Checklist for moving into full time

[Al and Jan Figone]

My wife and I have been RVing, part-time, for years and now retiring and want to do it full time?  What are the basics we need to know in preparation before we leave and what are the basics we need to know once on the road?  

[rpsinc]

That is a pretty loaded question.  No doubt your life is unique and while others may input to your questions, the answer must be specific to you and your way of life. 

I would imagine that since you are asking the questions, it is a perfect time to start and continue to develop a list that fits you and your needs.  So many factors will be a part of that like your own financial resources, your own preferences, like and dislikes, physical and emotional limitations and capabilities, type of RVing you choose to do(parks or boondocking for instance) and so many other topics. 

I imagine that you are beginning a journey that has many enjoyable experiences waiting for you.  You may look to some of the classes taught at Escapades and other RV events.  I have seen some of the agendas for those and they look like they could provide you with the information that you are seeking.

Enjoy your journey!

[sandsys]

Welcome to a great lifestyle.

The most important thing to do in my opinion is get a mailing service. You want to start getting mail sent somewhere other than your current residence in time to be sure you get all  the important addresses changed. It helps to get that service where you will be domiciled. However, choosing a domicile is not something to be taken lightly so you should probably begin that research immediately. You'll want to research all legal aspects that might concern you such as wills, trusts, vehicle and driver licensing, vehicle insurance, health insurance, etc.

Next you need to start downsizing if you have not already begun. It takes time to decide what to do with all your possessions. Digitizing photos takes time so you might want to begin that now, too.

Then come back and ask specific questions when you need more detailed answers. We'll do our best to help you through this process.

Linda Sand

[SWharton]

X2 for the mail service and start moving all mail, cc addresses, medical addresses etc. to the new address. This takes months. I  had a check list and still missed several.

While changing addresses change the phone number to your cell. We stick to one number so there is no confusion as to what number to use.

For many years we have used the Escapees mail service even when weren't full timing. Never had a problem.

This past October we decided to become full timers using TX as our domicile. Went smoothly.

Once you decide domicile location then you need to get DL, register vehicles, voter registration, have your wills etc. updated if necessary(Escapees has lawyers onsite in Livingston to handle domicile and other legal issues).

Cleaning out the house, selling belongings, storing, changing addresses took us a solid 6-7 months. We sold the house on the road and have not looked back.

Getting our documents in TX took less than a day, including the lawyer reviewing our documents.

Now that you are overwhelmed come back to us with any and all questions. All of us have been where you are today.

 

[Kirk W]

One of the first things to consider is your best choice of domicile. It isn't a difficult question but it is one that should be weighed carefully. This article from Escapees Magazine may be helpful to you. 

[FL-JOE]

Like others have said, the first step should be to decide where you new "legal" home and address will be.  When deciding this one must consider many things, such as tax liabilities, cost of insurances, annual registration fees, DL requirements, medical insurance cost/coverage, etc.....

There is generally two way to handle a new address to get your mail at, one is to pay a company or mail service.  The other way is to use a friend/relative's address.  There are advantages and disadvantages I suppose to both.  One of the advantages we enjoy by using a close family friend's address is that it appears we are renting a condo, she can open our mail if it looks important and scan it to our I-phones, or she can forward it when we want her to.  The other benefit for us is that during the winter months we camp about 5 miles from our new mailing address and pick up our own mail.

I would decide on an address and start getting things switched over about 2 weeks prior to closing on your home (if selling).  Any sooner and you take the chance of the deal falling through and your address already being changed for everything!  We began making a list of places we needed to change our address for as soon as we listed our home.  It seemed like everyday day we thought of another place.

Going full time and downsizing is very exciting!  We did it once a few years ago, repurchased a sticknbrick, and now have sold and started full timing again.  Just remember, furniture and some of that other "stuff" that you don't want to unload won't seem so important after paying a few years of storage to keep it.

[Al and Jan Figone]

Thanks Joe for your comment.  we are about 1 year away and getting house in order for sell.  My wife has been making Notes and she has included yours. 

We aren't  sure where we will call home just yet.  We thought we would go homeless for a while and see if somewhere jumps out at us.  We mainly want to travel for a while before settling down again.  Right now home is Silicon Valley and we are definitely getting out of here 1 minute after I leave my job. 

But your suggestion on making a list is very good.  Sounds like it took you a while to compile so now is a good time to start.

Any info on once you hit the road what occurred that you might not have expected?

[sandsys]

3 hours ago, Al and Jan Figone said:

We aren't  sure where we will call home just yet.  We thought we would go homeless for a while and see if somewhere jumps out at us.  We mainly want to travel for a while before settling down again. 

