The burning question – “How can you afford to do this?”
The question everyone wants to ask, but only few do. It’s okay. Ask us. Let’s talk about it.
We don’t have trust funds. We didn’t win the lottery. We are not independently wealthy.
Here’s the top-level 10-seconds-in-an-elevator answer – We lived frugally – spending the last 11 years living below our means, even when some of those years were extremely lean. We clipped coupons, shopped discount racks and second-hand stores, and said “no” to a lot of purchases. We paid off all our student loan debt ($80,000!). We worked hard to build an online business that allows us (Heather) to work remotely. We paid extra on our mortgage every month. We avoided consumer debt. And we saved. . .a lot.
It is that simple.
When we decided to take the plunge into full-time travel we had saved enough to pay cash for the tow vehicle and the trailer. This was key for us. We didn’t want the pressure of debt on the road.
We are debt free on the road, have a savings account/emergency fund, investment accounts and have a steady livable income from our online business.
An added bonus is our cost of living has dropped dramatically since moving out of our “traditional home” and traveling full time. Think about it – no bills for heating, electricity, water, cable, internet, landline phone, security system, homeowners dues, property taxes, mortgage, daycare, preschool tuition. . . and so much less consumer debt – you’re not heading to Target and filling your cart with clearance treasures because you don’t have any place to store it!
Of course everyone’s situation is unique, but I would encourage most families considering full-time travel to :
1.) Start debt free
2.) Have an emergency fund established (3-6 months living expenses)
3.) Have an income source in place that allows you to make money on the road
4.) Have a monthly budget that keeps you in the green and make intentional choices to follow your budget
If you have any other budget questions – ask! We hope to be as transparent as possible so that we can help other families pursue the dream of full-time travel.
so amazing! We have similar goals. I’m amazed you paid off your tow vehicle and airstream in full before hitting the road!! We’re working hard to pay off debt before we purchase ours but wow….that’s a lot of money to save! Was the dealer shocked when you paid cash? Did they give you a smokin deal?! Seriously I’m so impressed!
Saving up for our tow vehicle and Airstream didn’t happen overnight for sure. 🙂 We did get a screaming deal on the Airstream – but I think buying at the very end of February helped us with that! The season hadn’t really picked up yet and it was the last day of the month – when dealerships want to reach a monthly quota. I had emailed back and forth for a month negotiating a price. We did get an amazing deal – which I’m grateful for.
In terms of paying cash – I was surprised how little that influenced dealerships pricing – especially on the truck. When we purchased our tow vehicle – they would actually give us a better deal if we financed – because they get kick-back from the financing company. This totally irked me, but I guess the old saying “cash talks” isn’t as relevant for car purchases these days.
I think that it’s awesome that you’re paying off your debt first. Your carefree days on the road will be even more so – if you aren’t worrying about debt. Keep it up and keep me posted on your journey!
We were surprised when we bought my used Honda CRV that the dealer didn’t care about us paying in cash either. I actually think they seemed disappointed. So frustrating, but dealers obviously make more by financing vehicles.
Anne – Agree! It’s really too bad that dealers don’t offer a better deal for those who want to pay cash. Too many kickbacks from the banks, probably. 🙁
I know it doesn’t fit into everyone’s lifestyle choices, but when we bought our last car (back in 2005), there was a cash-back deal if you financed through the dealership. So we took the deal, told them to apply the cash back to our down payment, and then paid off the loan entirely after the three-month minimum for the loan. (Make sure there’s no penalty for early payoff!) There was no interest for those 90 days, either.
I know the dealership got a kickback from it. But technically, so did I. I think we got a better price on the vehicle too than we would have without the financing.
So amazing and what an adventure! We would love to do something like this. Are you selling your home?
Hi Heather, We did sell our house and everything in it. House is currently under contract and we hope to close in the next two weeks. 🙂
My girlfriend just sent me your website because traveling extensively for a year is what we’re currently and lovingly calling my Hair-Brianed Scheme (HBS, for short). My husband and I decided to take a year when both out kids are in middle school (don’t know if that’s brilliant timing or psychotic!) and travel the US extensively. That gives us 8 years to save, purge, streamline, and plan. We’d love to do it longer, but that depends on coming up with a way to earn a living on the road. I can’t wait to go through your site and hear about your adventures. Good luck and safe travels! 🙂
Thanks for the positive vibes. I like acronyms too, loving the HBS!
We also paid cash for out travel trailer and used our (paid cash for) Suburban to pull. We’re still trying to figure out making a living on the road. I make a part-time income with my blog, but definitely not enough for us to live on. Right now my husband is waiting tables to pay for expenses, but we’d love to find another solution. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. 🙂
We would love to do the same. However, my biggest concern is health insurance. Without full-time jobs, how do families go about getting insurance?
Deanna – Great question! We have my husband’s health insurance through the end of September and then we’ll probably do COBRA for a few months (super expensive for the plan we’re on right now) and then we’ll enroll in private health insurance after that. We have budgeted for this added expense – we’ll see how it shakes out. Lots of families have private insurance and there are many, many choices. Some are cheap and others aren’t. I’ll probably be somewhere in the middle – I believe good insurance is a good idea!
My family enrolled this year in a Christian health share ministry called Medi Share. It’s not traditional insurance but meets the health care act requirements. It is very affordable and has worked well for our family so far since January. There are others such as Christian Healthcare Ministries and Samaritain Ministries. Medi Share just fit our family best. We aren’t traveling…just trying to save $$!
I just realized I have known you for awhile. I follow Queen Bees Coupons. I am still trying to figure out this extreme couponing. I have used coupons since I was very young. My husband retired last year. We worked hard like you guys did and paid all of our bills off years ago. We are debt free. We, like you, bought a motorhome and paid cash for it. We owe no one!!! That is so important. We want to start traveling and keep our house too so we can come home once in a while. I just had shoulder reconstruction surgery so can’t quite travel just yet. But in a few more weeks I hope to take off some where. I do have a question. Do you make reservations for all the places you are staying at or do you just drive and when you find some place nice stop?