We (Sheila and I) aren't quite ready to pull the trigger on FT'ing yet. We still have a one or two responsibilities to fulfill. We are looking forward to it though. We already enjoy traveling and head to AZ as often as possible in the winter. I save all the time available to me for the winters. I work an odd schedule which makes it easier to be gone more often. We even ventured to AZ this last summer just to get a feel for the much talked about furnace, they weren't kidding.
We have some questions we are working out. Like. can we afford to keep the house, do we even want or need to? I must admit, most of the questions or concerns are brought up by Sheila. She is the smart one of us after all. She's always looking after everyone. Me, I think we should just get rid of all our crap and go. We'll figure it out as we go right? I know, does't usually work out great that way.
Most of the questions we have I have been able to research and get good advise, information, or on the spot answers to. All but one. It's not something anyone likes to talk about. But I'm afraid I have to ask because we feel we need to be prepared for the possibility.
What do we do if we sell our home and one of us becomes too ill to travel around or needs constant care? Generally our concern is that any places that allow you to stay for longer periods of time probably won't have hospice or local in home nursing available. What, if any, are the options?
In any case, once we have done our due diligence in answering our questions and concerns, maybe we can start early... whoo hoo!
Terry and Jo said
09:43 AM Dec 12, 2015
Roger,
Welcome to the RV Dreams forums. The folks here have proven to be very helpful to those looking into this lifestyle, so feel free to ask questions. About the only topics we avoid are politics and religion.
For us, we sold everything to live in our RV and have found that getting rid of all the "stuff" was liberating. And, if I have to go looking for something that I need, I've got a lot smaller space that I have to examine to find what I want. It seems that humans, especially those of us in the U.S. like to accumulate things.
In our case, if health issue arise as you described, we've given up the idea of ever owning another house. At our age, if we stopped living in our fifth wheel, we'd just find some place and rent something. If anything happens to me, Jo will likely sell the RV and move close to family. If anything happens to her, well, I'm not sure what I'll want to do. I might still travel, or if old and feeble enough, sell it all and find a place to settle.
Terry
Camper Chronicles said
11:23 AM Dec 12, 2015
These are great questions and good for Sheila. Some folks have bought a small home in the cases where one partner has become ill. Others have just hunkered down near family and good medical care in their RV. One of the advantages in this situation is you get to decide where you will go to some extent and as medical care does vary across the country that actually could be a benefit. Many people keep their doctors in place for just such an eventuality, making sure their route brings them back to their "home base" every year for annual checkups and such. Others throw caution to the winds and say they will deal with that if and when it comes. For us, since our kids and family are spread across the country we don't have what we consider a home base anymore. Probably the closest would be Ohio where our parents are located. The answer to this one is really going to vary based on your particular situation and I think it's great that you are thinking it through.
Sort of my standard answer to these type of questions though is to think about what you would have to give up to be "safe". Speaking for myself Lee and I have experienced more in the last year full-timing than we did in the prior 10...and that is not an exaggeration. To me those experiences would be even more valuable if someone got ill and would be worth the additional difficulties this lifestyle would present in those situations. That's just me though :)
Trace
BiggarView said
11:31 AM Dec 12, 2015
Welcome, Mike and Sheila. You've found a great group of like minded types that you can share your RV vision with.
The health question pops up from time to time. FWIW...... If one of you becomes too ill or disabled to travel.... then.... you don't travel. Before that... if you want to travel..... travel. I know it sounds somewhat flippant, but consider the reality of it all. On your deathbed, surrounded by loved ones , or not if circumstances prevent it, do you want to dwell on regretting things you didn't do or cherish what you did do? I would choose the latter.
As to the house, like most of your other stuff, is just a thing that can be replaced. As such you may never need to, so in the mean time keeping it means you still have to maintain it, pay taxes on it and so on. I say, get rid of it, bank the money in a solid conservative diversified mutual fund and if you decide or must come off the road... voila, convert the mutual fund into a new house or whatever you need. Problem solved. Keeping it, may be justifiable in your particular situation and that is okay too.
Once we hit the road, if I were to subsequently become a solo at a later date (but not too late that I would have difficulty), I think it would easy for me to resume or continue a mobile lifestyle. Can't speak for Cindi, but I feel like she would be more inclined to be located near family.
