But heaven forbid if one chooses alternatives like living in a RV. I don't want to spend $800+utilities a month on an apartment but I would spend $20k to put a travel trailer in a RV park and pay $375 a month which includes wifi, cable, water, and trash(and a laundry room!). I could spend a good deal more on a nicer trailer that has washer/dryer hookups.
The thing is when you're getting low pay you consider options. Some people can't stand the idea and want to put it down all the time. They often have the mentality of if I'm spending all my money paying for the best house in the best neighborhood then you should be striving to do the same. It's the old Puritan work ethic. You prove your worthiness by what you achieve financially. You see, poor people have opinions about what you rich folk do also. Yeah, yeah, I know you aren't rich. But keeping up with the Jones is very alive and well in the U.S.
@DriveInDriveOut
You're making some fairly big assumptions in the second half of that post.
I would consider myself very well off for my age, and I'm very lucky my parents taught me about finance so early.
You are going to have a payment on the travel trailer, yes?
You are going to need to purchase something to pull it with?
And you are going to need insurance on both of those things?
So really what you are getting for $375 a month is water, trash, and a place to park.
Cable and wifi are non essentials.
If you get a 7 year loan for the trailer, I'd guess about 300 a month?
And maybe 50 a month for insurance?
Just throwing numbers around.
But that would put you at $725 a month to live there.
In a cheaper part of the country, that's not all that far off of a house payment. And if you had the house payment, you'd build equity in something that will probably be appreciating in value at the same time.
I'm not trying to beat you up, dude. If you have a good life, I'm happy for you.
I'm just not sure how much cheaper life actually ends up being when you do more creative stuff like that.
