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Old 06-13-2016, 12:30 AM   #1
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Sultan wa
Posts: 28
Year: 1993
Chassis: Bluebird
Engine: 5.9L cummins
Rated Cap: 84pax
Do you live full time on a skoolie?

What do you do for work? How do you pay for expenses?

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Old 06-13-2016, 09:34 AM   #2
Bus Nut
 
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Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Houston, Tx.
Posts: 403
Year: 1999
Coachwork: AmTran
Chassis: International
Engine: DT466E
Rated Cap: 84
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rentfree View Post
What do you do for work? How do you pay for expenses?
It's called retirement and living the good life
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Old 06-13-2016, 11:02 AM   #3
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Columbus Ohio
Posts: 18,751
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Carpenter
Chassis: International 3800
Engine: DTA360 / MT643
Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
I dont live on a skoolie full time... however im a software developer and easily could work-wise.. I have also hired software developers on a project-basis whom I never met with face to face.. so they couldve been living in a bus or on a boat etc..

with so many mobile and remote-based businesses out there its very possible to live on a skoolie.. I have a friend who works for a major call center.. he uses his IP phone to answer calls at home... he brought that phone to my house when he stayed here during a catastrophic storm event a few years ago.. his company had no idea where he was.. he answered the phone anytime they called... thats all they cared about..

-Christopher
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Old 07-12-2016, 10:22 PM   #4
Bus Nut
 
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: Southern California
Posts: 554
Year: 2002
Chassis: e450 super duty
Engine: 7.3l ford powerstroke
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rentfree View Post
What do you do for work? How do you pay for expenses?
Buy a metal detector and start searching for gold and change as you travel. Ive found a couple thousand dollers in gold and change over the years.
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Old 07-13-2016, 02:30 AM   #5
Bus Nut
 
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Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Statesville, North Carolina
Posts: 467
Year: 1993
Chassis: Thomas
Engine: International Navistar DT360
Rated Cap: 60
We do the sugar beet harvest in October for a couple weeks to get a lot of money in a short amount of time. Now we're doing a camp host job with American Land and Leisure. They give you a free site and pay you too. Then in winter we're going to work for Amazon shipping for all the holiday overtime.
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A gal, a guy, three cats, two dogs, one rabbit, and one goat, traveling the country together.
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Old 07-13-2016, 07:53 AM   #6
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Columbus Ohio
Posts: 18,751
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Carpenter
Chassis: International 3800
Engine: DTA360 / MT643
Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
im a saoftware / hardware DEV / business owner.. if I wanrted to i could easily Live in a skoolie and still make good money... my work in fact is in the hotel business so I would probably still end up sleeping in a building fairly regularly...

my only thing woulkd be where do people park that do it.. if its a farm thing then I guess they park on the farm.. but someone like myself would have a tough time finding parking for a bus full time..
-Christopher
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Old 07-13-2016, 12:51 PM   #7
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Oklahoma
Posts: 237
Year: 2002
Chassis: international
Engine: T444E
Rated Cap: 71
Quote:
Originally Posted by onenationundergoat View Post
We do the sugar beet harvest in October for a couple weeks to get a lot of money in a short amount of time. Now we're doing a camp host job with American Land and Leisure. They give you a free site and pay you too. Then in winter we're going to work for Amazon shipping for all the holiday overtime.
How is that sugar beet harvest? I keep hearing about that one and amazon for ones that full time
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Old 07-13-2016, 03:18 PM   #8
New Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Spearfish, SD
Posts: 4
Year: 1996
Coachwork: Beaver
Chassis: Freightliner
Engine: CAT
For the last 18 months, we have 'Work Camped' - but not in the traditional sense of receiving a "free" campsite as compensation. Instead, we travel the country inspecting Natural Gas Pipelines. As a result of our employee arrangement, we receive a per diem (to cover campground costs), Mileage Pay One (for our motor-home as we travel the country), Mileage Pay Two (for use of our vehicle during daily travel within our destination area) and Internet Pay (to ensure a reliable connection via mobile networks) - in addition to an hourly wage. Since we function as full-time employees, our position includes Health Insurance and 401K. Over the last 14 months, we have ONLY spent that which we have earned - allowing our 'retirement income' to remain untouched (as it grows). We have visited 24 states in this time - often staying at Moose Lodges or Elks Lodges (with full hookups), rather than campgrounds or RV Parks, in an effort to reduce costs. We work 40 hours each week delineated any way we choose (five "eights", four "tens" or 40 hours in three days - the choice is ours). While, our arrangement might not suite everyone, for us, it provides a more than livable wage supporting a very active lifestyle.

