I’m sure at this point most people know that it’s incredibly difficult to get by on your own.
If there’s anyone here that hasn’t been able to make friends or find a teammate to lower the costs of living, I’d love to hear your story.
I’m going on my 5th year living in a car. I love my jobs and I have good opportunities here, but I’d need to basically double my income to afford the average rent.
The amount of money I’ve been able to put away gets me closer towards having a place of my own, but I worry that by the time I can afford something, I’ll be old and alone and it will have all been for nothing.
How do you manage to have a whole life if you don’t have anyone?
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How do you live in a car? In a city?
Wouldn’t you be better off camping in a tent somewhere?
If you’re actively working (multiple jobs?), and still can’t afford a place, you really need to consider finding a lower cost area instead of futilely saving to buy there.
When you say "closer towards having a place of my own", do you mean a down payment on a house? The full purchase price of a house? Or something like "security deposit, and first and last month’s rent"?
I am not now, but have lived in my car for a few months before.
The easiest way is by moving somewhere cheap.
I was living in a car by choice for years, when I had enough of it I went to rural Pennsylvania and got a entry level job at a Chewy warehouse making $20 an hour, and had my own apartment within a month cuz rent is like $600 a month out here.
And using Reddit on a device and all, ya know in your car. I don’t think too many in here are homeless or they would not be online.
Live in a cheaper place, your in Europe? Find a location that is way cheaper.
How do you use the bathroom, shower. How do you manage when is below freezing or well over 90f/32c. Couldn’t you find a roommate situation on Craigslist or something. I can’t imagine living in my car for a month much less 5 years.
You must spend a fortune on eating out
OP, I’m confused by your approach to your finances, and I say this as someone with a fair bit of living in a car and living with a ton of roommates experience.
If you prefer living in your car then by all means, go with God, but if you’d like to have an apartment or a house (or even an RV trailer? ) there are ways you could do that now if you’re willing to move.
If you are wedded to your high cost of living area in which you have no friends to split a house with, then I’m also kinda confused. Wishing you the best.
Stay strong! You’re making the dream come true. It’s not easy, but you are seen and valued.
I assume you are in the United States in a high cost of living place like Los Angeles or New York. Is that right?
I’m also guessing you are working multiple minimum wage jobs like food service or retail.
I’ve never been without a house/apartment. If I was living out of my car working multiple jobs, then I would try to find one job which pays significantly more per hour. You need at least enough to get an apartment. Then you are more likely to find a romantic partner.
What valuable skills do you have that would allow you to do that? What skills/credentials can you get which let you get there?
If you can’t afford your own place can you not find a roommate? Even if you don’t have friends to share a place you could probably find someone looking for a roommate. Sure it’s scary rooming with strangers but that’s why you check out places until you find a person that has decent vibes. I’d rather live with a roommate than in my car.
Edit: wanted to add. Sure maybe I’d live in my car for a few months if I’m desperate. But 5 yrs in a car? Surely there have been other options within that time.
I try and be optimistic but if you’re working more than one job to scrape enough to live in your car, that seems like an untenable situation. You need either better jobs or to live someplace else.
Dudes will literally live in a car for 5 years instead of just driving to a low COL area
If you have multiple jobs and need to live in a car you don’t have good opportunities.
Where does OP live like Silicon Valley?
>I’d need to basically double my income to afford the average rent.
Do what I did, and get a place with rent below average.
You should move to a cheaper part of the country and try to work remote or get a new job in the part of the county you move to.
Or ask for a significant raise
Multiple jobs +
5 years +
still living in car +
worried won’t even achieve option to live not in car until old
———- =
You’re not doing this right.
I would be living in my car if it weren’t for a good friend letting me stay at his place. The job market is absolutely brutal right now.
I did it for a few weeks when I was 18. Do not recommend.
Not quite, but on the verge
When I was very young, after graduating high school, I got room mates and made ends meet off 8 dollars an hour part time with 0 support from my family. Room mates are the solution.
I am 50, now medically retired, and divorced after my now ex husband said he could “no longer handle all your medical issues.” I was still able to work at the time, but 16 months later I had to accept going off work. I used to make mid six figures, but that was only for a few years after making a good 6 figure salary for many years. I didn’t save much – I was always helping family, or supporting my now ex. I currently live in my 35’ Class A motorhome, while I await disability determination, and while my case is absolutely cut and dry (average about 85 days in patient past several years) I haven’t worked since January of 23. Thank god I have private disability insurance, or I would be completely fucked. It guarantees 60% of my pre disability salary, but sadly not bonuses – and 2/3 of my total comp was bonus based.
Upgrade to a van. Or storage unit.
With rent and price of housing living is a van/RV or a car isnt as looked down upon as it once was…. if you must have a "place" you may have to move in low COL area or state or find a way to earn more… or take risk with roommates.
One way I find friends is through online video games I play, or Facebook etc. groups relevant to my hobbies. You need to keep up with your social skills especially getting older as it will take deliberate effort to gain and maintain friendships as opposed to 20s etc.
I dont really understand the question about managing life without anyone… you have you that can be enough.
I live in a vehicle 300+ days a year, I don’t really consider myself homeless though.
> living in a car.
Your own? It runs?
Let me put it this way. I did double my income since I started in my career path. I also have been doing it for a decade and a half. I’m pretty good at what I do, and during Covid my hourly income increased by about 50 percent. That’s cause a lot of my coworkers left and I took up their jobs and asked for an increase in pay to match. Because there were less mouths to feed, my employer was okay with that. When I eventually switched jobs, my next employer was happy to pay that to start, and instead of seasonal work, it was full time, and essentially resulted in not a doubling but a tripling of my annual salary. This is not normal. It takes a lot of determination and you have to be willing to take work out from under others you might think deserve it more.
I guess you also have to ask yourself if you want to plan your life around some moonshot of an idea that puts the rest of your life on hold for a hypothetical? I made it to where I wanted to, but let me tell you: when I got there, I felt like I wasted ten years of my life not being able to do anything because I was basically hibernating for the sake of said hypothetical.
How about an RV with a permanent camp spot? They exist in my area.
Might be a stepping stone
Time to find a lower cost of living place to live and time to move from jobs to a career. As someone who has a few friends who have lived this lifestyle, who are now pushing 60, this is not sustainable.
Holy shit 5 years? That’s fucking nuts.
Where the hell are you that it’s so expensive? LA? Just doesn’t seem worth it to live in a fucking car for 5 years. I live in a HCOL area, not as bad as LA, but one of the highest in my state. I get how you could end up living in a car for a bit, but 5 years? That’s crazy.
I’ve never lived in a car, but I’ve had to couch surf friends places for a bit and that sucked.
I just can’t wrap my head around why you would want to live in an area you very obviously can’t afford. 5 years in your car? That area isn’t for you. Drive your ass to a small rural town, rent a room from someone with your savings, and set down roots. You have 49 states to pick from. I’m sure you’ll find somewhere you like. Colorado, Florida, Arizona, Tennessee, Washington, Oregon, Georgia, all pretty cool fucking states to live in with affordable rural communities outside of the big over priced cities.
5 years living in a car bro wtf are you talking about – drive the car somewhere else my guy
I’ve thought about trying this just because I see no need to pay rent. I have my office that I can stay in indefinitely, am allowed to park overnight in my work parking lot (on campus, I work in higher ed) and the rec center is next door where I can shower and exercise free in the morning.