JMHO, Brian
Someday said
02:19 PM Dec 12, 2015
Mike,
How I can so resonate with your thoughts and feelings regarding swinging back and forth like a pendulum regarding whether to keep the house or not. Not just from a financial aspect but an emotional one of "what if" we don't end up liking FTing after the first year or so, and the property market has risen substantially? Being Canadian we also have a few different challenges compared to our cousins south, but we have seen how successfully other Canadians, albeit they started their journey a good half decade plus before we are. Ironically, the recent crash in our energy province the past few months, has helped reinforce for us to offload as much as possible, as soon as possible. Real estate doesn't always increase indefinitely in all areas, even over some decade spans, and as we get older with less time to recover our needs and thoughts change.
You didn't mention whether you have children/relatives/strong bond relationships with anyone, and what options should you get sick/alone in that regards? So many have commented over the years about going through some major medical issues, and how ironically the small space of an RV with easy access to everything within a hand grip away has actually been beneficial to them for the mostpart during recoveries. Also, have you checked into the Escapees programmes? If I recall correctly, they have a place that provides opportunities to park up the rig, and receive ongoing home help and support for those unable to travel any more through aging/illness. Check out their website: Escapees.com and also the forum on RVnetwork.com. Even though we are Canadian and won't be able to take advantage of all that's on offer from them, we certainly feel that it's a wonderful membership to be affiliated with when FTing.
For us our youngest, whom we are very very close to, will be taking over our acreage because "her" daddy built it and emotions are in play (LOL). This is where we shall hang our hats to meet our presence necessary to maintain our health care status most years. In addition, "if" at a later date we need a more permanent residence, we will have the monies set aside, to build a Granny/Nanny annex on the property. At the end of the day, it's just their future inheritance we'll be investing into the place a little more prematurely if need be.
Hypothetically, where would you want to be living right now location and property wise if you were to be incapacitated or need support? Maybe look at it from that perspective as if "today", to put your minds at rest.
Truth be known, none of us know for sure how we are going to change and grow when we hit the road FT, and different personalities will experience and perceive things so differently. You could very well end up living somewhere totally different to where your home is today.
Happy travels, and enjoy the planning.
SD.
mrogersmike said
05:49 PM Dec 12, 2015
Thank you all for your responses!
You really have us thinking now and it seems there are many answers to our questions that we are coming up with on our own. It almost seems I can feel the emotion in your responses, or maybe it's just ours as we read them. Either way, we are talking about selling and the reality of our attachment to the house and what it means to us stings a bit. The excitement of a real opportunity to go full time is the opposite at the same time.
It seems your comments have made it "real" for us. Some soul searching is going on now. But, we are not the type to just sit around and wait. We need to pick a direction and GO.
JonRV said
04:53 PM Dec 13, 2015
I'd recommend keeping you current setup as far medical goes. Try to plan a trip back every year or six months the first couple of years. If that ends up working keep it up or find a new solution. In the case that it is a serious medical issue being close to family is always better.
French Bikers said
10:09 PM Dec 13, 2015
Welcome to RV Dreams. Maybe I won't answer all of questions, so I will just give you my own opinion and thought. First you need to know that I'm canadian living in the province of Quebec, I'm 52 years old and living with my lovely wife Jocelyne since we've been married 31 years ago. FT for me is more then a dream it'is a way of living after being in the croud, raising a family, having a job, taking care of the house, etc....
Our planning was 2018, but life change everyday and you have to deal with it, you never know what life can throw at you... Few years ago i've sent an e-mail to Howard and asked im several questions that I wasn't able to answer myself. Howard was kind enough to reply, he actually didn't answered my questions but his answer only gave me what I needed to go go ahead with my dream.
In fact you might have a lot of thinking to do, I d'ont know if FT has been a dream for you and your wife. I just want to remind you fear will keep you where you are, if you really want to live this LIFE STYLE, I mean FT, you will acheive you goal, you are right you might get sick or maybe your wife but living in a SB house or a fifth wheel or a class A will change the fact that sickness might be around the corner. D'ont forget we all finish at the same place.
I understand your fear surrounding a FT way of life, you have live all your life in a certain way, I will only ask you one question hoping that you will ask your self, What was I thinking about life when I was 18!!!!!!!!
If you really whant this way of life, if you are ready to let go a big SB house and the confort, you will get something else.
