Tent vs. Renting a Room vs. living a van???

I'm not positive about this. It's a bit of a ways off. And hopefully it doesn't come to this. But without going into details I might be forced to move at some point possibly in the next year. If that happens, and I hope it doesn't, but if it does I have a few options:

--> Rent a room: Costs about 500 a month here

--> Live in a Van: Cost is just gas money so maybe 100 a month

--> Live in a Tent: We have a lot of areas in my city that are small forests. So it dawned on me that while the weather is nice I could just set up a camp in one of the treed areas and live there until it gets too cold. That would be free to do.

There's a few other options as well. But those are 3 of the main ones. Ideally though I want to save money first and foremost, short terrm. Then later if I'm back on my feet maybe rent an apartment. My thought was maybe a combination of a camp in the woods and a camper van. Between the two and then the library, gym membership, and coffee shops, malls, by day I could get by and no one would even be the wiser that I'm sorta homeless. I hope it doesn't come to this. But there is that risk right now surrounding me.

What would you do???

a reply to: lavatrance

I have done all three of these things in the past 10 years so will offer my advice AGAIN lol.

I am currently living in my mates shed so know what it can be like to fall on hard times.

Do not live in a tent unless you are on an actual campsite.

Firstly you have no where to store your stuff safely when you are not "at home" so do not be suprised if you come back and someone has found your tent and stolen all of your stuff, this will at some point happen.

Secondly it is just not safe, there are a lot of nasty people out there and you could be killed or worse, also sleeping in a tent for a long time is bad for your health if you are used to home comforts.

And thirdly you have no immidiate access to basic needs, where will you go to the bathroom? where will your drinking water come from? how will you wash yourself, clothes and cooking implements ect.

Trust me on this go for the van or man up and pay your rent and live in a safe secure enviroment with water and electric.

a reply to: lavatrance

I was homeless for a bit..

Let me say it's hard going from homeless/jobless, to finding a job that would allow me rent money..

I did it but it's so so so much harder than having a place to live and finding a job.

my intuition kicked in but ill leave that alone.

Are you working/can you find work?
apartment apartment apartment,
second choice would be in a van/car you can lock at night..

a reply to: Reverbs

not having an address is a nightmare these days, good luck getting a job or bank account when you tell them you live in a tent in the woods, you at least need a friend or relative to allow you to use their address for post and a fixed abode.

a reply to: lavatrance

some advice if you go with the van.

Do not get something that looks like somebody lives in it, you will have all kind of problems.

What you need is something that is big on the inside so you can live comfortably but from the outside it just looks like a commercial vehicle so you do not attract attention to yourself, In the UK we call them stealth vans and it works a treat.

If you need to park up in a carpark or at the side of the road and you are in a hippy wagon with curtains in the windows then the police will be on you like a shot or the car park owners will be at you to get off their property. If it looks like you are company vehicle parked up they will assume that you are travelling and just stopped off and will leave you alone.

I have loads of mates who live in stealth vans, some look like horse boxes others look like recovery trucks and some look like long distance courriers and they all get away with parking up just about anywhere. I have other mates who have hippy vans and they are always getting moved on or even arrested because of it.

a reply to: nonspecific

there's just not enough people living in shacks, looks like Potter will have crash the economy again...

a reply to: lavatrance

I've done all three.

Living in (out of) a vehicle is cheaper, sure. Prepared to get woken up and told to move on.

Pretty soon you can't easily number the times local PD wakes you up to find out who you are, what you're doing here and doyouhavanee warrants?

Then its move along or don't be found here again, not on my beat buddy. So you clean up your rifled stuff one more time, move one more time, find another place to park it, one more time...

until the next time some 'see something say something' thinks you look 'suspicious' and 'calls it in'.

Do gooders and bored security guards are the worst kind.

The places to park narrow, the pressure mounts... you see they really want you living somewhere you pay rent or mortgage and utilities. Whats the matter, you don't want to belong? This side of the road convos with bored patrol units were the most memorable. Bare foot, sleepy and shivering on the side of the road, mustering for the man-- how come you don't go with the flow like everyone else?

