Halfway There!

[Bogie71]

We just sold our house and moved into an apartment as the first stage of making the switch to full-time life. Figured out that we have still kept way too much stuff going from a 2800 sf house down to a 1 bedroom apartment.

Next stage is selling our current small RV while the market seems good and then trying to find one we can both agree on. I want a small DP that is easier to drive and park in more places, she wants the 45' mega bus.

Then figuring out what we are going to do for domicile/residency. Was hoping a friend would just let us use their address, but everyone is worried their taxes will somehow go up lol.

I also need to figure out how to keep working on the road. I can work as long as I have internet, but need to make sure the company doesn't mind the address I give them. I think we've narrowed it down to Texas or South Dakota using Escapees and just trying to figure out the logistics of which one is better.

Excited though. Still seems like a lot of work ahead of us, but really hoping that this will bring more good days than bad. We're both tired of being stuck in Illinois and really tired of winters.

Anyone have some advice on the final transition? I think we are getting close on to the major considerations. I am sure there are a thousand small things we have missed.

[twogypsies]

We used Escapees Texas for 16 full-timing years. Absolutely no problems. You'll probably hear about 'vehicle inspections'. If you never stay in Texas longer than 5 days you don't have to get an inspection. So theoretically you could drive through Texas on your way to somewhere else and not be required to get the inspection. If you stay longer the inspection is a simple 15 minute deal. Don't have it done in one of the big cities because of emission testing. Pick a small town.

A lot also depends on your medical insurance. Make sure you're able to get it as you travel.

You might include Florida as one of your choices if not on Medicare as I believe medical is easier to get there. Do a search on this forum. There have been many, many posts on the subject.

Just our preference but I would never get a 45'. The 40' we had was big enough and we easily fit in even the national and state parks. A 45' would not in many instances.

Scour the many excellent posts and subjects on this forum.

Good luck with your plans. It's an awesome lifestyle! We were from Michigan and know how you feel about the winters.

Now.... get back to downsizing even more! Keeping a storage building really adds up in cost. We stored nothing and no regrets. When settling down again your furniture styles will probably have changed and your appliances will be outdated. You can buy new for what the storage unit would cost you over the years.

[Bogie71]

Yeah health insurance is the big one. I have through work, but I am sure it will be more specific to the state I am in. My wife is insured through me, but she is a few years closer to qualifying for medicare (don't tell her I said that lol).

While SD seems a little cheaper we are thinking about doing winter months in Texas so that might not be the worst option. Take care of doctors appts, dental, inspections and all that other nonsense then move on for a while.

[Warhorse6]

Unless things have changed in the past couple of years you do not need a rv vehicle inspection in Texas. You do however need a commercial driver license if the rv is over a certain weight. Exact number I can’t recall, but do know I needed one for a 40’ Tiffin phaeton. Test includes a road test as well as written. As for size, many things probably factor in, like money, availability, etc. my experience was we started at 33, then went to 40, and now 44. Easy to say buy your last coach first, but I would consider larger if you plan to full time. Also need to consider what is anything you plan to tow. Wish you the best on whatever you and wife decide.

[Xmcdog]

We have the opposite problem. My wife wants a small Sprinter type and I want a DP with tag.

Likely we will settle on a 35 DP.
We sold our 2700' house with 1000' basement and bought a 1600' house. The downsizing is painful but fun. Understand what you are going through.

Fun and games.

[Bogie71]

Originally Posted by Xmcdog

We have the opposite problem. My wife wants a small Sprinter type and I want a DP with tag.

Likely we will settle on a 35 DP.
We sold our 2700' house with 1000' basement and bought a 1600' house. The downsizing is painful but fun. Understand what you are going through.

Fun and games.

Yeah we'll probably come in around 35-37. I am so glad we did the transition step though. I think we would have been in trouble going from the house straight to the RV. The downsizing continues, but at least we have a much better perspective on it. The house seemed empty so we thought we were doing good.

[dsattler]

We went from a 2600 SF house with full basement to a 2 bed room apt with a 2 car garage for 3 years before moving into our 32' gasser. Started selling and/or donating when we sold the house all the way until we moved into the motor home. Good luck in finding the right size rig that will work for you.

[twogypsies]

We went from a 2500 sq ft on a lake to a 27' travel trailer when we started full-time. A few months later to a 33' 5th wheel and finally a 40' motorhome towing a Jeep which gave us much 4-wheeling pleasure and meeting many like folks.

