This may sound a little strange, but the fact is, more and more people are choosing a lifestyle of van dwelling these days. For some, it may be for economic reasons, but for others, it’s simply a whole new attitude of a way to live.
Vandwelling can mean being able to make a living from anywhere without living in a sticks and bricks home. This lifestyle affords one the ability to live in a location of choice and not confined to a certain city or state for a job. There are vandwellers who live full-time in their vans and work normal jobs. Their vans are very stealthy and give no hint to the casual observer that the van is being lived in on a city street. You can’t do that in a traditional RV. A good percentage of these vans have solar panels affixed to the tops of the vans producing all the van’s electrical needs. Most of these vans are like tiny homes inside and some even have a shower. For those that don’t, the vandweller will more than likely have a gym membership that affords him/her the ability to take a shower anytime they desire. If the vandweller has Internet, and most do, then finding a job can be quite easy and this wonder we call the Internet, affords anyone the ability to find work. Telecommuting is very popular today. There are also workampers programs available, RV parks are looking for workers, State and National Parks hire seasonal workers, Theme Parks hire workers and even Amazon has a work camping program. Then there are those who are retired and have a pension that provides enough income to live quite comfortably in a van.
Living in a van means a much lower cost of living as opposed to living in a home or apartment, so saving money is easy. No mortgage, no rent, no utilities. Just your phone and Internet. A lower cost of transportation as you’ll be in your van close to your work.
You’ll also find that you will need less stuff. You can definitely save more money if you quit buying “stuff” that you really don’t need. Think of your vandwelling lifestyle as an easy way to impose a limit on the amount of stuff that you own now. You will be forced to become a minimalist; which is not a bad thing. With limited storage space inside your van, you will have to be very selective about what you own.
These are just a few of the major benefits of living in your van, not to mention the sheer freedom of it all.
Until next time…
