RV living has become increasingly popular over the years for many reasons. Some people have chosen the RV lifestyle out of necessity, like financial stressors or jobs. Other people have chosen RV life for the luxury and freedom to travel wherever, whenever they want. While RV life isn’t for everyone, it is for us! We’ve been full-time RVers for almost two years now. Here’s why we chose to live in an RV full-time.
Why Do We Live in an RV?
1. To have financial freedom
The number one reason we chose to live in an RV full-time was for the financial freedom the lifestyle offered. We are stationary Rvers on our own land. Which means we don’t have to pay rent anywhere and have very minimal living expenses. RV living has helped us cut our living expenses more than half.
Because of RV living, we have taken back control of our money. Now that more than half of our income isn’t going to living expenses, we are able to do other things with it. We have been able to invest, make larger & necessary purchases, and spend money on things that bring us joy. Like traveling!
2. To travel more
Traveling is one of those things that bring us a lot of joy. I love to explore, see new things, and gain knowledge. It’s even better when I get to do that with the people I love most. We are determined to give our kids as much travel experience as we can while they live under our roof. We want them to have meaningful experiences and we want to have those memories as a family.
A large part of why I started this blog was to remember all the experiences we’ve had with our kids. But also to encourage other families to do the same. You don’t have to wait until you kids are big to travel. You can do it now!
3. To embrace minimalism
More stuff will not make you happy. Say it with me. More stuff will not make you happy! In fact, it will probably do the opposite. That’s something we’ve learned over the years. Each year we moved into a larger house and accumulated more stuff, which brought more stress and frustration. I got to the point where I wanted to throw away everything and start over. Essentially, that’s what we did. Except we did it in 250 square feet.
RV living has taught us not to hold so tightly to material things and really evaluate what we have. There isn’t room for much and most of the things we do have serve multiple purposes. Because our space is pretty maxed out, if we want something new, we have to get rid of something old. It has made me slow down and think about my purchases and decide what I really need/want. I became a minimalist by accident.
4. To spend more time as a family
RV living has forced us to spend more time together and has made us so much closer. In a tiny house, there is no space to have your own space. Every space is shared. I won’t lie, it was the hardest adjustment and something I still struggle with on hard days. But ultimately, it has been the best thing for us, especially the kids. Our kids have become the best of friends and have the strongest bond. I love watching them grow up together.
Living in the RV has also forced Logan and I to invest in each other and our marriage. It has helped us learn to communicate better and be more aware of our own needs. Like I said, every space is shared and there is no place to go. That’s tough when you’re angry or annoyed with each other. It has forced us to deal with issues head on and immediately. As someone who needs time to process my thoughts and feelings and would much rather avoid hard conversations, it was REALLY tough. But our relationship and our marriage is stronger because of it.
5. To save for our dream home
We don’t plan to live in an RV forever. In fact, it’s just a stepping stone for our dream home. Our goal is to build our dream home on the property where we are currently living in the RV. Because we’ve chosen to live in an RV, we have been able to utilize the property we were gifted to save for our dream home. One day it will happen!
6. To teach our kids the value of sacrifice
Living in an RV has been a huge sacrifice for our family. We’ve given up our belonging, our space, and a comfortable lifestyle in order to make our dreams come true. Not only do we want to inspire all of you through this journey, but we really hope it leaves a lasting impact on our children. When our kids look back at their childhood, we hope they remember all of the things we did to make it the best we could.
I realized that our kids may never remember this season of our lives. Well, maybe, depending on how long with live the RV life. But I hope when we talk about it, they remember the sacrifice we made to give them everything.
7. To show others that there are more ways to achieve your dreams
If we’ve learned anything from this season of life, it’s that there is more than one way to reach your goals. When we first started this journey, so many people questioned are decisions. No one really understood why we would choose to live in an RV if we could afford to live “normally”. But they missed the point. And I think so many people still do.
We made this lifestyle change because it made sense and got us closer to our dreams. It’s okay to go against the norm. It’s okay to be different. It’s not okay to put your dream on hold because the alternative isn’t “normal”. Forget normal!
Maybe you’re ready for a lifestyle change, and want to start searching for an RV of your own. Ask yourself these 13 questions before you buy an RV. If you have questions or want more advice, our DMs are always open on Instagram! We love answering your questions and inspiring this community.
This is so interesting! The financial freedom has to be amazing.
It truly is!