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Old 12-08-2019, 07:29 PM   #1
Bus Crazy
 
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Join Date: May 2017
Location: Athens, TN
Posts: 1,574
Year: 1999
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Chassis: International RE
Engine: International T444e
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Transition

Our build being close to the finish line, I'm hoping to hear from some forum members whom have gone through the transition of living in a house to moving into their rigs. We have a house and built the bus out on our own property. We're waiting for Spring to get the house emptied and ready to go on the market... For those that have- How did you do it? How rough was the transition? What went wrong, what went right, and what would you change?


I'm really going back and forth on what to do once we sell... Sit tight in the area, keep our jobs and save, or just take off on the open road... we want to find property to build a home on. Still, burnout is real. I've been patient for 3 years on this project, I wouldn't want it to flop because I can't hold out for another 1 or 2.



Thanks much in advance for any replies.

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Old 12-08-2019, 07:47 PM   #2
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Join Date: May 2016
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When I converted my first bus I started out in my driveway. I put the house on the market at the same time.ni expected it to take months to sell. Three days before the listing was supposed to show up in the MLS an agent showed up with a couple who made a full price offer.

I was stuck. We had the roof raise and insulation done. We threw an air mattress and parked at a friend's place while we regrouped. I found another friend with a spare bedroom and a big yard. We rented a room and he helped with the bus. It took us three months to get the bus mostly finished and hit the road.

When I found places that I could stay and work on the bus I knocked out projects as I could.

After six years on the road is setup camp in northern Arizona, bought a lot and lived in the bus in the driveway while we built a house. I took a full time job and built the house evenings and weekends. We lived in the driveway for 18 months then moved into the house.

Now I am doing it again. Just a little slower pace. I am going to wait until May of 2022 to sell the house and hit the road..
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Old 12-08-2019, 08:05 PM   #3
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Location: Moved to Zealand!
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My .02c
I would move into the bus as soon as you can (before you have to sell the house) to work out the kinks of living small -- Make sure the bus is working for you.

I can tell you moving into my 14' RV was difficult post college, two of us with a cat... Saved enough money in 11˝ months to make a down payment on our first house. Moving into that tiny house (only 810sq feet!!!) was a joy of space!!!

If you don't hate your current jobs, and the house is sold, continuing to work your jobs while working out the kinks of living small seems wise to me.

30 years later looking back -- every personal "problem/event" in our lives was less stressful if we weren't short of cash at the same time...
(That's really just a fact of modern living)
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Old 12-09-2019, 01:16 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PNW_Steve View Post
When I converted my first bus I started out in my driveway. I put the house on the market at the same time.ni expected it to take months to sell. Three days before the listing was supposed to show up in the MLS an agent showed up with a couple who made a full price offer.
This is my first house, so I've never gone through selling. Was selling otherwise painless? Did you have to do much on your way out?


Quote:
Originally Posted by PNW_Steve View Post
After six years on the road is setup camp in northern Arizona, bought a lot and lived in the bus in the driveway while we built a house. I took a full time job and built the house evenings and weekends. We lived in the driveway for 18 months then moved into the house.
This part is very interesting to me, more or less what I plan to do. I want to find myself 10-20 acres somewhere to build a yurt, maybe a really small scale farm.


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Originally Posted by banman View Post
My .02c
I would move into the bus as soon as you can (before you have to sell the house) to work out the kinks of living small -- Make sure the bus is working for you.
This was my idea as well. We've spent one night out there prior to getting our heating system in. It was kinda rough with just space heaters.


One thing that caught me off guard was the floor. Our bus is on a slab and it is not quite level- this made sleeping not unpleasant, but it was strange. Another is, our build being front bedroom we really need a way to wall off the driver's area for privacy.



Then there were menaces like the toilet not being installed yet, drainage not complete, etc. Nature's Head, but never got around to doing the venting and whatnot and the shower doesn't yet drain to the grey tanks. Still have some construction/design left to do in the kitchen.


Quote:
Originally Posted by banman View Post
If you don't hate your current jobs, and the house is sold, continuing to work your jobs while working out the kinks of living small seems wise to me.
We'd probably have a good chunk of change one way or another. I intend to work out all the major kinks before selling, we just wouldn't have all of the cash necessary to build out-of-pocket.


Still, its something I keep revisiting internally, seemingly with no answer.
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Old 12-09-2019, 03:11 PM   #5
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We moved into the bus when we bought it. Cut the seatsout and did the build on the road. It's a project bus never ending build. Never had property or a place to build it. We are at a friends garage. (Deadhead garage in Owensboro ky) adding sombre things, but 3 years now we have been in it on the road. Best decision ever.Click image for larger version

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Old 12-09-2019, 03:28 PM   #6
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Join Date: May 2016
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I have sold several houses and raw land.

Most of them were pretty straightforward. The three most recent I didn't list with an agent. All three sold to the first person who looked at the place.

One of them I posted on Craigslist priced on the high side. Just to see what kind of response I would get. The first couple that looked at it made a full price offer. The second person that looked at it made a full price backup offer before I could take the ad down. We had a local attorney draw up the purchase contract and handle the closing.
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Old 12-10-2019, 02:13 PM   #7
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Join Date: May 2017
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dead pirate View Post
Looks like your bus is the same chassis / cabin (and now color) as mine! Too cool.


Quote:
Originally Posted by PNW_Steve View Post
I have sold several houses and raw land.

Most of them were pretty straightforward. The three most recent I didn't list with an agent. All three sold to the first person who looked at the place.

One of them I posted on Craigslist priced on the high side. Just to see what kind of response I would get. The first couple that looked at it made a full price offer. The second person that looked at it made a full price backup offer before I could take the ad down. We had a local attorney draw up the purchase contract and handle the closing.
That's pretty amazing, I might do the same. Do most attorneys know how to do purchase contracts and closing? Did the buyer ask for an inspection? Did you get buyer's agents trying to weasel you into a sales agreement while representing a buyer?
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