Where in DC, MD, VA, or PA can I park my bus to build it out?

[buslivesmatter]

I'm looking to buy a skoolie soon, but I want to have smaller details like this worked out first.

Is there anywhere I can park and work on my bus for free to relatively inexpensive prices? I've heard of storage places but I'm not sure if i'd be allowed to build the bus out there. All of our storage places nearby are pretty small. I currently rent a townhome and parking is very limited here unfortunately.

I've seen places in Texas and New Mexico where people allow others to build out their buses on their property. Are there places like that in MD, DC, VA, or southern PA? I tried doing a search on here, but I don't really know what to search for so I didn't get many results.

[s2mikon]

One of the main problems of finding a place to work on buses is caused by zoning. These are the regulations put in place to prevent certain activities on private property. Different jurisdictions have specific zoning codes like M1 M2 ect. for manufacturing. This would be fine for bus builds. R1 R2 is residential and this will be a no go. C1 C2 is commercial and is primarily for retail sales. Minor bus mods and repairs might be okay. Then there is a few and I mean very few places that do not have any zoning at all. I live there. Yes we are still free! The main problem with that is if I want to start a pig farm I may have to do it by some nice houses. Then there is the matter of enforcement. Some places are very strict and others are lax. Like most of southern NM. If I were you I would look to West Virginia. It is close to you and the state has some very nice people in it. I’ve been there. WV is also a poor state that has lost a lot of their jobs and you may have an easier time finding someone that wants to rent to you at a reasonable rate. Without getting political, politics does have a huge bearing on the level of regulation, so research that too.

[buslivesmatter]

Originally Posted by s2mikon

One of the main problems of finding a place to work on buses is caused by zoning. These are the regulations put in place to prevent certain activities on private property. Different jurisdictions have specific zoning codes like M1 M2 ect. for manufacturing. This would be fine for bus builds. R1 R2 is residential and this will be a no go. C1 C2 is commercial and is primarily for retail sales. Minor bus mods and repairs might be okay. Then there is a few and I mean very few places that do not have any zoning at all. I live there. Yes we are still free! The main problem with that is if I want to start a pig farm I may have to do it by some nice houses. Then there is the matter of enforcement. Some places are very strict and others are lax. Like most of southern NM. If I were you I would look to West Virginia. It is close to you and the state has some very nice people in it. I’ve been there. WV is also a poor state that has lost a lot of their jobs and you may have an easier time finding someone that wants to rent to you at a reasonable rate. Without getting political, politics does have a huge bearing on the level of regulation, so research that too.

Thank you. This is helpful. Do you have land in MD? Or New Mexico? I was a little confused. What are laws like in New Mexico for this sort of thing? I've been looking at land there and a few other western states.

[s2mikon]

I’m in SE NM. Some parts of SE NM are flat out ugly. Where I am at we have the oil and gas fields, salt mining and atomic waste storage. Did I say ugly? But other parts of the state are really beautiful. The Gila National Forest in SW NM is a must see and is accessible from Deming, as is all of northern NM. The White Sands National Monument and Alamogordo are also very pretty with good weather. Northern NM can be very cold in the winter. SE NM can get into triple digits in the summers. Land values in SW NM are very reasonable compared to the rest of the state. SW NM is great for winter living and not to bad in the summer. If you want to cool down just go north from Deming.

[musigenesis]

I pay $100 a month for my parking spot, which is in the side lot of a U-Haul place in the SE Philly burbs. The owner allows me to run an extension cord over to the building and I keep a Kill-a-Watt meter on it and pay her for usage. I think $100 is a great price and you're unlikely to find any place that cheap that would also let you work on a bus.

Spots available, act fast!

[buslivesmatter]

Originally Posted by musigenesis

I pay $100 a month for my parking spot, which is in the side lot of a U-Haul place in the SE Philly burbs. The owner allows me to run an extension cord over to the building and I keep a Kill-a-Watt meter on it and pay her for usage. I think $100 is a great price and you're unlikely to find any place that cheap that would also let you work on a bus.

Spots available, act fast!

Thanks. It seems like storage facilities may be my best option here. $100 a month isnt bad at all tbh.

[buslivesmatter]

Originally Posted by s2mikon

I’m in SE NM. Some parts of SE NM are flat out ugly. Where I am at we have the oil and gas fields, salt mining and atomic waste storage. Did I say ugly? But other parts of the state are really beautiful. The Gila National Forest in SW NM is a must see and is accessible from Deming, as is all of northern NM. The White Sands National Monument and Alamogordo are also very pretty with good weather. Northern NM can be very cold in the winter. SE NM can get into triple digits in the summers. Land values in SW NM are very reasonable compared to the rest of the state. SW NM is great for winter living and not to bad in the summer. If you want to cool down just go north from Deming.

Thanks. I'm from the DMV area so as long as it isn't worse than winters here I'm ok with colder temps.

[musigenesis]

Originally Posted by buslivesmatter

Thanks. It seems like storage facilities may be my best option here. $100 a month isnt bad at all tbh.

FWIW I found mine by driving around my area randomly and looking for lots with a bunch of RVs and trailers parked on them. A lot of businesses have random extra land that they rent out for storage, but it's not worth it to them to keep running advertisements or listings for it.