One Year Full-Time Family Budget

Are you thinking about this lifestyle? I remember this being the biggest question I had before we launched a year ago.

It is really true what they say, it can so different for everyone! However, I was determined to keep track of my finances in hopes it could help someone else. 

Here are the big things: 

⭐️RENT: $1043/ month

We bought the Adventure Membership through Thousand trails, and we also invested in 6 Lithium Batteries and 6 solar panels. 

We went out west (Wisconsin, South Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Utah...) and there are not make Thousand Trails so we did pay for campgrounds and also boondocked some. 

It will save you a lot of money if you can figure out your style of travel before you invest in these. We enjoy both! So here is what I'm finding, when you are on the East Coast, there are a lot more Thousand Trails. When you are in the West there is more BLM land you can boondock on. 

⭐️FUEL: $602/ month

We averaged moving about 1x per week. The average diesel price was about $3.50/ gallon. We also haul a 20,000 lb Toyhauler. So again, this could definitely vary from family to family. 

 I didn't include was propane, and cost of wood if you do fires. Depending on the month I believe the cost was around $50-75/ month, but we also host a lot of fires ;-) 

Another thing to consider is repairs and maintenance. For example, our 2021 Dually fuel filter and oil change is about $350. 

⭐️Entertainment: $415/month 

Remember, there really is so much out there to do for free! In our first year we definitely got into "vacation mode" more than we should have and its easy to do!  Some of our favorite free things to do were: 

-hiking

-visiting national parks 

-bike riding

-natural springs 

-museums 

-going to the pool 

What questions do you have questions about?