I got kicked out of my house, I’m 19FTM, had 2k in my savings and spent half on a 2002 ford explorer that I’m going to covert into my temporary home. Don’t worry, I have a good and stable job so my savings is still good and continues to grow as I’ve already started, I’m planning to maybe document my journey somewhere online.

Without getting into to many details, me, my partner, and our small dog will soon be living out of our vehicle. I’m trying to maintain a positive outlook on this, telling myself this is just a new adventure we all get to experience together. But I am a good bit nervous, in all honesty. Right now I’m in preparation mode, trying to pack and gather everything we’re going to need, I’ve got the basics down, like blankets, pillows, first aid kit, clothes, but I’m terrified I’m going to forget something important or overlook something essential. So please, lend some advice and tips! It would be greatly appreciated!,🖤

Living in a car forever, maybe as a necessity, but also as a philosophy?

I'm about a week away from being homeless. I have some money to pay cheap rent, but can't find a rental.

But it recently dawned on me: why pay rent at all, if I can live in my car? For me, a safe home is anything with walls that provide some protection. I don't consider a tent to be a safe home, but it can be a home.

So for me, not renting (I have no chance of every buying a property) is a philosophy. This means I don't need to work all the time just to pay rent, and I won't be tied down to one place forever. I have no one depending on me, so it is an easier decision than if I had to look after someone who is also living in the car.

Of course, if I won the lotto, then that changes everything-but in that case I will buy an RV and travel for life.

Has anyone ever seriously considered and decided to live in a car forever, and never pay rent again?

https://kcra.com/article/2-people-found-dead-in-u-haul-sacramento/63627176

i dont mind stealth camping at night, its honestly during the day that really gets to me. been doing hotels during the deep freeze here but im ready to get back out camping. i had no idea the state parks left like 30 sites and one shower house open at a lot of the parks, $5 cheaper too then the summer time! shower, electricity for a blanket, and in areas i can make good $ doordashing and walking dogs, things are lookin up.

I have all 4 windows rolled down with my window screens on them, use cooling sheets, sleep in very little, have two small 8hr rechargeable fans blowing on me and I take cold showers right before bedtime. I’ve looked into portable battery powered AC units but it’s just not feasible for me trying to find a power source to recharge it everyday. Anything more I can do?

For now, I unfortunately live in the south and can’t migrate north for the cooler nighttime temps during the summer.

This is a repost-I quickly deleted the other thread. I got 3 replies with the other thread, but I had accidentally forgotten to post with an account I specifically created for posting about being homeless (which is this account). Apologies to the 3 people who replied-perhaps you can just copy and post your replies into this one. 😊

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I have a small car (hatchback), and will live in it when I can. I also have a tent, and will use that if I can't live in the car, for whatever reason.

People have been telling me to get a van, so I can store more things, including a mattress. But I think a van draws too much attention, and parking is more problematic than a compact car. With the car, i can park on a suburban street, and blend in with the other cars, and not get noticed (and harassed) like a van would.

I will have window shades for the back windows, and sleep on the back seat, or fold the back seat down and sleep with a part of my body in the boot.

What are your opinions about this?

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If you thinking about what gym to join consider ymca . It’s perfect for our kind of lifestyle 👌 Now .not all ymca showers are like this

I saw this video and want to try it out soon: https://youtu.be/6VyUPS3hKBE?si=38TqaVuWvPpokEJE

Has anyone used a similar method? Maybe some folks can split the cost of a cartoon of eggs with me. 😂 I'm looking for more creative ways to make food and reduce my food spending right now.

Feel free to post other things or ways to cook that might help folks looking to expand/improve their diet without the use of a traditional kitchen.

Hello my name is Riot (22F). I was stalking this community because I knew my time would come and behold; its my first night and it’s taking a lot out of me, mentally, to wrap my head around this new life style. Tonight I’m sleeping in a parking lot and I don’t have enough for window shades yet and I guess I’m just in shock. If I can make some friends to talk to about this experience & other shit that’ll be cool.

