Would you give up everything to be a Grey Nomad?

[LB]

Whilst I am up to 25 years away from retirement (could win the lottery that might change things) I dream of the Grey Nomad lifestyle.

I have read a lot of forums and figured we need about $55k in retirement to live this way comfortably (This includes keeping our home base).

What really scares me is the number of people I have read posts on who literally sell up everything to do this, including their homes.
What do you have to fall back on if like health problems prevented you from continuing to live this way, or just plain old age makes the whole caravan and travelling thing impossible.

I would more than consider selling up and buying something smaller (our current 5 bedroom house may be a little over kill when you are in your 80's) but to have nothing to go back to seems crazy.  Wouldn't you be better off renting your home out?. I would have thought with full or part pension + rent you could live this dream for as long as practical.

[Bird]

Everyone is different...

[Julian Kaye]

Whilst I am up to 25 years away from retirement (could win the lottery that might change things) I dream of the Grey Nomad lifestyle.

I have read a lot of forums and figured we need about $55k in retirement to live this way comfortably (This includes keeping our home base).

What really scares me is the number of people I have read posts on who literally sell up everything to do this, including their homes.
What do you have to fall back on if like health problems prevented you from continuing to live this way, or just plain old age makes the whole caravan and travelling thing impossible.

I would more than consider selling up and buying something smaller (our current 5 bedroom house may be a little over kill when you are in your 80's) but to have nothing to go back to seems crazy.  Wouldn't you be better off renting your home out?. I would have thought with full or part pension + rent you could live this dream for as long as practical.

   
  $55k a year, try $65-70k for the first few years at least, other than that you are pretty spot on. The security of your own home is paramount, particularly as you get older and you don't know where your health will take you. My sister and brother-in-law tried the" sell everything and live the grey nomad wandering life style". They didn't have the financial back-up or income to do it and ended up free camping on river banks eating tinned soup while waiting for the next pension day.

[Pete79]

I say don't wait till you're grey.
If you want to travel, do it now or at least do what you can to make as many extended trips as you possibly can.

I've seen too many people plan and prepare for many years to be ready to spend their retirement years on the road, only to have the reality of old age come and wreck everything.

One of our very close family friends had spent the first few years of retirement building an awesome custom bus to live out their traveling dream. After he'd finished it they sold their house and bought a cheap small bush block with a shed to fall back on. They did one test run in the bus for a couple of months when he fell ill. He is now invalid and can't move from bed to bathroom without assistance. They had no choice but to live in the shed and sell the beloved bus.

Our family choose to live without a lot of life's luxuries and put our money into as much travel as we can.
We are planning to give our kids a year off school between primary and secondary school and do a long slow lap. We figure we can do heaps more in our mid 40's then we possibly could do in our mid 60's or 70's.

I agree with you that selling everything to live your final years on the road is a huge risk.

[tracker]

I say don't wait till you're grey.
If you want to travel, do it now or at least do what you can to make as many extended trips as you possibly can.

I've seen too many people plan and prepare for many years to be ready to spend their retirement years on the road, only to have the reality of old age come and wreck everything.

One of our very close family friends had spent the first few years of retirement building an awesome custom bus to live out their traveling dream. After he'd finished it they sold their house and bought a cheap small bush block with a shed to fall back on. They did one test run in the bus for a couple of months when he fell ill. He is now invalid and can't move from bed to bathroom without assistance. They had no choice but to live in the shed and sell the beloved bus.

Our family choose to live without a lot of lives luxuries and put our money into as much travel as we can.
We are planning to give our kids a year off school between primary and secondary school and do a long slow lap. We figure we can do heaps more in our mid 40's then we possible could do in our mid 60's or 70's.

I agree with you that selling everything to live your final years on the road is a huge risk.

                                    Sad...but this is a possibility....... all situations are different

                                                               Cheers Tracker.

[LB]

I have done my appox average weekly figures (this is based on todays figures so of course that will change)

Petrol - $150
Food  - $150
C/P    - $200 (assuming 1 or 2 nights free camping on average)
Misc   - $300 (eating out tourist stuff buffer)

$800 per week $41600 per year the other $13400 covers insurance eg health, house, cars, ultilityies and rates on the base home with a emergency buffer.

Would love to have more and we may but that that's the current projection on a super/retirement funds so I know we can do it and anything on top is some overseas trips as well.

We do travel and hope to do a lot more between now and retirement but that is just our retirement plan.

[Swannie]

$55k I'll need that monthly to fund my retirement
Swannie

[Pete79]

I have done my appox average weekly figures (this is based on todays figures so of course that will change)

Petrol - $150
Food  - $150
C/P    - $200 (assuming 1 or 2 nights free camping on average)
Misc   - $300 (eating out tourist stuff buffer)

$800 per week $41600 per year the other $13400 covers insurance eg health, house, cars, ultilityies and rates on the base home with a emergency buffer.

Would love to have more and we may but that that's the current projection on a super/retirement funds so I know we can do it and anything on top is some overseas trips as well.

We do travel and hope to do a lot more between now and retirement but that is just our retirement plan.

