Living On The Road

[BigRAWesty]

Not to derail Cuppas camper thread i thought id start a new one..

Now to continue, the wife once joked about packing up and just going.. Hit the road, travelling for work and enjoying what this country has to offer. But also scoping this island for a possible nesting place..

Well im getting pretty serious about it. Our 2 girls are 2 years and 5 months so a while off of school yet. We have 2 cars, so selling both and buying 1 good patrol is the way to go.
Work for me is not an issue, i have a cert 2 in agriculture, boilermaker trade, riggers, ewp, confined space entry, construction, fork lift...... etc... So i think we'll be safe..

Our big one is the house we own.. At a guess maybe $30,000 equity in it.. I recon sell as we have a safety net in my parents. i was 1 of 4 kids who have all moved out of the family home so its big and empty.. But it would be nice to hold onto it and rent.. Its alot of overhead costs though..
(Feel free to throw up some thoughts)

Im basically doing this thread asking how was your working holidays. was it stressful? easy? hard? WORTH IT?

i think atm were throwing around hitting the east coast.. I like this idea as there is allot of work going on threw out. and allot of cool places to see and do..

so yea, share stories, thoughts, how you did it..

CONVINCE MY WIFE....

[macca86]

If you have the chance do it now we are looking at selling up in Brisbane buy 96 acres in stanthorpe. Near our family farm put family cattle on it to pay for rates and travel. Sell the cars the house buy a set up rig travel no over heads explore you only regret the things you don't do and learn from the things you do

[andrewh]

Sounds like you've got the skills to pick up work which is always the challenge on a 'working holiday'.

We did 6 mths non-working and I'd do it again a heartbeat. You can live cheap on the road and your kids are young enough to not have to worry about schooling much. We lived on $750/week in 2009 and that included food, fuel, accom and having fun. It is actually more expensive to live at home!

The house... Tough one - once you sell it can be very hard to get back in, but you might not want to come back to it after it has been rented too. We let friends look after ours and didn't make any $$. We looked at getting agents to rent it but by the time we had done the sums it just wasn't worth it

[BigRAWesty]

The wife's sister is a possible renter. Butt that's still $300 short a month on repayments alone. Without rates included.
So I see the only option is to sell. But I'm happy with that.. I'm after a clean start.

Kallen Westbrook
Owner of
Westy's Accessories

[macca86]

Sell sell sell haha plenty of time to purchase another house.

[Cuppa]

Stressful? - any new direction is likely to have some stress associated with it.
Worth it? - If it it what you dream of - Absolutely!

Some random thoughts:
Consider something different to a Patrol. For example, for what a decked out Patrol would cost you, you could pick up a decked out small bus & be a lot more comfortable. this may suit another family members more than tenting it, but would restrict where you can go. However high ground clearance will get you to a lot of places, & you can always hire a 4wd for special trips ...... Or tow a Suzi or similar 4x4. Of course you can tow a caravan with a Patrol too, but this will also restrict where you can go.

The east coast is the busiest & most expensive section of the country.

Plenty of work available in outback towns for qualified folk. You probably have a better idea of what work is available for you up the east coast. Be careful that you don't end up travelling to work. Working to travel is the aim. No good giving up the comfort of your home just to work somewhere else living in a caravan park. Gotta find the right balance.

Selling the house. This is one that many grapple with. It's not just the equity, it's the sense of security owning a home gives. The main issue with selling is the risk that house prices will rise & subsequently you are unable to afford to get back into the market. My view is that this not very likely over the next few years as the GFC continues to bite. Everyone's circumstances are different, but with 30,000 equity in your home you are near the beginning of your home owning journey. If it were me I would first consider if it were possible to rent it out & have the rent cover the repayments (with a bit of savings to cover non payment of rent for a month or two), but this has potential ongoing hassle & stress associated with it. One factor though is that you do have alternative accommodation at your parent's should you have to come home prematurely for any reason, which gives you a bit more flexibility.

Selling is probably also a reasonable option if you can put the money you sell it for aside & not use it to fund your travel. It would give you a deposit on another home in most parts of the country, & it is quite possible that if the GFC bites that house prices will fall. It is also possible that you will find living on the road cheaper than living at home, particularly if you are not paying rtes, insurance etc etc, & free camping, house sitting etc as much as possible. It is not out of the question that if you are able to work in outback towns that you might earn more, allowing you to add to what you sell your house for, whilst travelling at the same time.

If the house is sold it allows for much free'er travelling if the emotional cost is not too high. Most of us live with far more than we need. Living on the road teaches you how little we need to live, and enjoy life.

Unless you are very brave I would not advise selling up & funding travel with the proceeds, especially not until you know the lifestyle suits you all. It's fair to say it's not for everyone. Most I have known who it hasn't suited are folks, usually one of a couple, who have particularly close ties with family & friends, & find it difficult not having the regular face to face contact. I know of a number of couples who compromise by taking 3 month or less trips, come back home for a similar period & then off again. Potentially you have your parent's place to return to if your wife is someone with such close ties.

