-2015, 11:12 AM   #18
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House sitting

Have you considered house sitting? Most want someone there while they travel and only require caring for pets/plants. Just be sure they have room to park your rig. Hosting @ state/federal parks is an option, but usually requires a longer commitment and may require some duties. Some even pay a stipend of $25/day or so. Many options since you don't have a house to pay for/maintain.
Good for U!
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