I have a really detailed spreadsheet that my sister (the economics major) put together to budget her year on the road. From what I remember it's extremely detailed...

Let me know if you want it and I'll try and dig it out and send via PM.

[Bird]

I also say think about what industry your in.. Hitting the road for 3-4 yrs maybe appealing, but coming back to no home, no money, no job and no industry that you work in would take it in the choco star for sure.

[LB]

I also say think about what industry your in.. Hitting the road for 3-4 yrs maybe appealing, but coming back to no home, no money, no job and no industry that you work in would take it in the choco star for sure.

I agree, that's why we plan short trips now and the long ones on retirement so as not to have those issues.

[rossm]

I guess I am one of those people who could become a nomad.

Retired, single, income from superannuation to allow me to travel (particularly if I rented my house while I was on the road).

But there are lots of buts.

You hear lots of stories about how great the lifestyle is. But does  anybody who has made a decision they regret ever admit it?

I would never not have a home to go back to. I hear stories, some of them anecdotal I know, of people who have sold everything for life on the road and find themselves basically homeless when circumstances change, money and health being two major ones.

Living in a caravan park or bush camp somewhere in the outback  waiting for the next pension cheque to buy some fuel to move on or have the car repaired may sound extreme but it's a possibility.

I heard a story years ago from a guy who happened upon an older couple in a bush camp on the WA coast. The guy was very ill and his wife was unable to drive the car and caravan. They had no family and no one they could call for help.

The stortyteller's wife was a nurse and realised the man needed urgent medical attention and fortunately she could also drive. They hooked up the van and delivered the couple to the nearest hospital.   All they could do. Extreme example maybe, but I guess you have to plan for the worst.

So I'll be keeping my house and travelling when I can until age  catches up with me.                 

[wakychapmans]

short answer - IN A SECOND...


longer answer - well let's see now. I'm 52. The missus is 40. No kids. 1 puppy.

Before the GFC... we were planning to buy a house in the Blue Mountains. Post GFC... yeh... not so much. Both our full time day jobs and wages took a hammering. It probably set us back a good solid 10 to 15 years.

As things stand now, we'll be luck to afford a shack in an outback/remote town.

Becoming a Grey (working) Nomad is probably the only choice we have. A home base may (eventually) be an option with our combined Super... or maybe not. But I'm not going to wait until I retire to escape the daily grind. We both want to see the country together and we're happy to work to do it...

We're hoping to do a McGirr in the next few years. Before that can happen though, we've got some bills and loans to clean up. Then we will be out of here.

I've lived and worked on the road before, I did a 2.5 year "big lap" back in 92-94 on the bicycle. Working and travelling.

[chester ver2.0]

yes i could give most of it up
buuuut
i would be buying an apartment and renting it out before i hit the road so i have a fall back position

[LB]

yes i could give most of it up
buuuut
i would be buying an apartment and renting it out before i hit the road so i have a fall back position

My thoughts exactly. I figure that maybe I would consider downsizing sooner and using the excess money to start retirement early (closer to 60 then the current 67). Worst case scenario you can as a couple live quite well on a modest super and part pension if you own your own home. Little different if you are renting.

[Alan Loy]

Having just retired this is a real question for us.  But being "us" I can't see it happening.  My view is I have a window of opportunity untill there are grandchildren, then who knows.

I agree that having a house you own is essential for an easy retirement, but it doesn't have to be in a major capital city.  If you sell in a Capital city then it will be hard to buy back in (unless the property crash people are talking about happens)

[Wunderlust]

We are on the road and a few things spring to mind. We didn't want to leave it too late (I am 41 and the missus is 37 along with a nine year old) and just took the plunge. I have up on a really really well paying job with lots of benefits but it wasn't what I wanted to do or be. I could easily have continued down that route until I retired and then? Anyway once we decided to make the plan a reality, the hard work began. We tried to sell the house but eventually rented it out (we wanted to sell as we were sure we wanted to live somewhere else). Both have the pros and cons - in a way it's a good thing as we have somewhere to go back to in a year or so.

We are now three months into our adventure and in Broome after leaving Perth. The house rent covers the mortgage and a little bit of extra money. We have just secured a house sit for a few weeks which saves us some $ in caravan parks. I had budgeted on about $65k a year.

The biggest expenses are accomodation and fuel by far. Where possible we do the cheaper bush camping (the WikiCamps app is invaluable for the latest prices and reviews) but sometimes caravan parks are really the only options. With fuel we do try and use fuel map to find the cheapest diesel anda when is expensive between stops we have a couple of Jerry cans.

It is surprising how the costs add up quickly especially for the big one offs. Still have to pay for insurances, private health cover, mobile phones etc monthly.

The big expenses have been the car servicing and a few repairs along the way in the car and caravan (inevitable really) plus some of the tourist trips (or traps) and additional stuff. As a guide I budgeted for 50,000km at an average consumption of 23l per 100km at 1.50 average - so far not too far off the mark. Camping was split into free (30% of the time), DPAW (30%), Caravan parks (30%) and 10% in cheap motel / hotel it required because we get sick or stranded.