Hello everyone hope you're all doing well, I plan on living in my car full time soon but I worry about the summer heat that's coming, I live in the UAE and summers here are brutal and have a lot of humidity, what can I do about this? What do you recommend i buy to fight the heat and be ready for the summer? Any suggestions are appreciated 🌹

edit* thank you for the comments, i was planning on getting a power station and a solar panel for this and connect a fan or two to it. i can't get another car since i got my current one a month ago and i'm not renting an apartment, i can't afford it right now nor moving out the country. the plan is morning->library, noon->gym, and night->sleep in a shaded area. really, heat is the only thing bothering me and i hope i can get through. guess all i have to do is endure it.

I'm feeling a bit down and discouraged atm so to get my mind off my own shit.... how's everyone doing? how's the weather were you're at? anything exciting going on or coming up?

I'm so fucking sick of this Country especially this shiny bleached anus of a City. It's unbelievable to be treated and herded away like some disgusting insect in the place youve lived for almost 25 years. And for what? I work 40+ hour full time, pay my bills on time, and do my taxes. My car is brand spanking new registered and insured. So I'm good enough to cook or deliver you food but Lord forbid I take a nap for a few hours after a 16 hour shift. You're going to arrest me for surviving?

Sure theres a few houpdis with a trash bag.over a window that got to go the store as soon as a cop comes, a few odd balls who (like me) may got some mental issues going on, as well as few that are older or ill on disability, everyone no matter our individual circumstance all seemed to be doing what they needed to do to. No one seemed to be in despair, or be made to feel like they were anything less than human. I found it impressive that without ever formally establishing a community or making rules, we all just synced in and stayed on our best behavior because it's nice to not have to shuffle to find a new spot to sleep every night. See familiar faces even if youve.never met. I used to always park alone keeping three spots on either side of me. Anyone who parked closer to a dweller was usually a NIMBY trying to bully us into moving.

Sucks. dwellers locals or visitors have ALWAYS gone to Frias Park. Once in awhile we getRv's, even semis just.passing through. Close to everything most open 24 hours. 2021 id say maybe fifteen was the average of overnight stays. Last night that number had to be close to 30 if not 40 cuz people come and go all the time. Charlie Frias definitely had the best vibe in the whole city. Im going back in an hour with a megaphone with my car parked across the street and giving anyone who'll listen some choice words.

We don't blare loud music, or leave a mess in the parking lot. Ive seen no No one being drug stopped no arrests. Only one tow.

A lot of street homeless were there too and last night on my walk before bed i noticed a influx of trash.scattered over the park Carts blankets shoes stuff everywhere. Now i realize that they mustve been herded out the day before and were most likely got crueler treatment which makes me very sad.

Im frustrated but not surprised. Car dwellers especially here in Vegas should be provided a few.spots of land just for us. But no they' just build more lodging no.one can afford. Fuck u Vegas.

Also Fuck Nimbys and their dirty looks and turns up noses. I know the real reason they don't want car dwellers us around, because they don't want a reminder of how close they are to becoming one of us. My car is 550 a month that's a lot cheaper than paying 3k+ to stay on a sinking ship. I'll continue to do servixe.work for th homeless, addicts, and felons until I save up enough then im blowing this popsicle stand!!

Sorry.for the long post.

Hello all, so i have a Model 3 (used)...saved up 3 months for the down payment & i've been looking into living in it. I have a 3 inch cot rollable matress that fits perfectly with the larger side of the backseats down. Ok i'll get to it, i slept in it for about 3hrs while it charged i had the air set to 68f (48f outside). I woke up & my mouth/nasal passage really dry to the point where i felt like i was kinda suffocating. It wasn't a breathing issue it was more that it was really dry & it hurt. Was there something i did wrong? The matress wasn't completely flat i'd say it had about a 10% angle. Any suggestions are welcome.

for starters, im 20 and i have a little car and no where to go. i just dont know what to do. where do i start? i live in LI ny (trying not to be super specific lol just curious for parking situations) so its super cold right now & my heat sucks. what do i do for that, for parking, for privacy? for food. im just so scared.. especially as a woman im really concerned about my safety im just worried about everything lol🥲 ive never done this so.. where do i even start? i also work full time & go to college as well.

how far out are your rotation locations from eachother? are your locations a considerable distance from eachother? also, while i’m making this post. do you have a fairly complicated rotation schedule to keep people from catching on?

