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Budgets for Full Timers

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Jim
 Jim
(@j_a_wolfe)
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Posted : November 20, 2015 8:12 AM
Jim
 Jim
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Auto Insurance: $1000-1500
RV Insurance: $1000
Fuel (estimate 5,000 year? at $3 Gal?): $1500
Groceries: $3600
Cell Services: $600
Medical Insurance (We may be way off on this one): $7200
Dental Insurance: $720
Medi-Vac Insurance: $ ??
RV/Auto Maintenance: $300 ??
Club Memberships: $200

We are fulltimers but I am still working fulltime so we have a pretty good idea of expenses when I actually retire.
For us, our grocery expense is more like $500 per month or $6000 a year which includes grocery store items such as cleaning supplies, laundry detergent and paper goods.
Fuel really depends on how much you move and how frequently.
Right now we move about every two weeks year round but our fuel costs and campground fees are covered by my employer.
When I fully retire we will probably slow down and stay in each area longer which will lower the campground cost as monthly rates are in the $400 to $650 range at many of the places we have stayed.
I am not sure what the medical / insurance costs are going to be when I fully retire in a few more years.
It will be interesting to see what other post on this topic as I have also started looking at this subject.

 
Posted : November 20, 2015 9:09 AM
Jim
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Posted : November 20, 2015 9:44 AM
Danny_and_Linda
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We've been fulltime now for 7 1/2 years now & unless you are VERY VERY frugal I believe your annual expense is a bit low. I agree with Rob that $500-600 a month is a more realistic number for groceries & household supplies. Also you will need some sort of cell service with internet, maybe not a fancy setup, but we use about 15gigs a month & don't stream movies & you are not going to find that anywhere for $50 a month, you can't count on parks wifi as 90% aren't worth logging onto, but yes they are free.
I have medical insurance thru my employer & not on Medicare yet & it's fairly reasonable for now but still a good chunk of our annual expenses.
In staying in parks we either stay a week or a month both offer a discount over daily. If you need a daily number for parking, I believe $40-45 a day will be a very realistic number, yes you could find cheaper, but you probably wouldn't want to stay in those or at least we won't & we don't boondock.

Travelin' Texans
Former '13 FB owner
Currently rvless!!

 
Posted : November 20, 2015 12:23 PM
Jim
 Jim
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Driving Distances - really believe you need to at least double this one. Don't forget you also have all the running around while not towing. In a 3 month trip we covered 15,000 miles, of which 10,000 was pulling the trailer. Therefore we covered 5,000 miles in 3 month just to/from stores and playing tourist.

Groceries - I agree with Rob, we are averaging about $500/mo

Maintenance - Might be OK if both TV & RW are still under warranty and you can do all the work yourself. Some of the heavy services on our 2012 F350 with all filters changed were about $400. Don't forget to amortise the cost of tire replacements and other major maintenance items. This alone adds a few hundred dollars a year, for tires about every 7 years.

Insurances - Our vehicle insurance rates in BC are about double, but coach is similar. Can't comment on health, as our medical is covered by taxes and dental/extended health services are subsidised by the pension corporation, so our portion is about $50/month.

Medications - Included in our extended health care, but we do have to pay a small proportion of each prescription. Are these covered in your budget, as they can add up quickly.

Contingency - I would also include a contingency of at least 5% for unexpected expenses that are sure to occur.

 
Posted : November 20, 2015 12:43 PM
Jim
 Jim
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Posted : November 20, 2015 2:42 PM
Jim
 Jim
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Posted : November 20, 2015 3:00 PM
Danny_and_Linda
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We started out keeping very good records of everything, mileage, cost per mile, food, eating out, everything & being fulltime that got to feel like it was a job, so we have just kept having a good time & thrifty at the same time. Funny the things in the past you absolutely couldn't live without mean nothing anymore. If you are having to fine tune your budget that closely you may want to consider working a while longer, just my .02 cents.

Travelin' Texans
Former '13 FB owner
Currently rvless!!

 
Posted : November 20, 2015 7:07 PM
Danny_and_Linda
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Also there are way too many personal variables to write a book, the things I spend money on could be of absolutely no interest to you & vice versa.

Travelin' Texans
Former '13 FB owner
Currently rvless!!

 
Posted : November 20, 2015 7:12 PM
Jim
 Jim
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There are so many variables that's it's difficult to come up with an accurate dollar amount...it all depends on the person. How much traveling are you going do...which will determine fuel costs, wear and tear on your vehicle(s), maintanence costs. Where are you going to stay...not only you, but your rig needs a place to stay every night. We have met folks that stay frequently at Walmarts and/or truck
stops. Others prefer campgrounds/resorts. So cost can be zero dollars to "the skys the limit". Do you plan on eating out a lot, or preparing meals at home? What are you entertainment needs? These are just an example of some of the different things you have to take into consideration. Debbie and I are going on three years of full-timing. We love it, but have learned that we have to be willing to adjust our spending habits to stay within our budget.

 
Posted : November 20, 2015 9:09 PM
Danny_and_Linda
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I totally agree with Andy, unless you intend to stay parked for extended periods, your fuel total is quite low. In 1 month from today our truck will be 3 years old & has 63k+ (approximately 50% while towing), that's 21k a year & at an approximate overall average mpg of 12-13 @ $3 a gal is considerably more than $1500. Obviously if you have something you take with you that gets better mpg than your truck your total may be close.

Travelin' Texans
Former '13 FB owner
Currently rvless!!

 
Posted : November 20, 2015 9:15 PM
Jim
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Posted : November 20, 2015 9:15 PM
KenA
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Don't think I have seen anything about discretionary spending like movies or what ever you like to do. Also if this is going to span many years I would add an inflation factor just to be safe.

Ken & Gizzi
Ford 2015 F350 DRW
--
"My Redwood; Go anywhere and always be at home."
"The trouble with trouble is it starts as fun"

"I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been" - Wayne Gretzky

 
Posted : November 20, 2015 10:29 PM
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