Although common sense, it's worth saying - it is absolutely essential that the needs of everyone is accounted for in whatever plans are made. To not do this only leads to breakdown & failure. I have also known a couple where one partner took responsibility for everything, happily setting themselves up with all the camping gear etc etc, whilst the other partner just went along with it all. 3 months or so into their trip they had an almighty blue, & split up. She hated life under canvas, couldn't stand the heat & the bugs etc etc. Communication is the key..... right from the planning stage.

We had a couple of times where one or the other of us threatened to walk away, but we now recognise that no matter how much planning, & how good the communication, there will be an adaptation period & a coming to terms with a life where much is unfamiliar each day. This is both the attraction & what is 'wearing' about travel. Having a 'home' to travel in helps this process enormously. Doesn't sound like much, but every new town is an unknown, where is the shop for this or that? etc etc. Having your own little familiar space with you where you can retreat to really helps to make everything easier.

Others might say more about travelling with young children. I haven't done it, but from those I know who have, all who have found ways of involving the children at all levels of the travel, would say that the kids had blossomed & family bonds have grown stronger. Those who have problems are the adults who only drag the kids along on their own adult adventure.

IMHO the key to successful long term travel is to slow down. Take your time. Smell the roses. This gets easier the longer you're out there. Sounds simple but it's not. We are all very conditioned to 'getting there'. Men are usually the worst offenders.

A simple aim for travel I learned was to find great camp spots, & to recognise them once found. Early during our trip I would often wish we had stopped somewhere for longer, there are heaps of camp spots, but the really great ones are fewer. It is often tempting to think the 'grass will be greener' further down the track. Learning to stop & appreciate where you are takes practice & is part of the slowing down process. I am certain that an aspect of MrsTea's initial reluctance to travel was because she feared my inability to relax & appreciate. Photography & fishing helped.

I could probably ramble on & on, but will shut up for now & see what others have to say. Hopefully somewhere in all this might be a helpful seed or two.

Cuppa

[BigRAWesty]

Keep going Cuppa, I'm going to write a book...

As for vehicle I guess well try what we have first. The car and camper setup..

The missus grew up roughing it off road right threw her childhood, but hasn't really left base. I up and moved 800 k when I was 18, so I'm not afraid if starting new.
I think what's ignited this covered Flame is what the father in-law said to me the other night. as my mum is very organised she trys to organise us when we venture up there, buts that's another story.. anyway he said, "aslong as you have your wife and 2 girls, you have everything.."

Kallen Westbrook
Owner of
Westy's Accessories

[mudnut]

On their big trip around Aus, my parents met a couple of families that had sold their homes and were living the good life. They did meet a couple who had done it, but the husband had been very sick. By the time they had got him right, they had used most of their capital to re-enter the housing market. Unfortunately they will now live in rented or temp accomodation for the rest of their lives. I personally know a family that had worked around the country, until their eldest daughter started high school. They loved it. So two sides of the coin to look at. I made the big move from city to country. I would have loved to just sell up and go, but it is just a day dream now.

[jack]

Hi Kallen,

My nephew http://www.livinontheroad.com.au/ rented out their house, they did have some issues so it's always a risk. There is always a risk with renting, just watch Current Affair or Today Tonight but you can always get good tenants. We've had more good than bad over the years. Before selling consider what capital gain you can get from the house, I don't know what Mount Gambier real-estate is like but consider how much the house will appreciate over a year. Only needs to increase by $3600 to cover the $300 per month shortfall, but then you have to have that each month. There are negative gearing provisions in the taxation system and you can claim the rates, interest, agent fees etc on tax provided you declare the rent. If you're not making a profit then it will effectively reduce your tax (please confirm with an accountant - this is not tax advice). If you move back into the house you can avoid paying capital gains tax (again get independent advice).
Also remember that if you do sell that houses will increase by this amount regardless, making it more expensive to purchase.
My nephew had more job offers than he could handle (he's a sparky) and I'm sure competent welders are in demand.

What ever you decide to do, all the best - follow your dreams.

[pearcey]

Some very wise words there Cuppa. I have a few friends who are on the road full time but each have different views as to the way you approach life on the road. My wife and I are in the planning stage at the moment and as Cuppa dose we research as much as possible.
As we own our home and have no debts at all we will be keeping our house as a base. We had friends who ran into some very large medical problems and as they had sold their home they are now renting for the rest of their days. There are quite a few blogs by people living the dream and you can learn a lot by the triumphs and mistakes written there. I for one am looking at a fifth wheel as they can provide a lot of comfort and space as this is some thing you may need with two young children I hope it all works out for you and i wish you the best for the future
Pearcey