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Me and my friend currently live in Santa Barbara, California, where we go to college.
We are both sharing an apartment with two other people and we pay 625 $ each for rent per month.
Today we got the idea of maybe buying a camper and live in it next semester. On craigslist we have found campers for about 10,000 $, which is the absolutely highest we can go. However, are we probably going to save a lot of money in the long run.
There are some doubts though , and since we do not know a lot about american laws, etc , I want to see if maybe you guys can help me sort out some questions.
1: are you allowed to drive around on a camper with a regular Drive´s license for car?
2: Is it allowed to park the camper anywhere ? I mean, could we park wherever over night or would we have to stay at restricted camping areas?
3: Are there any other things besides finding a place to park that we have to take in consideration? Do any of you have any experiences from living in a camper?
1: are you allowed to drive around on a camper with a regular Drive´s license for car?
Yes, as long as it's under 40 feet long. See California RV licensing requirements here.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikael eldblom
2: Is it allowed to park the camper anywhere ?
No.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikael eldblom
I mean, could we park wherever over night or would we have to stay at restricted camping areas?
Some localities will have more restrictive parking rules than others, and enforcement may more strict in certain parts of town than others. The only way to be certain is to rent a slip in a campground or trailer park.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mikael eldblom
3: Are there any other things besides finding a place to park that we have to take in consideration? Do any of you have any experiences from living in a camper?
I appreciate your help.
If you're just going to be here for a couple years, you could probably find a habitable camper for quite a bit less than that, particularly if you don't need it to be robust enough to haul you around the country. Don't forget you'll need to have access to flush out the sewage holding tanks, which where parking it in a designated campground could also be handy.
My family has had a trailer since I was pretty young, and it served as a temporary home from time to time. I also spent the last two quarters at Cal Poly living out of the family trailer at a campground in Morro Bay. The rent on the camping spot was very reasonable and it was a great way to go seeing how I only needed a place for a few months.
Couple of things:
1. Campers and trailers are not built to the same quality as, say, a house. They're designed to be light and cheap, and it shows in the material qualities used, so be gentle on things.
2. Space is tight, so I hope you and the other guy are comfortable with that. When the whole family was in the trailer for weeks at a time, it was all we could do not to be at each other's throats. In a way, it wasn't bad because you spent a lot more time outdoors to get some space, but by the end, the only time we'd be in the trailer together was to sleep.
3. I would almost guarantee most areas you'd think to park overnight in or near Santa Barbara will have rules about an RV being on the street that long, probably because you're not the first to think of it. A better idea would be to find a campground that allows long-term camping and call that 'home'.
Mike
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