Living on the road full-time: Is it right for you?

Scott Bidstrup lived on the road for six years, with no permanent address, no phone, no job, no responsibilities. He writes that it was one of the best periods of his life. We’ve all thought about doing it, but is it right for you?

Full-timing — is it right for you?

Lots and lots of folks dream of doing what I did — it's called "full-timing" by those who do it.

Latest estimates are that over a million North Americans are full-timers, living permanently in their RVs with no permanent address. Many are retired, but many others work part of the year, just long enough for a 'stash' to keep them going for a few months or a year or so.

A surprising number of engineers, project managers and construction people are full-timers, living in their motor homes and traveling from job to job. It's economically a very efficient means of handling the housing problem, especially if you would otherwise be moving a lot to relatively brief work sites.

For retirees, it has the blessing of not having a house to maintain. Housecleaning is easy and quick, there's no lawn to mow, there's no snow removal problem in the winter. And the scenery is wonderful. Every day you can enjoy scenery that city folks would pay hundreds of thousands for if they could buy it at all, and for you it's free. And when you're tired of it, you change it!

The option for retirees is whether to stay in developed campgrounds and RV parks or to "boondock." Boondocking is camping in undeveloped areas. The latter is made possible by the "14 day law." It is a federal law that says that federally owned public lands outside of national parks and monuments is open to camping unless the local land manager has closed it for a specific reason. Campers are free to camp wherever they like, within the limitations imposed by the land manager, but are required to move after 14 days (the law doesn't say how far, but most land managers interpret it to mean at least a half a mile, though some require 25 miles in heavily used areas), and leave the campsite as they found it. I found boondocking much more to my liking, besides being cheaper and far safer.

If full-timing is a lifestyle you're considering, but don't know if it's right for you, here are some of the important questions you need to ask:

• If living with a partner, do both of you really want to do this? If there's any hesitation on the part of either one of you, don't even consider it. Living in an RV means living in close, tight quarters, and if both of you aren't wanting to make it work, and committed to the project, it won't. If you don't get along exceptionally well, don't consider it. Living so close together will greatly aggravate any annoyances that are a part of your relationship. Are you sure your partnership is strong enough to survive it? In a tiny motor home, there's no room for arrogant egos or emotional, unreasoning attitudes. Both partners will have to be prepared to compromise a lot. Are you prepared to be that flexible?
  
  
• There are lots of conveniences that you don't even think about that you'll have to do without. Telephones are such a part of our lives, that some people just can't live without them. In an RV, you can have a cellular phone, if you want it and can afford it, but it isn't the same, since it costs big money to talk for long periods, and many, even most, rural areas are poorly served if served at all by cell service providers. If you can't do without a phone, don't go on the road. Long, hot baths and showers are another luxury you're going to have to do without. You can do that if you want, but it means you'll be going for water or to find a dump station awfully frequently if you do. Most full-timers learn quickly how to take a shower with a gallon of water or less, and doing so isn't very satisfying to those who like to luxuriate in the shower. Television anywhere is now possible with the mini-satellite dishes, but there often isn't any local television where you'll be. So if you're addicted to TV, be prepared to take a mini-dish system with you. Large storage spaces don't exist in RVs, and so you'll need to keep your needs very simple and your trash generation to an absolute minimum. Entertainment is sparse, there's no movie theater close by. A couple of dozen books, a few CDs for the boombox stereo, a lap-top computer, a 9" TV and a short-wave portable radio was about it for what kept me company for six years. It's Spartan living, and if that's a problem for you, don't even consider life on the road.
  
  
• Roughing it means that it can be a bit chilly at times or hot, muggy and buggy at other times. It can be chilly when you're low on propane and don't otherwise need a trip to town. And it can be hot when the weather suddenly turns unexpectedly warm, especially in the late spring or early fall. Also, many RV's have heaters that are only moderately effective in heating the vehicle evenly. If you've got to have the perfect temperature all the time, you're going to find RV living uncomfortable. Most RV furnaces also generate a great deal of radio and TV interference, so you might have to choose between the TV and the heater if your RV has forced air heat. If you're boondocking, air conditioning is not an option unless you have a generator - which for a lot of reasons I don't recommend.
  
  
• Money. Do you have an adequate source of funds to make this work? You'll need a minimum of about $8,000 a year to live comfortably, less if you're into very Spartan living, and more if you want to be able to spend freely. Your spending of money will be disciplined not by cost as much as where to put things, but you'll need to have a steady supply of small amounts of cash and enough cash reserve for emergency vehicle repairs. Your vehicle is your home, so you'll need to have some sort of plan to replace it if it is lost in an accident or fire, or if some redneck sheriff thinks you're a drug runner and confiscates it. Have a plan in mind in case something happens that displaces you from your vehicle. Full replacement cost insurance is a really good idea. If you plan on working, you'll need a vehicle that is acceptable to RV Park operators, and that means a factory built motor home. You'll also need a steady source of job opportunities — it's best to be hooked up with several headhunters who know and like you.
  
  
• Being self-reliant. You'll need to be able to change a tire, check your vehicle's vital fluids, fix a leaking roof, repair broken plumbing, etc. Can you do that? A dripping faucet in a house is a problem, but in an RV it's a crisis. If you have to call someone to fix everything that ever gets broken in your life, think twice about full-timing. You're often dozens, even hundreds of miles from anyone who could fix it for you. Even if you knew where to find someone, and all your propane is leaking from a loose fitting, or your roof is leaking in a pouring rain, you'll need to fix it now! You normally won't have the option of waiting till you can find someone to do it for you.
  
