Newbie full timers

[Freedomliving77]

Warm Greetings from NH! My name is Claudia and my partner is Rowan. We are in our 30s & 40s and are both divorced. We both have full time jobs. We have decided to become full timers living in a '98 Mallard 37k. It needs a lot of elbow greese and love, but we are excited to start this new life adventure of freedom. We both have traveled our entire lives ( our fathers were both military ), and after failed attempts of living by societies 'white picked fence', we have found ourselves wanting to live for us. We have been livaboarders on a 40' fishing trawler for the past couple of years in KW, FL. We decided to move to the beautiful mountans of NH for a change of scenery. 

I wanted to introduce myself  ( HI!! ) and see if anyone could help with a few questions, or at least point us in the right direction. 

We need to locate a campground that will actually allow us to be full timers. We would want a yearly or year round lease, as we don't want to be stuck in just one place for too long, but still need the time to be able to repair/remodel our new home. Campground websites state that they are "year-round" with rates and availability posted, but when I call to inquire, they state that we can only be "living" in the camper up to 3 days a week. What?!?! Is there a trick to this? Or am I asking the wrong questions? When we would drive around the campground, it is more than obvious that there ARE people living in their campers for more than 3 days a week.  Any help or guidance is greatly appreciated.

I also have been looking for groups, blogs, etc. to meet others and share tricks & tips and adventure stories ( this one is a great start! ). Any suggestions to where we can find more like-minded people?

I also welcome and appreciate any other info that one would think would benefit us.  Thank you in advance and I look forward to being a part of this new community.  

 

[Kirk W]

First, let me welcome you to the Escapee forums! We are here to help and will do our very best.

6 minutes ago, Freedomliving77 said:

We need to locate a campground that will actually allow us to be full timers. We would want a yearly or year round lease, as we don't want to be stuck in just one place for too long, but still need the time to be able to repair/remodel our new home. Campground websites state that they are "year-round" with rates and availability posted, but when I call to inquire, they state that we can only be "living" in the camper up to 3 days a wee

 

I wonder if there might be some local code that limits occupation of sites in an RV park? I do not know of specific locations that do this, but I know that it does happen. We were on the road full-time for nearly 12 years and we did run into parks with such limits, even in Texas. One that we considered has a limitation of 10 months per year. You may want to ask in the park office about the reason for the limitation and then roam the park a bit to see what those who seem to live there have to say.

10 minutes ago, Freedomliving77 said:

I also have been looking for groups, blogs, etc. to meet others and share tricks & tips and adventure stories ( this one is a great start! ). Any suggestions to where we can find more like-minded people?

 

I believe that these forums would be a very good place to start. Many of us here either have lived in an RV as our only home, do so at this time, or are planning to start doing so soon. If you notice the signature lines of many who post here, you will find that they have links to websites and blogs that the author keeps which share a great deal of helpful information as well as the author's personal experiences.

13 minutes ago, Freedomliving77 said:

I also welcome and appreciate any other info that one would think would benefit us.

We are here to help as that is what the Escapees RV Club is all about. I suggest that you spend some time just exploring these forums and in reading what others have discussed here. As you think of questions that apply to you, just start a new thread by posting your questions and see what folks here have to offer. There are many members with years of RV experiences and there are very few problems or mistakes that someone here has not previously had to deal with.

Welcome!

[Freedomliving77]

Thank you! I will look into the codes,  as well as keep searching these forums.  There is a wealth of information on this site alone!

 

[mptjelgin]

I'll also welcome you to the forum and the lifestyle. 

You mention wanting to find a campground where you will be "able to repair/remodel our new home" and you will likely find that to be an issue at many (most?) campgrounds. Most campgrounds have restrictions on things like washing your rig and repairs, let alone remodeling. I hope you can understand the reluctance to have folks doing significant work on their trailer while others are there for peace and quiet. I suppose that it is another version of the "white picket fence" that you're trying to leave behind. 

I agree with Kirk that there may be statutes in the area restricting how long folks may live in RV's. I've seen maximum length of stays requirements in several places (i.e. 6 months maximum) but agree that a 3 day per week maximum seems strange indeed. 

Good luck in your search for a place to stay.

[sandsys]

Short term remodels, measured in hours rather than days, can often be done in the parking lots of home improvement stores making it easy to get more parts.

Linda Sand

[Second Chance]

Kirk - you are correct. Riverside County, CA, where the Jojoba Hills SKP Co-Op park is has an ordinance limiting the annual occupation of an RV in an RV park. From what I'm told by members, it is very difficult to - and is not generally - enforced. In actuality, there are more than a few founders who have "aged out" of travelling and have made the park their full-time home.

Claudia - you may want to ask any park you are considering what their rules are about working on the rig while it is in the park. Some strictly limit what you can do and others do not.

Rob

[accumack]

You may want to ask if there are limitations on age. In our travels there seems to be quite a few parks that have age limits of maximum10 years old for a rig but some allow older on a case by case basis. Just something watch out for.

[SecondWind]

On ‎4‎/‎1‎/‎2017 at 10:12 AM, Freedomliving77 said:

Campground websites state that they are "year-round" with rates and availability posted, but when I call to inquire, they state that we can only be "living" in the camper up to 3 days a week. What?!?!

I once stopped in the middle of the night at a convenience store because the sign said, 'Open 24 Hours'.  When I walked in, the clerk said, "Sorry, we're closed."

I said, "What do you mean 'closed'?  You're sign says, 'Open 24 Hours'."

He replied, "Yeah, but not in a row."

 

Seriously, I've read a lot of government campsites and parks limit a stay to two-weeks, and then you can't come back for two weeks, and nonsense like that.

I've read some private RV parks have varying time limits posted on their websites.  And yet other private RV parks proudly proclaim they cater to long-term RVers.  I assume the basic reason is just the simple business decision of who they really want for a customer.  Of the local private RV parks I've scouted out for a possible long-term future stay, some of them don't look as good as the ones who don't allow it, and a few of them look downright trashy.  In a long-term park, people sometimes get a little "too comfortable".

 

Cheers,

Ken