The ideal of vanlife is to move from city to city and see new places every few days, as well as to feel completely free. I was worried about how I was going to pay for my dream of living in a van. I was on a very tight budget back then.
If I can do it on a tight budget, I’m sure you can, too. Take care of money and be serious about your goals if you want them to work out. To help you save money toward your goal of living in a van, continue reading this article to be financially prepared before you start on your VanLife.
Related Link: Kev’s Vanlife and Travel Essentials
1. Decide on a Money Goal.
Before you decide whether or not to start saving, you need to figure out why and how much you need to save. Choose your van, decide how you’ll work on the road or how much money you need to save, and figure out how much it will cost to build your home. If you plan ahead this way, you will be able to adequately prepare for the future so that there aren’t any major problems down the road in the future.
Having a clear idea of your financial goal and how long it will take to reach it will help you figure out how to make your financial goal happen. It is one of the key aspects whenever you are trying to achieve any financial goal.
2. Create a Budget
First, I suggest that you look at your spending habits to get started. Install an app like YNAB (You Need A Budget) that lets you see how much money you spend and where it goes. Often, we don’t know how much money we spend on different parts of our lives. Some memberships are easy to forget about, and the costs of keeping them can quickly add up, so we need to be careful. This app will also nudge you when you are recklessly spending on things you don’t need.
Then, I suggest taking some time to sit down and write down a budget. Count your fixed costs (things that stay the same each month, like rent and car payments) and your variable costs (things that change each month) (groceries, gas money, etc). You might want to think about whether you could get rid of a fixed expense or cut back on how much money goes to a variable cost.
When people talked about wanting to save money, this was one of the things that made me want to scream because it was so clear. Nobody likes to look at their habits and find out that some of their favourite things are keeping them from meeting their financial goals. As a real savings plan for vanlife, you must be willing to give up a few of your current spending habits that are taking money from your bank account. This is a list of things I looked into when I decided to start saving for van life in 2019. It’s possible that you’ve heard some of these things before.
Stop Your Gym Membership Right Away.
The episode of How I Met Your Mother in which the whole group gets a gym membership and Ted made fun of it by saying “In 2005, we used to have to pay for workouts in these things called gyms.” I remember being embarrassed right away, mostly because we had never even used our membership benefits, which made me feel bad. At one point, we were paying $65 each a month for a membership that we didn’t use very often. Even if you are very determined to go to the gym every day, you should think about ways to cut down on the cost of your gym membership.
However, if you really want to join a gym, I suggest that you check out Planet Fitness. It will cost you about $23 a month if there is one in your area. It will let you use showers all over the United States. You will most likely use it to wash while you are on the road. This is a good thing to have. For $10 a month, you can get a basic subscription that lets you use any place in the U.S. at no extra charge.
Cut the Cable
Because most Millennials don’t have cable, this may not be true for you, but it might be for someone else. As for cable or Direct TV, get rid of it right away! Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Video are just a few of the streaming services you can use to watch movies and TV shows. Most of the shows you would normally watch on cable or satellite TV can be watched on these apps. If you really want to save money, ask a friend or family member if you can use their account for watching shows. They can set you up with a family account, and you can all split the cost of the service together. You will save a lot of money and most likely not even notice that you no longer have cable.
Check Your Subscriptions
I’m very guilty of having a lot of memberships that renew each month that I don’t need. My favourite apps are Dropbox, Canva, Apple Music, and Adobe, but there are a lot of other great apps out there. If you work a lot online, it might be hard to avoid paying for these things. If you have a lot of subscriptions, you don’t have to cancel them all. You should, however, know which ones you have and whether or not you really need them. It’s important for me to keep track of all of my subscriptions so I can figure out whether or not I still need them.
Take Your Car Away!
On the other hand, I know that you’re probably thinking I’m crazy about this one. Not everyone can get rid of their car. I completely agree with your point of view, but you should look into whether or not it is possible. Perhaps you live in a big city and only use your car when you need to get outside of the city. Instead, if you have a lot of money invested in your car, you could use it to buy a cheaper car until you get your van. To say that, after you buy your van, you can use it to get around while you are still working full-time and not living in it. This is important to note. Remember that if you have equity in your car and decide to sell it, the money will go into your savings account.
Related Link: Kev’s Vanlife and Travel Essentials
Get a Cheaper Apartment
As a last resort, you could try renting out a spare room on Airbnb, or even living with a friend. If you put in a little work, you might be able to cut down on the amount you pay each month for rent (partner or pets). High rent is one of the major expenses of most of the people living in United States. You really could save a ton of money by not paying high rent.
You could also move into an entirely different location that is cheap before you start your Vanlife. It may seem an unnecessary step but it is critical if you want to start your Vanlife soon.
Sell Your Belongings
You are moving into a 60-square-foot space with very little storage, and your whole life will no longer fit into your road-trip lifestyle. This might appear to be difficult, yet it is really rather liberating. It’s mind-boggling how much of your things you no longer use or need. So, you need to cut back on the clothes, furniture, cookware and decorations you have in your home. A great way to sell your most valuable things and make money for your vanlife. In order to be able to sell your things for the price that you want, give yourself a lot of time before you move into your van. This way, you won’t be in a hurry to get them out of your house. Places like Poshmark and Mercari are good places to sell your things.
When making critical purchases, choose the highest-quality option available.
When it came time to purchase new winter boots and hiking sandals, I made sure to choose high-quality selections. I paid more money up front, but these purchases ended up saving me money in the long run because I didn’t have to replace them after a few seasons as I would have otherwise. As an extra benefit, I adored my shoes so much that I haven’t bought any new ones since.
Get a cash-back credit card and make advantage of it.
Even though you aren’t technically “earning” any additional money, cash-back credit cards have the ability to save you a significant amount of money. Because I used my credit card to make important purchases, I was able to collect a significant amount of reward money. Over $200 in cash back was accrued throughout my first year of employment. This method is only effective if you pay off your credit card in full every month.
3. Get a Second Job
You need to save a lot before you start your Vanlife. Are you willing to work hard? It’s time for you to get another job, my friend. Besides working full time, I know that you’re working on a conversion van at the same time as you work on your job. However, there are a lot of jobs out there that can work with your schedule on the days when you have time.
As a bonus, if you haven’t yet started building your van and are trying to save money, this is a good thing to do.
Easy to Get Part-Time Jobs
There are people that are hired by companies to be brand ambassadors or promotional models in order to get their name out there to the general public. There is a good chance that the person handing out samples at Costco actually works for the vendor rather than Costco. Their pay ranges from $13-$25 per hour, depending on the assignment. Working for a company like Pandora during a music festival is a more enjoyable example. A entertaining “experience” booth or a swag giveaway may be your job at the event. It’s best to join Facebook groups like “Promotional Model of X (insert city here)” so you can be alerted about job vacancies in your region as they become available.
Restaurant
- Host
- Waiter/Waitress
- Dishwasher
Retail Work
- Barista
- Bartender
Local Shops
- Bike Shops
- Boutiques
- Book Stores
Start saving money for vanlife doesn’t have to be hard. You can find little ways to cut back that add up to big savings. The process of saving money for van life should not be rushed. Instead, give yourself the time you need to truly enjoy yourself while you’re on the road.
Related Link: Kev’s Vanlife and Travel Essentials
