Birddogman wrote:

I would agree that a 40’ DP with slides would be the way to go – the only way as far as I am concerned. I would not presume to advise you as to what particular brand/model, other than to say that you get what you pay for and better, is, well… better. Getting the right floor plan for you and your wife is perhaps the most important thing. Remember you will need a toad, as well.

You will save money by buying used, but if you plan to use the RV for a long time, you might want to give some thought to buying new. If you are going to keep the coach until it is essentially worn out, depreciation ceases to be an issue and you will KNOW that all of the maintenance has been done properly because you will have done it yourself. That was essentially our rationale, in addition to having made a truly stunning deal for cash when the RV market was at its bottom. We are probably good for 15 more years of RV travel before we get too old – I figure our coach, bought brand new in 2008, will last that long. After that, I don’t care.

But, I think you are focusing on the wrong thing by focusing on the vehicle, rather than the fact that you’d be living in campgrounds!

For me the reality of fulltiming - living in campgrounds - is too terrible to contemplate. We live way back in the sticks, in a wonderful home we built to perfectly suit our unique needs and desires. We are about as self-sufficient as people can be in this modern world. We have our own huge automatic generator system for when the power goes down, our own well, plenty of land to farm, lots of game, we heat with wood cut on our place, etc, etc. I can run my dogs, hunt, fish, shoot, ride or do just about anything else I want without ever leaving my own place and without anyone able to impose their rules on me or otherwise try to tell me how to live my life.

Campgrounds are crowded places with all of the countless onerous rules needed when you have so many people living cheek-to-jowl in such limited space. Many non-resort campgrounds seemed to be packed with people who are not there by choice – sad for them, but I’ve worked my whole life so I don’t have to live in a slum (mobile or otherwise). Plus, there seem to be a large number of people with nothing better to do than to wander around the campground looking to meet their new best friend and they will “visit” you on your site to regale you for hours with tales of their latest medical procedures, grandchildren, etc – and what are you going to do – say “Excuse me, I’m heading home now?” You are trapped. On weekends, campgrounds seem to fill with people who are there for their one big blow-out of the year, with lots of noise, loud music, drunken behavior, etc – all 10’ from your front door.

This week I’m doing a seminar in Hershey, PA, on federal death tax for tax lawyers. I decided to take the MH, so the dogs could go with me. I am “camped” at Hershey Highmeadows campground – a very well regarded place – and am crammed into a tiny site with hundreds of other people - all of whom seem to be on raucous party-hardy vacations – see pic.



It’s much better than staying in a hotel, and the MH itself is totally comfortable in every way, but I would never want to spend the rest of my life living in campgrounds like this one – I’d rather live here, where I don’t need to even see another person if I don’t want to:



Having a regular home, a MH makes a great way to travel, especially if you can avoid campgrounds (usually I am “camping” in remote places in the west for upland bird hunting). It also makes a good way to visit kids (because you can take your “home” with you and go back to your own “home” when you’ve had enough visiting). Having both a nice, well equipped, home and an nice RV to go wherever you want, whenever you want and for as long as you want is, to my mind anyway, the best of both worlds. The MH is totally comfortable to live in for extended periods; and I'd rather live in my MH than in any urban or suburban setting, but barring complete financial disaster, I would never choose to live fulltime in it.

To me (and I know there are those who will disagree), the only reason to fulltime is financial. It is certainly less costly to just live in a MH than to own and use both a regular home and a MH.

travlinjayco wrote:

This is a very serious consideration for my wife and myself. We have raised our kids, live in a fairly large space, space we do not need or keep cool or warm. We have 8 kids together, scattered all over the United States. We are seriously considering living in a class A, being able to take off for which ever state that the kid begs the most. lol

We would like feed back on your experiences. Brands that seem reliable more than others. How loud is the interior with generator running, both diesel pusher and gas coach. We will be looking at used, noting condition of coach, how well kept and maintained. I have read the first buyer post and learned a lot. What I would like is personal experiences with engine choice, problems or brags on your experience. We will be looking in the 40 ft. range, since considering it our home, we are early 60's. We will probably look at slideouts as a preference if we make the well thought out decision to call it home. I know there are some who have tried the living route and may have major complaints, and then some who love it. Please comment on anything you want to say. Hope to get a lot of feed back on any subject. Thanks to all , help make our decision a more informed one, God Bless, Jerry and Colleen