Many similar opportunities to ours exist. One simply needs to think 'outside the box' when searching for these things.
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Old 07-13-2016, 10:50 PM   #9
Bus Crazy
 
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Join Date: May 2015
Location: Oklahoma aka "God's blind spot"
Posts: 2,446
Year: 1989
Coachwork: 1853FC International/Navistar
Chassis: 35' Retired Air Force Ambulance
Engine: DT466, MT643
Rated Cap: 6 souls and a driver
At the time of this writing... I don't live in my bus full time.
But, I received notice 2 days ago that I need to move by September 1st.
Just bought my bus July 1st... So, full time here I come!

It's about 6 months before schedule, but I'll make it work!

Oh, and I'm disabled and I print shirts for a buddy... Less than part time.

Printed this one today.... It's a full back print
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Old 07-13-2016, 10:56 PM   #10
Bus Geek
 
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Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,764
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freighliner FS65
Engine: Cat 3126
Rated Cap: 15
Quote:
Originally Posted by milkmania View Post
At the time of this writing... I don't live in my bus full time.
But, I received notice 2 days ago that I need to move by September 1st.
Just bought my bus July 1st... So, full time here I come!

It's about 6 months before schedule, but I'll make it work!

Oh, and I'm disabled and I print shirts for a buddy... Less than part time.

Printed this one today.... It's a full back print
What happened that you have to move?
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Old 07-13-2016, 11:26 PM   #11
Skoolie
 
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Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: Sarasota, Florida
Posts: 171
Year: 1995
Coachwork: International
Chassis: Carpenter
Engine: d466 mechanical
Currently in college at University of South Florida, two classes away from a degree in finance. Then law school (real estate no ambulance chaser) My new wife does too but for nursing. We switched to online classes. With academic scholarships and government grant money from being 21 and married (little income) we just travel instead.
The scholarships cover our school tuition and we technically have no room and board. We have an etsy shop that makes decent trip money and use the grant money as backing too.
It works for us, but just until graduate school.
We started traveling in a unrenovated bus and slowly we've worked on it between school.
Our biggest problem would be having to budget the necessary from the awesome. Not having the 9-5 or a lot of income makes it hard to be able to do a lot of the things we've seen y'all do
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Old 07-13-2016, 11:28 PM   #12
Bus Crazy
 
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Join Date: May 2015
Location: Oklahoma aka "God's blind spot"
Posts: 2,446
Year: 1989
Coachwork: 1853FC International/Navistar
Chassis: 35' Retired Air Force Ambulance
Engine: DT466, MT643
Rated Cap: 6 souls and a driver
Family had a member wanting to build a house at this location.... I cleaned it up and made it too appealing, I guess
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Old 07-14-2016, 11:39 PM   #13
Skoolie
 
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Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Posts: 159
Year: 2001
Coachwork: Ford
Chassis: E450 #Vanlife
Engine: 7.3 Powerstroke
Rated Cap: 25
Will be full timing in approx 5 months. For now, I've relocated to my shop space and did a custom build out this past week of two enclosed rooms (metal stud/drywall/etc). Eliminated the cost of our house and just have the shop space (4k sqft). Through the cost reduction, we will do the build out, then transition full time connected to the building (shore power).

For me, shop space makes money, houses don't. I also work online doing various things, developing multiple future streams of income that afford us mobility and sustainability. The overall intent is to relocate to Las Vegas next year, but again will likely rent shop/warehouse space.
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Old 07-15-2016, 01:24 AM   #14
Bus Nut
 
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Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Statesville, North Carolina
Posts: 467
Year: 1993
Chassis: Thomas
Engine: International Navistar DT360
Rated Cap: 60
Quote:
Originally Posted by livinthelife View Post
How is that sugar beet harvest? I keep hearing about that one and amazon for ones that full time
It's miserable but totally worth it. 12 hr shifts, 7 days a week. Outdoors. In North Dakota. Night shift for first timers. Muddy. Cold. Exhausting work.