Camping out in tents is lower on the totem pole. After a while the novelty wears off. You get dirty, you get wet, you get cold. Even during the summer its still cold at night. You still need a source of warmth, gathering firewood, making fire, keeping it stoked, lots of time consuming dirty work. After a while, you get tried of waking up to condensation inside your tent, the cold mornings, the cold food, the back and forth to food stores, everyday you need to eat and the food storage become problematic unless you have a fridge in your 'tent'.

It is a novelty for a while though. Go try it, learn how to survive, staying warm and fed outdoors is a challenge. Keeping flashlights, a radio and fire going will be good lessons. Staying dry and warm is hard work, the mornings when you can bathe in the warmth of the rising sun... priceless.

My gypsy days of living in my truck are some of the most fond memories I have. I would trade all my "stuff" and responsibility for that freedom now.

a reply to: intrptr

I lived in a tent from February to August. You know the deal ... exactly. But, back and forth to food stores? LOL You were still just around the block from Easy Street. Brought back some rather harsh memories.

I liked this the most:

It is a novelty for a while though. Go try it, learn how to survive, staying warm and fed outdoors is a challenge.

I started at a peak moment in my life. In six months I was at the Doorsteps of Death. ... a truthfully sobering experience. No way I would try something like that at my age now. I saved so much $$ foregoing that Prepper Thingy. LOL

a reply to: Snarl

Hi Snarl

But, back and forth to food stores? LOL You were still just around the block from Easy Street.

Not that easy. It was a two and half mile walk one way into town on steep mountain roads. Down in the morning and up again at night. The campground closed during the day. There was a nearby hostel, would allow staying three days in a row, when I could afford it.

Those were lean soul fulfilling times, I must admit. The campground was amongst redwood forest, it was on a steep hillside, I used to hike up all the way to the last spot, wake up to Jays, saw falcons and Moutan Lions on occasion.

That place was a Cathedral of Nature.

It may sound crazy but get a job and get a place to live. Look in the phone book under Labor unions and apply to every single one for an apprenticeship. Although, according to your other post the "fake education" may hinder you a bit. Unlike what a lot of people believe, you actually have to have some smarts and pass a test to join a labor union.

But the gym membership is excellent idea. Bathrooms, showers and lockers.

a reply to: lavatrance

If you can swing the housing, go with the housing. If not, camping is viable, but I'd recommend at a campground. State parks, you can stay in one site for a couple of weeks, then shift to another, for the most part (know people that have done this), and there are facilities, and it's all legal. Fairly cheap, as a rule, too. Some people manage in a camper for some time, in places like that with hook-ups for water and power. Not high living, but workable. Hope things work well for you. Know how housing issues can be tough!

a reply to: lavatrance

Consider the variables such as if you get ill , and anyone is likely to if they try to 'live' in a tent or a van for longer than a month.
In this country , it is actually illegal to live in a touring caravan if you are working full time. There's good reasons for this . Lack of space or proper washing facilities for you and your clothes are 2 of them . Lack of cooking and cleaning stuffs for your food are 2 more . It takes a while , but eventually the 'bind' comes , and with the cabin fever , wondering what to do to muster the energy to get back on track towards survival in tent or van , can , and will , make yr health suffer . If y had diahorea etc/similar on yr only bedsheets , the bind , which is on you alone , will be there even tighter and even sooner .
No planning can really beat these situations nor toughness or hardness wont solve the problems . You could take a leaf from gypsies though - do no work except cleaning out yr quarters , leave the # and any old # in the hedges behind you when you regularly move , and wash up well in the swimming pool showers is some of their necessary tricks .

if worse comes to worse I'm gonna build a camp deep in the woods. And I'll just live out there. What I might do is dig a bunker and have that as my home. Cuz I'm not paying any rent that's for sure

I think in reality my best bet is just to try and work with the people I currently rent from. So I think I have an idea that might help the situation to simmer down a bit. So if it works I'll be fine for a good while. Makes more sense than trying to do something stupid later on.

well I had this idea....

if worst comes to worse and I have to move out. Then I was considering one option which would be to buy a Astro van. Then convert it into a camper van. Then for heat in the winder when it's super cold use a tea light candle heater. I did the math on it and I could probably get by for under 20 dollars a month in heating cost for the candles. Better than paying 500 per month for a room. But it's probably jsut short term until I'd get some income coming in. After that none of this would mater as much probably.