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What are the cheapest housing options for single person? RV?

Discussion in 'Fred's House of Pancakes' started by Higgins909, Jul 14, 2019.

  1. Higgins909

    Higgins909 Member

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    I look into this every once in a while and always say I can't afford to move out, on my own, alone. (Don't want roommates) Right now I'm thinking about Motorhomes. I live near Austin, Tx (Major city in Texas) Houses are starting to become $300k even 50 miles away. (There are houses in the $200k area, but they arn't much and not ideal for me) Cheapest apartments I ever found were $1,000 a month. I always worry about job stability, so something I could pay off in a year or two sounds ideal. I've looked at RV and trailers and wonder. I don't have a truck to tow a trailer, so I thought motorhome. Renting a lot in a park or buying some land far out. How much can that cost? I see some used big motorhomes (online) for $30,000 and they look nice, but I'm no expert. I would plan on setting it and forgetting it. It may do 0 miles a year.

    I've seen lots for $5,000 but have no idea if there is a HOA or if I would have to build a house instead of setting up for a RV, or how to get electricity, internet, water, septic.

    tl;dr Cheap housing for a single person without roomates. RV living costs.

    Thanks,
    Higgins909
     
  2. Merkey

    Merkey Active Member

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    RV parks can get expensive, especially with water/electric hookups. As expensive as an apartment. And your length of stay can be limited resulting in frequent moving. Many cities have restrictions on where you can place an RV, even if you own the land. Google "tiny homes in Austin, Texas" and see if that's of any interest to you.
     
  3. Stevewoods

    Stevewoods Senior Member

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    rooming house if you can find one, bath down the hall. setting up bare acres with utilities will cost several thouands of dollars (around here about $8-10K for a well alone -- then you need the electric to run it and the hook-up to it and the electric to a box and so on and so forth -- around my area, I would guesstimate by the time you do well, septic and electric.... not counting internet/satellite,etc. you are edging near $20K. Might be much cheaper in your area,,,,but...

    Speak from experience. I did the rooming house for awhile when I was 20 or so. If you can stand the inevitable "who keeps stealing my food."

    Oh, BTW, also did the live off the grid bit in my early 20s (I was a rebel without a cent -- or was that without much sense).

    You can live without water, electric septic/sewer, phone service, internet etc. but it takes a certain type of person and a certain type of creativity -- whether that is building your own solar shower (which sucks big time in the winter -- or finding places to wash-up for gratis. It can be done and it does not have to be under a bridge in Seattle, but again, it takes a certain type of person. I can think of a couple folks on PriusChat who might be able....you listening Bisco?
     
    #3 Stevewoods, Jul 15, 2019
    Last edited: Jul 15, 2019
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  4. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    There are important legal distinctions between homes and RVs, and they vary from state to state. There are many laws to protect people’s homes and their ownership status which don’t apply to simple posessions such as RVs. Somebody trying to steal your house is a home invasion local news headline. Somebody trying to steal your RV is just another grand theft auto statistic.

    RV appliances (heating, cooking, A/C) aren’t as sturdy as their permanent home counterparts, and there’s a smaller group of professionals available to repair them- higher costs.

    Also consider beyond the immediate future- Homes can depreciate but RVs always depreciate.
     
  5. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    I'll add that if the RV will likely never move, you would be better off getting a trailer or moveable tiny home(what's the difference). You can hire a company to move it if the time ever comes.
     
  6. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    The best "inexpensive" option usually is to rent a trailer (not RV) or a small apartment in a "not so good" part of town for a few years while you study options for the longer term and save up some money.

    Owning something is not always the best option.......short term.

    And if there is any chance that you might be moving often, it is not the best option long term either.

    I think that an RV is a good option only for a VERY tiny number of people. The maintenance upkeep costs on them can be more than a small house.
     
  7. Rmay635703

    Rmay635703 Senior Member

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  8. noonm

    noonm Senior Member

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  9. frodoz737

    frodoz737 Top Wrench

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    I did 7 mos. in the parking lot with a full sized late '80s stretched van once to make probation before moving the family. Not advisable.
     
  10. noonm

    noonm Senior Member

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    I agree.

    However, he did ask for the cheapest option for single living...
     
  11. vegan

    vegan Junior Member

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    Read Tynan’s book, The Tiniest Mansion for a viewpoint of someone who did what you suggested.
     
