Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂 Since July 2018, Mark and I have been combining van life in our Zesty and house and pet sitting, which we did full-time before that. The best of both worlds! In December we house sat the entire month in Southern California.
This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for the two of us. Under groceries we incorporate all the food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and Mark's vitamins and supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor's visits. Health insurance and costs are related to my health care as a permanent resident in the US. Mark is still eligible for free health care in the state of Massachusetts as of today. If a non-emergency were to happen outside of that state, it will be expensive! For check-ups, we both return to the East Coast. I still pay a small quarterly fee in Belgium for health care (required to retain citizenship), which I mention in my year report later this month.
Sunset on a bike ride to Mission Bay, Sn Diego, CA
In December, the last month of the year - the most expensive month for most people - Mark and I finally did it again: we stayed well under $1000. It was actually bound to be the cheapest month of the year for us, until... our web hosting fees were due. This amount of over $300 for three years was previously paid by our business. That time was up at the end of 2018. Mark chatted online with Blue Host and managed to get a great discount, if we were to renew for another three years. Which we did. $214 to keep Roaming About (and our email accounts) running for another three years. Hurrah! Other than that, we tried our best to save money and as a result, have a brief expense report. And, we still had a fantastic time meeting up with wonderful friends, and walking and biking everywhere.
Discover more from Roaming About
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
January 10, 2019 at 10:30
That is incredible. And your phone is fifty bucks a month? Who are you with? We have two smart phones and it’s a hundred and thirty a month. (That also includes a hot spot.)
January 11, 2019 at 14:04
Our phone bill is actually $50 for two months, Alex. We are on an old $30 a month plan with T-Mobile, but Mark finds “cheaper” pre-paid T-Mobile cards on eBay (for example a card with a face value of $60 that is being sold for $50). They have pre-paid cards available with $5 increments and Mark gets the one that has the most value whenever we need more T-Mobile data. Sometimes we buy a card that will cover two months, sometimes three months. So, in December our phone bill is $50 and in January, it will be $0 if that makes sense.
This $30 plan allows us to use up to 5GB of data a month, which by current standards is not much and definitely not unlimited. We trade spending less money on these plans for the inconvenience of going to libraries for internet chores and avoiding heavy data usage (like Facebook and photo-heavy websites and blogs) through our phone, which is also the hot spot for our other devices.
January 10, 2019 at 19:02
I’m not sure what slice of life will comprise your memoir, but if it’s about economy with Mark, you’re a shoo-in for a best-seller. He knows how to negotiate- and you both, a thrifty, frugal pair. And charitable to friends. Impressive!
January 11, 2019 at 14:05
I certainly think I need to write a book about our frugal life and tips one day, Marian, as it doesn’t play a (big) part in my memoir. I already cover too many themes as it is in that 10-year slice of sailing and RVing.
January 11, 2019 at 18:14
It’ll keep for book # 2 or 3. Write through life, Liesbet!
January 14, 2019 at 08:52
I have and I will, Marian, but I don’t want my travels and world explorations to be jeopardized. You know what I mean! 🙂 We will make it work, though. Two passions might be just possible.
January 11, 2019 at 16:15
As above definitely an idea for a future book or netflix series. How to live on $1000 per month. Who wouldn’t want to buy that? You two are extraordinary. I hope you give it some serious thought.
January 11, 2019 at 16:19
Thanks, Sue. It’s probably been done already. The “caveat” for me is that it wouldn’t be possible to live on that amount (comfortably) when having a sticks and bricks house and living ashore like most people do, not at our age. So, the book would have to be geared to people willing to live a life less ordinary – as in sailing, traveling by RV, or house and pet sitting.
January 13, 2019 at 08:40
Really amazing! We are finding (here in Mexico) that gas is our biggest expense. If we stay put for a while (even if we are paying for a campsite) our expenses go way down. I don’t think we will ever get a month less than $1000 – odd expenses always keep popping up.
January 14, 2019 at 08:55
Yeah, the diesel prices in Mexico scare us off a bit as well. And, the initial cost of about $250 for insurance and permits/tourist cards. If we go to Baja for a month, we’d have to make it count and save big on groceries and other expenses. You are so right about odd expenses. There always seems to be one or two every month!
What are you using to get online? SIM card? Which data plan? Which company? Price? The internet availability (or lack thereof) will be the biggest deterrent for our Mexico plan in February…
January 15, 2019 at 13:43
Congrats! I’ll probably still be getting bills from Christmas well into March.
January 21, 2019 at 13:00
Haha! You are probably an amazing gift giver, JH!
January 19, 2019 at 01:49
This is great! I’m a little afraid to do this for our own full time travels. We house sit a lot, and when we aren’t though, we are in apartments or hotels or the occasional workaway.
It’s amazing to see this – most people think that they can’t afford to travel full time, but you clearly demonstrate that it’s not only possible, but it makes “cents”. (sorry, couldn’t resist).
January 21, 2019 at 13:17
Hi Zach! When you add hotels or apartment rentals to the list of expenses, I’m sure it can add up. But, I’m also sure that your life on the road and as house sitters is still much cheaper than living in a stick and brick house. I’d be curious about your expenses, but it remains a bit of a sensitive topic for most people to share that info. Love the pun in your comment!
One of the reasons we decided to get a camper van was so we’d have a roof above our heads in between house sits. And, those periods in between allowed us to explore the country a more as well. If we were to travel and house sit internationally, like you guys, we probably could only afford to do so in cheaper countries like in SE Asia. And, yes, we are considering this. 🙂
January 21, 2019 at 13:59
You should totally consider house sitting internationally! We’ve considered the next phase of our journey to be a campervan – as a way to be a little more location dependent in some ways. Or as a way to not move around quite as much as we do now.
Can you tell me some details about your van? Is it a custom build? I’ve been obsessed with campervans for ages now. We’ve actually rented them in Australia and New Zealand and most recently Japan.
(https://www.visa-vis.com/kyushu)
January 22, 2019 at 10:03
Hi Zack! Funny how we’re contemplating international house sitting and you are considering getting a camper van. 🙂 I think a combination between sitting and traveling by van is a pretty sweet one. It’s kind of what we are doing right now, except that when we really “need” a sit, we don’t find one, and when we plan to camp for while is when the sits “pour” in. 🙂
We rented a Sprinter van in New Zealand one fall as an introduction to van life and to test out the Sprinters. That conversion was not well-done and not well-insulated. Back in the US after house sitting for a year, my husband researched vans and all the options for months. He is tall, so converting an older Sprinter would not work. Yet, we wanted an older Sprinter that still takes high-sulfur diesel to travel with it in South America. We gave up on the conversion idea all together, realizing that we didn’t want to repeat our boat life with heaps of projects.
After researching some more, Mark came across the Airstream-Westfalia conversions, or Westies. There is a Sprinter forum online, with a subsection for Airstream-Westfalias, if you’re interested. Also, to get a better idea of these vans, type “airstream westfalia camper van” in YouTube for vlogs and videos or check out this short one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7E7I_s0uZs
Only 250 of these vans were imported in the US in 2005, so they’re all the same in the US, but there are plenty (updated) versions in Europe. There, these vans are called Thomas Cook. The perfect package! At only 19ft long, we have a two-burner stove, fridge, wet bathroom (toilet and shower), a separate dinette and sleeping area, and plenty of space. 🙂
January 23, 2019 at 04:42
Okay, I love the airstream westfalia camper van. thanks for the new obsession!
January 24, 2019 at 13:17
They’re pretty special, but not for everyone, since they look quite “funny”. I love to say that they “pack a punch”. 🙂