I hope that you will get all your answers, if you follow this forum you will see the power and wisdom of the people that went thought the same thinkink.
GOOD LUCK
Jean
SuzieQ said
08:05 PM Dec 16, 2015
You ask a serious question that is definitely worth considering. There is no "one size fits all" answer.
My husband & I plan to go FT in about 18 mths. We will sell the house and buy a condo. 1) Gives us a home base for things like insurance, drivers license, health insurance. 2) A place to stay when we come back to see his parents every 4-6 mths. 3) A place to store all my antiques that I inherited from my family.
We're in our mid-50's and in good health. If we were very elderly or in poor health, we might plan differently.
My only suggestion is to plan your life for the next couple of years. You don't want to live with a "what if" that never happens.
Hello all!
We (Sheila and I) aren't quite ready to pull the trigger on FT'ing yet. We still have a one or two responsibilities to fulfill. We are looking forward to it though. We already enjoy traveling and head to AZ as often as possible in the winter. I save all the time available to me for the winters. I work an odd schedule which makes it easier to be gone more often. We even ventured to AZ this last summer just to get a feel for the much talked about furnace, they weren't kidding.
We have some questions we are working out. Like. can we afford to keep the house, do we even want or need to? I must admit, most of the questions or concerns are brought up by Sheila. She is the smart one of us after all. She's always looking after everyone. Me, I think we should just get rid of all our crap and go. We'll figure it out as we go right? I know, does't usually work out great that way.
Most of the questions we have I have been able to research and get good advise, information, or on the spot answers to. All but one. It's not something anyone likes to talk about. But I'm afraid I have to ask because we feel we need to be prepared for the possibility.
What do we do if we sell our home and one of us becomes too ill to travel around or needs constant care? Generally our concern is that any places that allow you to stay for longer periods of time probably won't have hospice or local in home nursing available. What, if any, are the options?
In any case, once we have done our due diligence in answering our questions and concerns, maybe we can start early... whoo hoo!
Roger,
Welcome to the RV Dreams forums. The folks here have proven to be very helpful to those looking into this lifestyle, so feel free to ask questions. About the only topics we avoid are politics and religion.
For us, we sold everything to live in our RV and have found that getting rid of all the "stuff" was liberating. And, if I have to go looking for something that I need, I've got a lot smaller space that I have to examine to find what I want. It seems that humans, especially those of us in the U.S. like to accumulate things.
In our case, if health issue arise as you described, we've given up the idea of ever owning another house. At our age, if we stopped living in our fifth wheel, we'd just find some place and rent something. If anything happens to me, Jo will likely sell the RV and move close to family. If anything happens to her, well, I'm not sure what I'll want to do. I might still travel, or if old and feeble enough, sell it all and find a place to settle.
Terry
Sort of my standard answer to these type of questions though is to think about what you would have to give up to be "safe". Speaking for myself Lee and I have experienced more in the last year full-timing than we did in the prior 10...and that is not an exaggeration. To me those experiences would be even more valuable if someone got ill and would be worth the additional difficulties this lifestyle would present in those situations. That's just me though :)
Trace
Welcome, Mike and Sheila. You've found a great group of like minded types that you can share your RV vision with.
The health question pops up from time to time. FWIW...... If one of you becomes too ill or disabled to travel.... then.... you don't travel. Before that... if you want to travel..... travel. I know it sounds somewhat flippant, but consider the reality of it all. On your deathbed, surrounded by loved ones , or not if circumstances prevent it, do you want to dwell on regretting things you didn't do or cherish what you did do? I would choose the latter.
As to the house, like most of your other stuff, is just a thing that can be replaced. As such you may never need to, so in the mean time keeping it means you still have to maintain it, pay taxes on it and so on. I say, get rid of it, bank the money in a solid conservative diversified mutual fund and if you decide or must come off the road... voila, convert the mutual fund into a new house or whatever you need. Problem solved. Keeping it, may be justifiable in your particular situation and that is okay too.
Once we hit the road, if I were to subsequently become a solo at a later date (but not too late that I would have difficulty), I think it would easy for me to resume or continue a mobile lifestyle. Can't speak for Cindi, but I feel like she would be more inclined to be located near family.
