Have you been considering the freedom of a full-time VR lifestyle? Are you ready for the change, but don’t know how to start?
Here are just a few of the challenges in becoming a full-time RVer:
- How much does this VR lifestyle cost?
- How am I going to do my banking on the go?
- What about my phone and my Internet?
- What about my Medicare and my health care?
- How do I choose a permanent residence?
- How in the world will I receive my mail?
In this article I’m going to focus on my full time RV experience and mail forwarding tips.
You see I’ve been there doing that. In 1969 I started my RV adventure in a converted VW bus. For 6 months I enjoyed the freedom of traveling and living full time on the road from Illinois to Utah. I accepted a teaching job at Ogden University, Utah, and had to give up my gypsy lifestyle.
For the next 32 years, I camped in tents on weekends in Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah. Not often. but just enough to know that one day I would return to a full-time VR lifestyle and enjoy the freedom of the great outdoors.
In 2000, I decided the time had come to become a full-time RVer. I had no idea how confusing, frustrating, and time consuming that decision would be. I started doing research on the internet, the library, my friends, and other full-time workers.
Since I planned to run my business from my RV, my main concern was how I was going to get all my business correspondence.
After many hours of research, I found several resources with a wide range of costs for mail forwarding. Here are some of the most popular mail forwarding services among RVers: Escapees, Good Sam Club, and Family Motor Coaching Association (FMCA).
I settled on FMCA, which delivered the mail weekly and the cost was included in the membership fee. I used this service for 4 years without any problem. Since I was moving around a lot, it was important to let them know ahead of time where I would be. If I were to stay in one place for 30 days, there would be no need to notify them. It is important to inform the mail forwarding service of the basics about your lifestyle on the road. I rarely had any issues with the trailer park accepting my mail, however if I was near a relative I would forward the mail.
Regardless of the service you use, make sure they understand that mail will be held until you call and provide a current address for mail forwarding. It should be clear to them that you are not always in one place and that your mailing address changes. There are many forwarding services, but not all of them understand what RV transportation is and are set up to forward mail to different addresses. One thing you will need to tell your mail forwarding service is how you want them to handle your spam. Proper handling will save you money on shipping costs.
In conclusion, your main concern should be a reliable mail forwarding service. The ones mentioned above have been in business for a long time and are likely to stay in business.
