Hi! Vandweller here, so a friend who lost their car and home came to me to ask for help because she wants to buy a bus. I have no clue what to tell her (I told her to look for an RV but they are pieces of crap for what she could afford), she's running out of money and about to be homeless, so I guess it's less of the fact that it's a bad idea, and more it's better than nothing.
She has $5k max to spend, and found some school buses online and wants to buy one and live in it (essentially mattress and camping stove at first) and slowly build it out. I don't know anything about school buses and I've tried to do some research but honestly I felt like I could ask and get better info than what I could cobble together myself in one night to write up for her.
What's the minimum one would need to go from school bus to something they could live in (in the Carolina Fall heat), and is it really even plausible for that amount of money? Couldn't find existing conversions anywhere close. I assume even the initial task of getting all the seats out isn't easy. I also was thinking that if it's going to be her primary vehicle, I know the big ones get like 10mpg. So secondly, is there a model or size you'd recommend that's going to be find-able at that price but still doesn't get too bad milage and would be more likely to be mechanically sound?
We are in the southeast, and have just found things on Craigslist at the time.
Thank you sooo much for any answers and your time, you all are awesome! I'm still doing as much research as possible myself.