JMHO, Brian
How I can so resonate with your thoughts and feelings regarding swinging back and forth like a pendulum regarding whether to keep the house or not. Not just from a financial aspect but an emotional one of "what if" we don't end up liking FTing after the first year or so, and the property market has risen substantially? Being Canadian we also have a few different challenges compared to our cousins south, but we have seen how successfully other Canadians, albeit they started their journey a good half decade plus before we are. Ironically, the recent crash in our energy province the past few months, has helped reinforce for us to offload as much as possible, as soon as possible. Real estate doesn't always increase indefinitely in all areas, even over some decade spans, and as we get older with less time to recover our needs and thoughts change.
You didn't mention whether you have children/relatives/strong bond relationships with anyone, and what options should you get sick/alone in that regards? So many have commented over the years about going through some major medical issues, and how ironically the small space of an RV with easy access to everything within a hand grip away has actually been beneficial to them for the mostpart during recoveries. Also, have you checked into the Escapees programmes? If I recall correctly, they have a place that provides opportunities to park up the rig, and receive ongoing home help and support for those unable to travel any more through aging/illness. Check out their website: Escapees.com and also the forum on RVnetwork.com. Even though we are Canadian and won't be able to take advantage of all that's on offer from them, we certainly feel that it's a wonderful membership to be affiliated with when FTing.
For us our youngest, whom we are very very close to, will be taking over our acreage because "her" daddy built it and emotions are in play (LOL). This is where we shall hang our hats to meet our presence necessary to maintain our health care status most years. In addition, "if" at a later date we need a more permanent residence, we will have the monies set aside, to build a Granny/Nanny annex on the property. At the end of the day, it's just their future inheritance we'll be investing into the place a little more prematurely if need be.
Hypothetically, where would you want to be living right now location and property wise if you were to be incapacitated or need support? Maybe look at it from that perspective as if "today", to put your minds at rest.
Truth be known, none of us know for sure how we are going to change and grow when we hit the road FT, and different personalities will experience and perceive things so differently. You could very well end up living somewhere totally different to where your home is today.
Happy travels, and enjoy the planning.
SD.
You really have us thinking now and it seems there are many answers to our questions that we are coming up with on our own. It almost seems I can feel the emotion in your responses, or maybe it's just ours as we read them. Either way, we are talking about selling and the reality of our attachment to the house and what it means to us stings a bit. The excitement of a real opportunity to go full time is the opposite at the same time.
It seems your comments have made it "real" for us. Some soul searching is going on now. But, we are not the type to just sit around and wait. We need to pick a direction and GO.
Welcome to RV Dreams. Maybe I won't answer all of questions, so I will just give you my own opinion and thought. First you need to know that I'm canadian living in the province of Quebec, I'm 52 years old and living with my lovely wife Jocelyne since we've been married 31 years ago. FT for me is more then a dream it'is a way of living after being in the croud, raising a family, having a job, taking care of the house, etc....
Our planning was 2018, but life change everyday and you have to deal with it, you never know what life can throw at you... Few years ago i've sent an e-mail to Howard and asked im several questions that I wasn't able to answer myself. Howard was kind enough to reply, he actually didn't answered my questions but his answer only gave me what I needed to go go ahead with my dream.
In fact you might have a lot of thinking to do, I d'ont know if FT has been a dream for you and your wife. I just want to remind you fear will keep you where you are, if you really want to live this LIFE STYLE, I mean FT, you will acheive you goal, you are right you might get sick or maybe your wife but living in a SB house or a fifth wheel or a class A will change the fact that sickness might be around the corner. D'ont forget we all finish at the same place.
I understand your fear surrounding a FT way of life, you have live all your life in a certain way, I will only ask you one question hoping that you will ask your self, What was I thinking about life when I was 18!!!!!!!!
If you really whant this way of life, if you are ready to let go a big SB house and the confort, you will get something else.
I hope that you will get all your answers, if you follow this forum you will see the power and wisdom of the people that went thought the same thinkink.
GOOD LUCK
Jean
My husband & I plan to go FT in about 18 mths. We will sell the house and buy a condo. 1) Gives us a home base for things like insurance, drivers license, health insurance. 2) A place to stay when we come back to see his parents every 4-6 mths. 3) A place to store all my antiques that I inherited from my family.
We're in our mid-50's and in good health. If we were very elderly or in poor health, we might plan differently.
My only suggestion is to plan your life for the next couple of years. You don't want to live with a "what if" that never happens.