We gave the kids what they wanted... which was very little ... they already had all their 'stuff' & didn't want ours; sold the major things individually - car, boat, etc.; then had a garage sale; then donated to charity and what was left went to the dump.

We got downsized from our jobs in our 50's and knew we didn't want to sit at home in a rocking chair. Our first winter we bought the 27' travel trailer and went to Florida for 5 months... moving around constantly. We had never heard of full-timing but got to talking to many who were doing it and they all seemed to be members of the Escapees RV Club. On the drive home to Michigan we talked and decided that it's what we wanted to do. We joined Escapees (best thing we could have done), got our mailing address and started getting rid of our stuff. We've made lifelong friends thru the Escapees organization - a constant connection as we all traveled and we'd meet up with them if in the area. A large group wintered together and today, 25 now live in the same community - instant family.

Sold everything between May and Sept and took off for good. Not one regret. We did a lot of volunteering in national and state parks to help them out and to give us purpose.

Our grandchildren grew up with us full-timing. We had no internet, no cell phone and spent many hours in a phone booth and writing letters, sending postcards. We were there for all their special events... sports, holidays and school. As they aged they became very interested in our travels. To this day they, also, are travelers. One grandson backpacked across eastern Europe as soon as he graduated from high school - even one of the last tourists allowed in North Korea. Today they all thank us for sharing our love of travel.

Yes, full-timing can be an awesome lifestyle!!

[twogypsies]

Originally Posted by Tedo

Unless things have changed in the past couple of years you do not need a rv vehicle inspection in Texas. You do however need a commercial driver license if the rv is over a certain weight.

As I stated in an above post... you do need a vehicle inspection if you're in Texas more than 5 days.

You need a non-commercial Class B endorsement if over 26,000 GVW.

You'll have the standard Class C driver's license.

[JFXG]

Originally Posted by Bogie71

…Next stage is selling our current small RV…… I want a small DP that is easier to drive and park in more places, she wants the 45' mega bus. [emoji4] .

SIZE: You *think* a smaller DP will be easier to drive and park. Wrong. I used to drive an 18 wheeler that was 200 ft long, 200 ft wide, and weighed about 400 ton. It was easy. If you’re properly trained anything can become easy. I recommend professional driver training such as The RV Driving School.
You’re going to LIVE in this. Every day. 365. It MUST be able to tolerate the constant use. That means high quality, because quality is well built and lasts. So go shopping for a high end coach. A few years old, if necessary to meet your budget, but it must be a name brand of quality. Your research will help you narrow the field to 4 or 5 top competitors.
To live you need space. >>… small DP that is easier to drive and park… <<. Don’t fall for that old saw. “Too big” will only last for about a month. “Too small” will last forever.

Originally Posted by Bogie71

Then figuring out what we are going to do about domicile/residence.

DOMICILE : Easy. Escapees. Texas. Address AND mail forwarding AND a host
of other benefits.

[Bogie71]

On to the hard part - actually finding the RV Used market is crazy right now and I am apparently one person behind in timing. Everyone I ask about someone *just* beat me to it. We have some time to be patient luckily, but getting that unicorn Tiffin is going to be tough. Although patience is definitely not my virtue.. I want to be on the road now lol.

[Bogie71]

Originally Posted by JFXG

To live you need space. >>… small DP that is easier to drive and park… <<. Don’t fall for that old saw. “Too big” will only last for about a month. “Too small” will last forever.

DOMICILE : Easy. Escapees. Texas. Address AND mail forwarding AND a host
of other benefits.

Thanks! Got a family member that is going to let us use their address if we need to, but Texas was first on our list for lots of reasons.

My wife will be happy as your comment does make a lot of sense with the RV size. I'm sure with a course and practice I can drive just about anything, but we have one shot at this to start out and if we go with an RV too small, we'll definitely be unhappy.

[Bogie71]

Step 2 Done: Just put in an offer on a Class A. A bit bigger than I was aiming for, but went with the advice that I will get used to driving something larger, but small is forever.

Just need to ride out the lease on the apartment and start moving stuff into the RV. By March we should be on the road. Sadly we are trapped in Illinois for one more winter.

[twogypsies]

You'll now have plenty of time to study maps!