Is it possible to get an Airstream before I retire?

[kendrick.l.j]

I completely agree with UB on not going into debt to get any travel trailer, or boat, or other extra toy or second home. Even if I had the Airstream as my only home, I would not secure a loan. Can’t even phantom making loan payments in such a manner but that is just how I was raised. The only time I had a loan was on our mortgage and even then we had over 70 percent saved. I was taught very young that if you can’t afford it now, what makes you think you can afford it next year?
I have seen way too many people in debt up to their eyeballs and the stress that causes. One unplannned event and they are completely wiped out. I could not head into my retirement years in debt, any debt but that’s just me.

[GettinAway]

The interest on our AS is the only interest deduction I have. House, farm, vehicles, etc are done. Retirement is still 1.5 yrs off. Cheap money out there. I didn't want to take the money from something I'd just have to pay taxes on. Going to wait until I can creep to a lower bracket. Everybody has a different plan. What works for some may not work for others. Not necessarily a right or wrong approach.

[Flat 6]

Originally Posted by GettinAway

The interest on our AS is the only interest deduction I have. House, farm, vehicles, etc are done. Retirement is still 1.5 yrs off. Cheap money out there. I didn't want to take the money from something I'd just have to pay taxes on. Going to wait until I can creep to a lower bracket. Everybody has a different plan. What works for some may not work for others. Not necessarily a right or wrong approach.

Nice one. I am typically a cash person, but agree there is cheap money out there. Easy to make mid-teens investing or even mid 20's more recently! With good credit, you can get 2-3% loans then deduct the interest. Just make sure if things go South, you can quickly back yourself out!

[70CT]

Originally Posted by Flat 6

Nice one. I am typically a cash person, but agree there is cheap money out there. Easy to make mid-teens investing or even mid 20's more recently! With good credit, you can get 2-3% loans then deduct the interest. Just make sure if things go South, you can quickly back yourself out!

If you can get a note at 3% and long term annualized returns for a moderate portfolio are say 6% (assuming lower risk free rates moving forward), this would seem like a no brainer on a depreciating asset. Also assumes you have the money to purchase one outright or close. This is a great leverage play for someone who might otherwise purchase outright imo.

Toss in interest deduction and I’m now salivating!

[uncle_bob]

Hi

There is an enormous difference between ten million in the portfolio vs having zero invested, zero in the bank, while renting your home. In the first case a "loan" for $100,000 is not a big deal. In the second case it's digging the hole even deeper. The problem is that there are relatively few out there with the big chunk stashed away.

If you are within 20 years of retirement, you *should* do the math. You probably should do it earlier, but most people will not. Take a look at what you spend / pay out now (income is not the starting point). Yes, there may be some questions, talk them through. Run through that math *before* buying big toys ....

So why 20 years? There is still some time to adjust. Doing the math for the first time at age 65 -- it either works or you cut the cash going out the door.....

I really don't want to turn this into some sort of preachy financial talk. I also don't want to over emphasize this side of it. There is a spiral of "maybe ten million isn't enough" ... step back, think about this and that ... it *is* enough. I'm not trying to turn anybody a very tired / still working drone. Retiring is a great thing, everybody should do it !!!

Bob

[TravlinMan]

Well, not to be a downer folks... But my dear old pop worked his tail off until retirement and, right when he was ready to enjoy the fruits of his labor, the Good Lord sent him up to heaven.

I ain't sayin he's unhappy up there. I'm hopin he's havin the best time he ever had. But it just goes to show that workin and savin all your life may give ya very little time to enjoy what ya worked for!

Stay safe, folks, and live each day like its gonna be your last... cause it just might be!

[Eagle & Bear]

As a follow up to uncle_bob and Travlin Man there are a lot of unknowns and some of us come to the world of Airsteams from different directions in life. While I was working for the state of CA I discovered that my coworkers were involved in both criminal activities and corrupt practices. Two years after I reported my findings to management they made multiple attempts to constructively terminate me. When that failed they hired a retired cop to find or manufacture enough evidence that would allow them to file charges against me. Fortunately he was an honest cop and, after a 4 month investigation, he found evidence that supported all of my findings. The department's attorneys told him to mark his report as a draft but he refused.

At the age of 50 I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and my immune system failed. A year later I had to retire and sell my home. Fortunately I found a 1976 Airstream that was in relatively good condition. We renovated the trailer and have been living in it full time. For the $5000 we paid for the trailer it has been a practical place to live in over the past 10 years. If you are looking to retire any time soon it would be a good idea to find an Airstream that you can afford, take the time to renovate it, find a TV that has adequate braking capacity, get used to towing it and living in it before you take to the road. The only thing the AS lacks is storage.