  
• Children. If you have children living with you, it is possible to take them on the road, but it's not easy. I've seen it done - I met an artist who lived with his wife and two children in a school-bus he had converted, and they supported themselves by selling the art they created right there in the bus. They home-taught their children. Their children loved it, because they were born into the lifestyle and didn't know anything different. If they'd tried to take urban children on the road, I doubt it would have worked - they'd constantly be complaining about nothing to do, no movies, no friends, no places to go, etc. But children born on the road are different. They're not overstimulated as urban children too often are. And there is no bad crowd for them to run around with, and no drugs for them to get into. So it's a great way to raise children, if you can start them out that way and have the space for them in your RV. It's guaranteed that children raised that way will reflect your values, because they won't be exposed to anything you don't control.

So you've decided to do it. Now what?
The most important consideration, surprisingly enough, is selecting a mail forwarding service. This is a vitally important decision, because it determines where you're going to have to be "domiciled." Legally, it is much more than just where your vehicle must be registered and what state you'll get a drivers license in. It impacts everything that involves an address. This is a very serious legal issue, that if not properly addressed, could land you in prison, as violating domicile law is a felony in most states! And it happens more often than you might think! These laws were instituted as a part of the drug war and the fight against tax evasion, so many states have made domecile requirements much more stringent than you might imagine, and enforce them vigorously. To help prevent running afoul of the domicile laws, make sure that you use the same address for everything - mail, bill-paying, driver's licenses, insurance, income tax returns, voting, etc. In most states, use of multiple addresses for various purposes, either official or private, is specifically prohibited by domicile law. In many states, the use of a mail forwarding agency address does not constitute legal domicile. This is why it is important to take care in selecting a good mail forwarding service in a state whose laws you can live with.

The states with which I am most familiar are:

• Oregon, in which it is easy to register a vehicle, it is cheap, and fairly easy to get a driver's license, and it is full-timer friendly. Oregon once required you to spend at least 30 days a year at the address where your vehicle is registered, although I'm not sure whether that requirement is still in force. That's not so bad, as Oregon isn't a bad place to spend time, and there are forwarding services that actually are associated with RV parks where you can stay the 30 days.
  
• Idaho is friendly, and not hard to get a license from, and registration is cheap, but there are no mail forwarding services there that I know of, and it does have a state income tax. I don't know about it's domicile laws, either. It does have the advantage of rarely calling you up for jury duty.
  
• Nevada: I don't know about it's domicile laws, though Nevada is popular, as there are lots of forwarding services in the Las Vegas area (and at least two in Pahrump, where there is no emissions test requirement), and it has not income tax, but the state is really hard-line about driver's license tests, and it may take some doing to get licensed there if you don't qualify to have the tests waived.
  
• Texas is a good state except that you may be called to jury duty, and if called, you have to go, regardless of where you are if you're in the U.S. You'll also face a vehicle safety inspection in Texas if you ever take your motor home there. Use of a forwarding agent for domicile is allowed in Texas.
  
• California is ridiculously expensive both for registration and for insurance and has its famous pollution laws which require you to have at least semiannual pollution tests before you can renew your registration. That can be a problem, especially if your out of state when registration is due or if you don't pass the test. If you register in California, expect to be called to jury duty about every six months to a year. You can claim distance hardship only a few times. Also, domicile is an issue. For this reason, I don't recommend it.
  
• Arizona allows you to register in certain counties (La Paz, where Quartzite is located, is one) using a P.O. box rather than the usually required street address. Emissions testing is waived in all counties except where Phoenix and Tucson are located, and driver's licenses are issued for life! Arizona does have a state income tax, however, and I don't know about its domicile requirements. I don't know of any forwarding services in Arizona, except in the counties where emission inspections are required.

Once you've settled on a state, you'll need a mail forwarding service, which of course will become your residence for domicile purposes. Don't even consider having family or friends do it; it's a lot of work when you're not set up to do it, and is a big commitment to ask of someone. And family or friends may not be as reliable as you'd like — they have busy lives of their own and like to go on vacations too. So get a forwarding service. They can be as cheap as $100 a year. There are many of them listed in the classifieds of Highways Magazine, the magazine that comes with your Good Sam membership (which I strongly recommend for a variety of reasons).

Insurance is something you shouldn't even consider going on the road without. Many states (especially California) now impound vehicles that aren't properly insured, even if from out of state. That's inconvenient and expensive if it's your car, but it is disastrous if it's your home. Full-timer insurance policies are available through the Escapees Club's RV-Alliance America, and TravelSure, as well as through Good Sam, and Camping World. These policies are or can be tailored to full-timers, and offer coverages that standard policies won't. Be aware that most standard motor home policies are void if the owner is full-timing.

Speaking of insurance, both the Escapees club and Good Sam also offer group health insurance if you need it. Check with them for rates.

RV Clubs and Towing Insurance. The premiere RV club is, of course, Good Sam, with over a million members. They offer it all — mail forwarding (though it's in California, which I don't recommend), vehicle insurance, including towing, and a lot of travel discounts. You can buy their services a la carte. The American Automobile Association, not to be outdone, has its own RV club, though it isn't as comprehensive as Good Sam. The Escapees Club is smaller, but unlike Good Sam is geared specifically to full-timers. It has a package of services as useful to full-timers as the Good Sam package. Of all of them, the only one I've had experience with has been Good Sam. The one time I had to use their towing insurance, they really took care of me, following up with the mechanic almost every morning to make sure I was being taken care of. They even convinced the mechanic to allow me to stay living in the RV for the week it took to repair the transmission.

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