Im not talking about a pilot or a loves truck stop. i mean the government ones on the sides of highways.
We usually sleep at those, and im curious if say Cleveland ohio imposes a ban on sleeping in your car, a public rest area shoudn't be affected, right? currently (at least here) theres a part for truckers to sleep and a place for cars to park and sleep. cops patrol the rest stops and if someone is there for like 3 consecutive 8 hour chunks, like sundown, sun up, sundown again, cops will "check on you" but they wont necessarily even ask you to leave.

Hi! So the reason for me to start living in my car is... I need a job. I do not want to get into the specifics but I had a health issue why I stopped working for over half a year.

I did not get government help because is mostly centered about people who has kids or stuff got to a no return point and I refuse my life to get there...

So in order to work and eventually thrive again, I will be living in my car. In Ireland.

Any advise welcomed. I have a hatchback, with an inflatable mattress, a 0 degree sleeping bag and a small electric source. I will use a gym for showers.

I am afraid they will discover this at my job and I lose it. Also I get scared of electric storms (I know the wind is more dangerous but one gets scared most of what one is scared of most).

So any advice from people who have jobs and live in their cars?

If you are sleeping in your car (unseen), and someone knocks, are you obligated to answer?

EDIT: For clarity, let's say you're parked at night, at a 24 hour gym in your rotation. So you are not breaking any parking laws (I think, so probably no towing), and you and your car have no outstanding warrants.

Hello all, I am a documentary film student at Cal State Northridge in Los Angeles. A classmate and I are interested to making an observational style documentary short about those who live in vehicles in the Los Angeles area for a class project. We are hoping to find someone interested in being the main subject of the film. We understand that there are a variety of factors that may create a situation where people are living in their vehicles. We would like to explore these factors and present any obstacles the subject may face or perspectives that the subject may have. We aim to create a piece that offers insight to the reality of urban car living and the subject will be consulted throughout the process on the manner in which they are depicted. Shooting will likely occur for a maximum of two days and the subject will be provided with food on shoot days and will be given some financial compensation for their time. If you are staying in the San Fernando Valley or greater Los Angeles area and are interested please message me and I will provide further details within the next few days. If this forum is not the proper channel to discuss this project I offer my apologies and please disregard this post. Thank you for your time.

You thought you got "the knock", but funny thing was it was really...

1.Drunk lady smashing so hard into my tailgate she bent her bicycle wheel

2. Frat bro getting head from stripper moaning "this is all I every wanted out of life"

3.Entire swat team surrounding vehicle to roll on some suspects house at 4 am....was not bothered...lmao

Heart racing full speed upon waking up unexceptectedly is the worst

What's the craziest shit that woken you up? (Also have had 3 separate attempted break-ins over 2 years)

Edit: Thank you to whoever posted the picture of the deer waking them up and inspiring this thread. (That pic brought back a lot of memories)

I need some advice. I’m not sure this is the right sub, but I want to start somewhere. I started lurking in this sub because one of my B-i-L’s has started living in his SUV.

He’s a veteran and has severe PTSD. He doesn’t work but gets VA benefits and a small VA disability income. He’s an amazing man when he’s not drowning in his depths. I’m pretty sure he’s not drinking/using. I think he’s most likely Bipolar. His swings go on for months, occasionally more than a year before he starts sliding in the opposite direction.

Currently I’m the only family he communicates with, this is his choice. I know offering to help him out financially (apt/food/whatever) isn’t something he’d want. I don’t want to offend him, drive him away, etc. However, I inherited a small cabin in the Ohio Appalachian area last summer. It has electric and water. He loves the outdoors. I don’t know how to offer him this place. I thought about telling him when he’s tired of urban dwelling and aimlessly nomading, he’s welcome to park his suv and camp there. Permanently, but that’s up to him. Any ideas on how to broach this subject with him?