[Flat 6]

Originally Posted by Eagle & Bear

As a follow up to uncle_bob and Travlin Man there are a lot of unknowns and some of us come to the world of Airsteams from different directions in life. While I was working for the state of CA I discovered that my coworkers were involved in both criminal activities and corrupt practices. Two years after I reported my findings to management they made multiple attempts to constructively terminate me. When that failed they hired a retired cop to find or manufacture enough evidence that would allow them to file charges against me. Fortunately he was an honest cop and, after a 4 month investigation, he found evidence that supported all of my findings. The department's attorneys told him to mark his report as a draft but he refused.

At the age of 50 I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and my immune system failed. A year later I had to retire and sell my home. Fortunately I found a 1976 Airstream that was in relatively good condition. We renovated the trailer and have been living in it full time. For the $5000 we paid for the trailer it has been a practical place to live in over the past 10 years. If you are looking to retire any time soon it would be a good idea to find an Airstream that you can afford, take the time to renovate it, find a TV that has adequate braking capacity, get used to towing it and living in it before you take to the road. The only thing the AS lacks is storage.

Wow, I see what you mean. You never know what life will throw your way! Just live it day by day and enjoy every moment.

A couple of my friends have MS, sorry to hear your diagnosis. Looks like you moved forward in a new positive direction. Good for you and enjoy your AS. I hope to get one, just trying to figure out a few things from the pros on this forum.

[uncle_bob]

Hi

We started looking at various RV's before we got married. We've been married a *long* time . It took us many decades to make up our mind and buy our first AS. We did a lot of other things over the years (mostly tents). Having trouble "sorting out the details" is a *very* common thing !!!

Bob

[JDTodd]

I'm 53, single and did not wait. Have the money now, and have seen so many friends and family with great retirement plans, then came the sickness or worse. Will use on weekends or week trips until I am retired. At least I can say I am doing it and loving it. 2017 FC 28, 2016 F150. s

[J. Morgan]

Originally Posted by JDTodd

I'm 53, single and did not wait. Have the money now, and have seen so many friends and family with great retirement plans, then came the sickness or worse. Will use on weekends or week trips until I am retired. At least I can say I am doing it and loving it. 2017 FC 28, 2016 F150. Attachment 296983s

I love that attitude. Living life should be a “now” thing.

[bobzdar]

Originally Posted by Flat 6

Dear Airstreamer's,

So far I have been very impressed with the activity on this Forum. Lot's of great advise shared by a very friendly bunch. Kudos to all of you :-)

So my question: Is it possible to get an Airstream before I retire:
- Did you wait or get one before retirement?
- Where do you store it when not in use, home or off-site? I prefer to go big or go home, i.e. Classic or International 30ft.

My situation: Still 8-10 years to go before retirement, unless I am pushed ;-) Still enjoy traveling the world. Planned to get an AS when I retire, then will cover everywhere in the US. Not really been to many of the US parks (16 years in the US. From the UK originally). Problem is, I am really hooked on these Airstreams! I want one now!

Took a trip to an RV show. Went to an Airstream dealer. Very impressed. Prefer all creature comforts, so the wife and I really like the Classic 30. No issues with towing, had a boat, worked on farms a kid, wife and I can drive anything.

Very interested to hear your AS story.

Cheers

I'm at least 20 years from retirement, bought a classic (as in '67, not the model) 27' and did a minor refurb around 3 years ago and camp 10ish times per year. Our kids (5 and 7) love camping, so we get out there quite a bit for weekends. We plan to upgrade to a newer one when we get closer to retirement, no need now as we can't really go for long trips due to work and other vacations, and we spend most of our time outside when we camp anyway. We mostly do long weekends with maybe one week long trip in summer, and pretty much exclusively at campgrounds, so other than a working fridge and ac (its hot down here in the summer), we don't need much more in the way of amenities. Everything works in the AS, but it is 50 years old...

When we do retire that will change as we plan to do much longer trips and potentially live on the road during summers, but until then the basics in our '67 are more than adequate. We usually don't even bother hooking up the water as most campgrounds we go to have nice facilities and it reduces the hassle for weekend trips. It also makes our site selection easier, especially for parks that don't have full hookups or only have them on certain sites.

We have 3.5 acres with a big driveway, so it's parked at home. Makes packing/unpacking easy as I can plug it in the night before to get the fridge cold and fill it up when ready to leave without having to worry about a cooler or ice. My buddy stores his and just brings it to his house the evening before they leave, so not much different for him.

One other thing we've used ours for is as an extra bedroom. When we had a huge family crowd come down from NY for thanksgiving last year, my wife and I slept in the airstream and gave up our bedroom. It worked out really well as the grandparents got to get woken up by the kids and we actually got to sleep in for once....