In the USA you pretty much HAVE to have a domicile. You do not have to live there, though. We domiciled in South Dakota when we were full time RVing but we only spent a few nights there during those years. A lot have things have changed since we started out in 2008 but you still need a legal address somewhere during the time you are traveling. That's where we nomads file taxes and get driver's licenses, etc. Please, do not confuse having a home with having a domicile. Our home had wheels under it and visited all 48 contiguous states but our domicile was SD.

Linda Sand

[FL-JOE]

10 hours ago, Al and Jan Figone said:

Thanks Joe for your comment.  we are about 1 year away and getting house in order for sell.  My wife has been making Notes and she has included yours. 

We aren't  sure where we will call home just yet.  We thought we would go homeless for a while and see if somewhere jumps out at us.  We mainly want to travel for a while before settling down again.  Right now home is Silicon Valley and we are definitely getting out of here 1 minute after I leave my job. 

But your suggestion on making a list is very good.  Sounds like it took you a while to compile so now is a good time to start.

Any info on once you hit the road what occurred that you might not have expected?

 

About two years in we realized how cheap homes were in the Cape Coral/Ft. Myers area.  Came off the road, bought the house, did some improvements, then sold 2 years later.  Now we are back full timing.  This time around we are Florida residents and will still return for 4 months in the winter.    

Some may consider us "homeless" but we love this lifestyle.   Who knows, we may only go 4 or 5 years and stumble upon a sticknbrick that we can't pass up, or we may go over 10 years and still not really know where we want to buy again.   We will just plan one years travels at a time.

Good luck with your planning and setting everything up.  We even enjoyed that part of it!!!!

[SWharton]

One of the unexpected benefits of having a mail service is we are rid of junk mail. We also enjoy getting, what little mail we get, our mail every 2-4 weeks vs. the trickle that showed up in our mailbox and had to be checked each day.

We also have as much as possible auto deducted from our checking account or charged to a credit card. The only pesty bills we receive in the mail are doctor bills. When the doctors join the real world of  billing life will become simpler.

[ms60ocb]

When I down sized 4 years ago my CPA told me storage would be a problem but records must be kept. His advise was get a good Document scanner and back-up your computer often.

Now 4 years later I see its the little things that I go back and look at. Service on my vehicles, Campground notes, health notes, tax records, and etc. Most services services come on line and quickly down loaded but many items of family history were given to my children that I have a record for when they say "Dad do you remember _________?" I have that moment in time.

If you go on a two week camping trip you need X items but even the 6 month Journey requires items Z

Clay       Not a Fulltimer (store the RV a month at a time a couple times each year) but not a B&S owner.

 

[Kirk W]

13 hours ago, Al and Jan Figone said:

We thought we would go homeless for a while and see if somewhere jumps out at us.

If you do not have any address at all, how do you plan to hold a driver's license, vehicle registration & insurance, health care plan, or receive any mail? I know of no state that allows one to have such things without an address. 

[LindaH]

14 hours ago, Al and Jan Figone said:

We thought we would go homeless for a while and see if somewhere jumps out at us. 

Linda Sand said it best:  Don't confuse having a home (i.e., sticks & bricks) with domicile. 

You MUST declare a domicile somewhere...if you do nothing, California will remain your domicile until you take steps to change it.  However, you will need an address even in California...but I don't think California allows the use of a mail forwarding service for such things as driver's licenses, vehicle and voter's registration, insurance, etc.  That's just one of the reasons that Florida, South Dakota, and Texas are so popular as domicile states for fulltime RVers.

 

[JohnR]

On 3/30/2018 at 3:49 PM, SWharton said:

X2 for the mail service and start moving all mail, cc addresses, medical addresses etc. to the new address. This takes months. I  had a check list and still missed several.

While changing addresses change the phone number to your cell. We stick to one number so there is no confusion as to what number to use.

For many years we have used the Escapees mail service even when weren't full timing. Never had a problem.

This past October we decided to become full timers using TX as our domicile. Went smoothly.

Once you decide domicile location then you need to get DL, register vehicles, voter registration, have your wills etc. updated if necessary(Escapees has lawyers onsite in Livingston to handle domicile and other legal issues).

Cleaning out the house, selling belongings, storing, changing addresses took us a solid 6-7 months. We sold the house on the road and have not looked back.

Getting our documents in TX took less than a day, including the lawyer reviewing our documents.

Now that you are overwhelmed come back to us with any and all questions. All of us have been where you are today.

 

THANKS for the excellent tips.  We are just starting the process, looking at May of 2020, probably - when I turn 65.  Already live in Texas, so THAT part will be easier.  There are a plethora of RV choices.  Leaning toward used Class A pushers at the moment.    There's a couple sales people in our immediate area who are already disgusted with us.  LOL