But the pay is FANTASTIC and it only lasts a couple weeks if you can rough it. The probably hired 300 people for our yard last year and after the first week less than half remained. By the end of the second week there were only about ten of us that hadn't quit. But we made $4500 in two weeks. They treat you well and give you a site with hookups and a bath house with hot showers and internet. Plus the truckers give you treats and the ladies in the scale house make hot food and desserts to share. =]
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A gal, a guy, three cats, two dogs, one rabbit, and one goat, traveling the country together.
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Old 07-15-2016, 08:18 AM   #15
Bus Geek
 
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Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Houston, Texas
Posts: 8,462
Year: 1946
Coachwork: Chevrolet/Wayne
Chassis: 1- 1/2 ton
Engine: Cummins 4BT
Rated Cap: 15
Blueberry pickers are getting upwards of $15.00 an hour these days and apparently there is a shortage nationally. At least that's what I heard on NPR a couple of days ago.
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Old 07-15-2016, 09:35 AM   #16
Bus Geek
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Columbus Ohio
Posts: 18,751
Year: 1991
Coachwork: Carpenter
Chassis: International 3800
Engine: DTA360 / MT643
Rated Cap: 7 Row Handicap
Quote:
Originally Posted by RC000E View Post
Will be full timing in approx 5 months. For now, I've relocated to my shop space and did a custom build out this past week of two enclosed rooms (metal stud/drywall/etc). Eliminated the cost of our house and just have the shop space (4k sqft). Through the cost reduction, we will do the build out, then transition full time connected to the building (shore power).

For me, shop space makes money, houses don't. I also work online doing various things, developing multiple future streams of income that afford us mobility and sustainability. The overall intent is to relocate to Las Vegas next year, but again will likely rent shop/warehouse space.

I like the idea of shared shop / residential space.. many municipalities dont like it, however most older towns have loopholes in zoning that allow people to live in commercial space.. as "back in the day" it was quite common for a shopkeeper to live in the back of or right above their shop so the laws actually allow for it unless its a brand new community with special provisions in the charter...

im not sure why i maintain a house when im the opposite of a home body.. I am only home to sleep... your idea of having a shop to work on projects in and live in a small space within or on the bus seems to make perfect sense..

I suppose im more fitted for living in a bus or mobile space than I think.. I am a partner ion a software company and I am always working mobile anyway... and now in fact my bus is becoming a mobile DEV lab so even less ties to an office or house.. yet I would miss the space to build stuff.. sounds like you have that covered with a shop... Im liking your model more and more all the time..
-Christopher
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Old 07-15-2016, 05:38 PM   #17
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Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Billings, MT
Posts: 1,269
Year: 2003
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: HDX
Engine: Cat C7
Rated Cap: 84 passenger
I don't live ON a skoolie; I live full time IN a skoolie. For income, I'm on SSDI because I can't work. I don't live high on the hog, just somewhere near him.
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Old 07-15-2016, 09:07 PM   #18
Skoolie
 
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Oklahoma
Posts: 237
Year: 2002
Chassis: international
Engine: T444E
Rated Cap: 71
Quote:
Originally Posted by onenationundergoat View Post
It's miserable but totally worth it. 12 hr shifts, 7 days a week. Outdoors. In North Dakota. Night shift for first timers. Muddy. Cold. Exhausting work.

But the pay is FANTASTIC and it only lasts a couple weeks if you can rough it. The probably hired 300 people for our yard last year and after the first week less than half remained. By the end of the second week there were only about ten of us that hadn't quit. But we made $4500 in two weeks. They treat you well and give you a site with hookups and a bath house with hot showers and internet. Plus the truckers give you treats and the ladies in the scale house make hot food and desserts to share. =]
Uhhh ya that sounds rough if your loosing that many people that fast. The people sound nice though. Just sounds like you have to stalk up on ibuprofen/ aspirin before joining..

Us... We are not full time. We would love to be some day and show the kids the land and just spend more time with them before they grow up to fast. But need mobile job and a bus. Working on bus and looking for other. Someday we will get there
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