[InsideOut]

Originally Posted by Flat 6

So my ideal plan, taking in the new advise, will be to consider a used smaller AS to get the "feel of camping" while we are still working and fit and healthy. I currently have a winter truck that is really on it's last legs. I said to my wife, when I replace it, I will consider getting something that can also be used as a TV.

If you do decide on "a smaller trailer", you can pull it with a 958 like we do! Keeping' it all in the family, our second car is a 987.2.

And yes, we got our first AS long before we retired - in 2001 @ 42. No regrets on the AS...but still working.

Shari

[Flat 6]

Originally Posted by InsideOut

If you do decide on "a smaller trailer", you can pull it with a 958 like we do! Keeping' it all in the family, our second car is a 987.2.

And yes, we got our first AS long before we retired - in 2001 @ 42. No regrets on the AS...but still working.

Shari

Hi Shari,

What size AS do you tow?

Sounds like you have an awesome set-up with a Cayenne and a Cayman. I will certainly checkout the towing ability of the Cayenne. The new one looks incredible.

[Flat 6]

Originally Posted by JDTodd

I'm 53, single and did not wait. Have the money now, and have seen so many friends and family with great retirement plans, then came the sickness or worse. Will use on weekends or week trips until I am retired. At least I can say I am doing it and loving it. 2017 FC 28, 2016 F150. Attachment 296983s

Good attitude. I an also from NJ. I am wondering some of the places you go for either the weekend or week long trips?

Great picture of the rig.

[JDTodd]

Originally Posted by Flat 6

Good attitude. I an also from NJ. I am wondering some of the places you go for either the weekend or week long trips?



Great picture of the rig.

Been just using it for short trips. Cape May, Delaware beach, Lancaster PA. This weekend, just going to a local Campground Fri and Sat night to meet up with friends. Not bad since I only picked it up the last week in August. Winterizing it after this trip, next spring I'll take longer treks.

[InsideOut]

Originally Posted by Flat 6

Hi Shari,

What size AS do you tow?

Sounds like you have an awesome set-up with a Cayenne and a Cayman. I will certainly checkout the towing ability of the Cayenne. The new one looks incredible.

1956 22-foot Safari.


"Birdy" is lighter than the new trailers but we have plenty of towing capacity to spare.

Diesel Cayenne is rated to tow 7700 lbs...Birdy weighs about 3000 lbs and we tow up the "hills" here in Colorado no-problem. (we live at 7800 ft - so everywhere we go is up hill one way or another!)

Unfortunately, The Boxster-S can't tow anything...but it sure is fun to drive!

Shari

[InsideOut]

Originally Posted by Flat 6

Hi Shari,

What size AS do you tow?

Sounds like you have an awesome set-up with a Cayenne and a Cayman. I will certainly checkout the towing ability of the Cayenne. The new one looks incredible.

1956 22-foot Safari.

Shown with our previous tow...a 1963 Suburban


"Birdy" is lighter than the new trailers but we have plenty of towing capacity to spare.

Diesel Cayenne is rated to tow 7700 lbs...Birdy weighs about 3000 lbs and we tow up the "hills" here in Colorado no-problem. (we live at 7800 ft - so everywhere we go is up hill one way or another!)

Unfortunately, The Boxster-S can't tow anything...but it sure is fun to drive!

Shari

[StreamNTyme]

I think the question should be why haven't you got an
Airstream yet? We were no where near retirement, in fact it was not even an consideration when we purchased our first Airstream. At that time it was wonderful to put in a few things some food and head out for the weekend..once in a while for a bit longer. Always a joyous relaxing time.
Since we are now on our 4th Airstream and all were wonderful and we have great memories from each one. Now on our 4th and retired.
Don't wait...time is passing. Safe Travels...

[dprvashon]

I enjoyed reading through these comments about Airstreams and retirement and hope there are answers there for you. For 2+ years prior to retiring, I collected and shared stories on a blog...
Of Dreams and Shiny Things
The stories are key. Our story is... we live in the Northwest on an island and planned to spend retirement on boats, going on voyages, etc. So 5 years prior to retiring, we bought a large sailboat but all the maintenance, cost and lack of use got the better of us. We abandoned that plan and looked for an alternate way to spend retirement. We both were raised on camping but didn't have the desire to sleep on the ground so we looked for an RV (not having owned one previously). We were not satisfied with the quality of box trailers and not even sure if owning a trailer was right for use. So we looked at an Airstream and fell in love with the classic styling. The cost didn't deter us thinking if we abandon this path, the Airstream will hold its value better. It was the right decision... high quality, doesn't go out of style or loose its value fast. We purchased a 2014 19' FC but traded up to a 2016 25' FC FB. I had to add the cost of a TV (Ford F150) but am loving traveling the byways and seeing this great country.