We don't eat out much and cook mostly ourselves. This saves $. Ooh and alcohol is also a big expense, but that's is entirely voluntarily.

[Rumpig]

Back in 2006 I got to chatting my to an older lady whilst we were relaxing in the swimming pool of the Weipa Caravan Park whilst on a Cape York trip. This lady was telling me how she funded her travels by renting out the downstairs half of her Sydney home, and had the upstairs seperate and locked as her own place of residence...so gets to keep the house but still gets a rental income from it. I reckoned this is a great idea, something I will consider doing in the future myself, as there's no way I'll sell up everything to travel. We did a lot of trips when our kids were young and we had no issues taking them out of school for 5 weeks to do so, but now our eldest is well into high school it's time to think about her future and big trips are off the cards for a while now, but that's just the stage off life we are currently at...looking forward to when the kids move out or are atleast old enough to stay at home for several weeks on their own...lol

[edz]

Quite frankly, If it all turns to Shite, I could comfortably be like this guy .http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-20/on-the-trail-of-michael-tarzan-fomenko/7858784 .

[UIZ733]

.looking forward to when the kids move out or are atleast old enough to stay at home for several weeks on their own...lol

Party time! 

[GeoffA]

....looking forward to when the kids move out or are at least old enough to stay at home for several weeks on their own...lol

Hey, that's us....

[Steffo1]

The thing that I would be worried about with the "After Retirement" plan is having the physical capabilities to get to significant areas that require walking/climbing/coordination. I have come across a lot of Nomads during my travels who can claim they have been to A, B or C but, in reality, they have only been to the van parks there & haven't seen the surrounding sites.
Go while you can do things.
Steve

[trinityalyce]

The thing that I would be worried about with the "After Retirement" plan is having the physical capabilities to get to significant areas that require walking/climbing/coordination. I have come across a lot of Nomads during my travels who can claim they have been to A, B or C but, in reality, they have only been to the van parks there & haven't seen the surrounding sites.
Go while you can do things.
Steve

This is my take on it. After losing my father - who worked a hard live on a dairy farm - and watching him grow older by the day in retirement... well, I decided life is too short. He never made it to the Kimberley, so I'll go for him while I'm still young enough to enjoy it because he never got the chance.

The older generation believed in working hard to save for later... but what is that worth when you can't enjoy it? A friend's father had similar plans to my Dad - wait until retirement, then travel and relax. Reality for him was that he ended up with rapidly progressive dementia and also never had the chance.

Don't be stupid about it - don't risk everything just for the sake of having a good time. But that said, we only get one shot at life. You can't take your money to the grave and your boss won't care that you sacrifice your whole life at work. Live a good live, one that you enjoy and can be proud of. Work hard, and enjoy the fruits of your labour when you can and you're still fit enough to appreciate it. Don't wait around forever for the "what ifs" and "maybes" because perhaps those days won't come...

I would never sell everything to go travel. No way. Especially not in retirement. Our plans are to travel some of the more remote and "risky" places now and on the cheap, when we can between working. Retirement will be about taking it easier, not putting our health and finances on the line to chase dreams we should have pursued now. I think when I retire I'll deserve a bit of luxury... Might even get a passport and see Europe. I imagine it'll still be there.

[SEADOO]

When we lived in Darwin, we met a nice elderly couple and started chatting.

They lived down south and every year for 4 months, there was a group of them that met some where, and they all traveled north for the winter, then went home a different way.

All happy home owners with their vegie patch and rose bushes, but they had the security of a home base.

I couldn't live in a van for 12 months or so, I reckon 4-6 months traveling, then at home doing the daily crossword, work on the hot rod in the shed and have an arvo snooze every day.

[mumbls]

Interesting read. We're planning to travel in the next 6-8 months. We've put the money saved for our house deposit into a van (some left to start with) and will be travelling this great country, we will work as we go. I'm 42 and my wife is 45 and we've 2 kids (10 + 12) coming with us. Short reason why. I've come to the conclusion that life is really way too short. I have a minor heart condition (that will be operated on shortly) and my body is starting to fail from a couple of accidents i have had. I also watched my father work his arse off, only to fully retire and find he had terminal cancer. He was all set to do all the things he had planned for years. It didn't happen, not fair.

We wont own a house, don't really want one anymore. Home is where we are, not what we own. For us to own a home I would need to bump up my hours and my wife would need to work full time. Not going to happen. My kids need us (I want to experience them go up), not a baby sitter.  This not for everyone, I know that. But, for us, it is.

Will this choice cause me problems later in life? Maybe, who knows. I will cross that bridge as i need.     

[carlyle]

We are also planning to do it while young (37 & 35 with 3 kids under 12). I have worked hard though to get us to a point where we can and still keep our house and occupation to come back to. I think we might find it surprising how many "Silver Streak Nomads" we end up bumping into along the way with more and more of our generation seeing the hard work our parents went through to reach retirement and not fulfil their dreams.

We did consider selling up but I think you need the security of something to come back to if something goes wrong. The cost of getting in and out of houses these days is too much.