  12. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    You'll also have to deal with zoning issues. And getting initial utility connections to an undeveloped lot is very expensive in many places. Costs are not only the actual prices for trenching and installation, but often include impact fees or capacity surcharges for communities where the services are stressed for capacity.

    [snark_alert]
    (1) A tent (from charity) staked out on public property. We have them by the thousands;
    (2) A car or RV rented from a 'car rancher' who buys them cheap from the impound auctions and rents them to homeless people who need a place to stay. Parked on public streets. We have them by the hundreds, many of these vehicles are frequently re-impounded and repeat the cycle;
    (3) A beater car you purchase to otherwise use as in #2.
    [/snark_alert]
     
  13. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    Topic near and dear to my own heart.....
    My company just has some significant layoffs, and more are inbound.
    Since hope is NOT a plan, my CFO and I have strategerized on several options if I have to move to another office and start looking for another job if I elect not to retire before full SS/Medicare.
    Since I already have a house I have more options (I always wanted an RV...:) ) but that will be another thread....HOPEFULLY a few more years down the road.
    ;)


    Cheapest housing options....

    1. Stay Home.

    1.5 Granny Pod.

    2. When I was knocking holes in the ocean some of my shipmates rented a U-Store stall and set up a garage band studio (they plugged into the overhead light.) Shower at the nearest Planet Fitness.....

    3. Studio/Single bedroom apartment. Best bang for the buck.

    4. If were young and hadn't reached escape velocity yet, and I KNEW I was going to stay local I'd buy a lot without HOA Nazis, and get as large a wooden storage building as I could afford. You can PAYGO things like septic, power pole, etc....
    I knew a guy who bought one of those Graceland buildings and kitted it out as a fairly snazzy 'tiny house.'
    He went 'full Monty' buy buying the lot......then getting a power pole and electric....then pouring a slab, and THEN bolting the building to the slab. Insulation, sheetrock, plumbing, etc.
    Lots of surplus building materials.....but I think he was all-in for less than $25k.....or less than 5 years of apartment rent.
    When he finished college, he built a proper house on the lot and sold it - with one HECK of a man/woman cave.

    Advantage to #4 obviously is that if you ever get your own address and finish school or not, you can actually build a proper house on your already paid for lot - or? Sell the lot and your tiny house and get some or even all of your money back depending on how you're able to monetize sweat.
    I've seen this work in town by pulling a building permit for a house that just kinda gets slow-rolled along for a few years while college gets finished - although obviously it works better out in the county.
    YMMV.
     
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  14. egg_salad

    egg_salad Active Member

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    Kill a law enforcement officer with an unlicensed firearm. You'll get free housing for the rest of your life, plus 99 years.
     
  15. jb in NE

    jb in NE Senior Member

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    In many states, you won't live that long. You'll get free housing for the rest of your short life before the death penalty.
     
  16. egg_salad

    egg_salad Active Member

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    You can die next Thursday or 100 years from next Thursday, either way, it's free housing for the rest of your life!
     
  17. RobH

    RobH Senior Member

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    If you rent, you pay not only the purchase price but a markup for the owner. The advantage of renting is a smaller cost up front.
     
  18. bobzchemist

    bobzchemist Active Member

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    And the advantage of not needing a financial cushion to guard against housing disaster(s). If you're in an apartment, if the hot water heater goes out, or the furnace, or the plumbing, etc., you don't have to pay a dime for the needed repairs. Living on your own, in a RV, tiny house, whatever, if something breaks, you either pay to have it fixed or do without.

    I agree that $1,000 a month is pretty steep (compared to some places, anyway). Is that for a studio or a one-bedroom?
     
  19. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    WADR, that's not an advantage, that's a convenience....just as people who buy new cars every 3-4 years have the 'advantage' of not having to maintain a repair fund for a 8-10 year old car.

    Like many...I rented when I was young, and also like many I did so for a longer period of time than I should have because it's easier to strike a check every month than it is to endure short term pain for long term goal.
     
  20. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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    Bite the bullet (aka grow up) and get a roommate; learn some important life skills that will not only help you in the professional world but, more importantly, the personal world. Going to (and paying for) college while working min. wage/part time jobs, I had four roomies during my late teens and early 20's; two became lifelong friends, one ended ugly, and the fourth became my life partner. I wouldn't trade any of those experiences for living alone. YMMW