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LuvOurTC · 12-23-2006, 02:48 PM

You asked a very valid question!

My father has Medicare but also insurance through his past employer so I think he would be covered medically and/or for nursing home care to more of a degree than with just Medicare. However, that being said, I realize that insurance companies have their limits for anyone's care eventually, young or old.

I may be wrong (it sure wouldn't be the first time)

but I seem to recall that my Dad's lawyer told us that no one can be "forced" to sell their home as you can own one home but I realize their are a lot of rules/regulations and so I need to check with my Dad's lawyer, who has written his living will and trust, again to verify what portion of his assets would need to be used for his care if it came down to that.

We do plan to keep my father in his home, if at all possible, for as long as possible . We do realize how hard that is as we have already done that with my mother. She ended up in a nursing home only the last two weeks of her life. That was/is both of their wishes - to stay in their home as long as they possibly can and we will do the very best we can to honor those wishes. I realize though too sometimes it may not work out where that is possible.

Worst case scenario for my husband and I, even if we did not have my father's home to move into eventually and we were living in an RV and no longer wanted to is either renting an apartment or putting improvements in on another piece of property that we already own (it is all paid for); it is separate from our home and property we currently live on, and putting a small home or even a mobile home on that if need be. We don't want to do that if we do not have to, of course, as my Dad wants us to live in his home some day, but we could do it if need be.

Cookieman · 01-14-2007, 05:41 AM

Interesting discussion. My wife and I each owned a beach house as our residence before marriage years ago. We now OWN a campground lot across from the beach, and rent out our two houses. We only take 2 - 4 week trips and have friends/relatives that we can hire to do whatever maintainence is necessary. The rental income and Soc Sec give us a nice monthly income. The 5er will depreciate, but we feel real estate appreciation will offset the loss in value of the trailer.

bobsanmid · 02-15-2007, 06:39 PM

Living full time in our fifth wheel, we have caught problems and got work done sooner than if we were just taking it out for weekends or once a year for vacation. They were major problems which could have ruined the unit if it had been put in storage.

We spent this winter in Tennessee, this is the farest north we have ever been in this unit, would not want to try it any further north. I know there are units rated for cold climates. We are currently looking at TTs and have narrowed our search for now to Northwoods Artic Fox and Sunnybrooks Titan. Both are supposedly rated for cold climates. Good luck in your search.

When you ask someone how they like their unit and they mention minor problems, have them elaborate. We have learned to get the details.

We are in Tennessee because our daughter is having health problems.

Wish you the best, God Bless

Sandy

LuvOurTC · 02-24-2007, 11:53 AM

I really appreciate all the feedback. Thank you everyone.

I have been in contact with a lady, about my age, that is living alone in her Keystone Montana in northern Ohio in a CG. The weather certainly has not been good this season but she has had a very positive experience. She has shared very valuable information from her experience and proves it can be done. While most people would not want to do this, there are some people that are doing it and with success. Probably the majority would prefer to live in their RV in warm temps but for some, like this lady, it is not an option due to employment. She said she is as comfortably warm, if not more so, in her RV as the large home she lived in previously. Obviously, you have to take precautions with water lines, waste tanks, etc., and you are going to pay the price in propane but she is also using electric heaters to supplement and really we don't feel what she has paid is unreasonable.

Novi · 02-25-2007, 11:53 AM

This is a very interesting discussion. You have a very difficult decision to make and many have given some very good thoughts on the issue. My investment background would lead me to agree with Txiceman's comments. I would hang onto my appreciating asset as long as possible before selling it and replacing it with a depreciating one. When you sell an asset there is a cost to doing so, and if you decide to buy it back again because you do not like full time RVing, there is another cost. You could lose quite a bit of money in doing so. I realize there are other issues at stake, ie: health and medical or personal preference of life style and only you can rationalize what is best for you. And that is where it really gets tricky to make the "right" choice. Some people can manage in an RV thru our winters and if you "have" to do it, it can be done. But I don't think most people would like to do it no matter how much we like RVing. Good luck with decision.

GaryKD · 02-28-2007, 02:50 PM

Watch the balance sheet. Do the math and understand what revenue generating and appreciating assets are part of your wealth. I feel you have a good handle on the expense side of the ledger. If you do not have large $s reserves, my recommendation is to sell no appreciating assets. Where there is a will, there is a way. If you really want to down size consider:
1. moving in with your father
2. sell the big house and purchase another, smaller appreciating asset, to live in. There are many choices of housing. I know, it is not change to RVing, but your description of life in the fiver is not RVing.

The theme I leave with you is carefully guard your $ reserves and appreciating assets. If at all possible, turn the appreciating asset into a revenue producing asset. The larger the revenue stream the more choices you will have, over time. Focus on this side of the ledger.

Lastly, do not make these decisions alone. There are professionals who can provide guidance (yes, I know they all want to sell you something) and make you aware of options, programs and choices you might not have considered. Only after you feel you have all the information needed will you then feel comfortable making a decision.

LuvOurTC · 05-08-2007, 03:18 PM

I thought I would let you all know what we have finally decided to do at this time.

We have purchased a 2007 Keystone Cougar, 311 RLS, 34.5', two slides, fully enclosed/heated underbelly, and we are going to have it on a seasonal site in the campground we had originally picked out near both of our jobs. We are keeping our house but are going to stay in the RV most of the summer into early fall, maybe even try a weekend or two during the winter just to see what its like as it is right near where my husband goes ice fishing.

Anyway, husband feels this will give us an idea of what it might be like actually living in an RV at least half the year. We would like to eventually go where it is warm during the winter but we don't know if/when that may become possible so we decided to do what is the next best thing for us in our situation.

We love camping, love RV folks, and love where we are going to be located. With our working and by having a seasonal site, this will allow us to camp more than we have ever been able to before too. We will be right across the road from one of the Great Lakes and I love the water.

I want to thank everyone for all the great feedback. It really helped us to look at things from many different aspects which is what we needed to do. I think we made a good choice for us at this time.