Love your van? Live in it then
It’s summer time. When the skies are blue, there are seas to swim in and fields to skip through, the day to day grind starts to lose its point - why exactly do we spend more time commuting, working and paying bills then enjoying the fresh air?
If you’re not rolling your eyes and muttering about responsibilities, then you might want to investigate a phenomenon called #vanlife.
It’s one of those recent social media/lifestyle hybrids that twinkles with a whole new approach to living. With its roots in the US, it is essentially about people who have chosen not to pay today’s extortionate rent and instead, kitted out a van with a bed, mini kitchen and then either simply swapped it for their home, or taken to life on the road.
Although the concept of living in a van is bigger in the US, it’s taking off here too. Van Monster did some research into that great desk job escapism tool – google – and found that searches for ‘living in a van’ between January 2015 and January 2016 was 480. That was double the amount to the previous period. In the US, the number was 3,600.
Could you be at the cusp of this new way of life in the UK? Got to say it’s been going through my mind a little recently… I’ve done some research into what the pros and cons seem to be. Here are my top three:
PROS
The ability to save money. Stats shared by the Guardian last year showed that the average worker under 30 spends half their income on rent, with that figure being even higher in London. Not ideal when you’re trying to pay off that student debt and contemplate a house of your own. So living in a van could be the missing link between being perpetually skint and actually getting some savings together.
The chance to wake up with a sea view on a sunny day and start your day with a cup of tea on the beach.
The interesting people you’d get to meet. Living an alternative lifestyle you’d meet people that you don’t normally bump into when you’re putting the bins out or sitting at your desk.
CONS
I suspect that most of us have grown up knowing that when nature calls, there’s a toilet at home. That’s not the case when you have a van, and the same goes for having a wash in a shower or bath. It seems that ways that people get around this is by having a gym membership and using their facilities. Alongside this it’s a case of timing and using your imagination.
You might find yourself settling down for an evening in when a police officer comes and knocks on your door to tell you to move on. As far as I can tell, it’s not illegal to sleep in a van but it’s not necessarily going to make you popular.
Safety. If you were to take this adventure on by yourself, there may well be some nights when the wind banging on the windows would you make you long for that ordinary life you once had.
If you want to make your mind up yourself, have a look at these stories about living in a van.
http://www.thedebrief.co.uk/news/real-life/meet-the-young-women-beating-the-housing-crisis-by-living-in-a-van-20160864383
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/04/24/vanlife-the-bohemian-social-media-movement
Or forget the dry list making approach and take a look at #vanlife. Then perhaps just toss a coin and do something crazy.
If you’re not rolling your eyes and muttering about responsibilities, then you might want to investigate a phenomenon called #vanlife.
It’s one of those recent social media/lifestyle hybrids that twinkles with a whole new approach to living. With its roots in the US, it is essentially about people who have chosen not to pay today’s extortionate rent and instead, kitted out a van with a bed, mini kitchen and then either simply swapped it for their home, or taken to life on the road.
Although the concept of living in a van is bigger in the US, it’s taking off here too. Van Monster did some research into that great desk job escapism tool – google – and found that searches for ‘living in a van’ between January 2015 and January 2016 was 480. That was double the amount to the previous period. In the US, the number was 3,600.
Could you be at the cusp of this new way of life in the UK? Got to say it’s been going through my mind a little recently… I’ve done some research into what the pros and cons seem to be. Here are my top three:
PROS
The ability to save money. Stats shared by the Guardian last year showed that the average worker under 30 spends half their income on rent, with that figure being even higher in London. Not ideal when you’re trying to pay off that student debt and contemplate a house of your own. So living in a van could be the missing link between being perpetually skint and actually getting some savings together.
The chance to wake up with a sea view on a sunny day and start your day with a cup of tea on the beach.
The interesting people you’d get to meet. Living an alternative lifestyle you’d meet people that you don’t normally bump into when you’re putting the bins out or sitting at your desk.
CONS
I suspect that most of us have grown up knowing that when nature calls, there’s a toilet at home. That’s not the case when you have a van, and the same goes for having a wash in a shower or bath. It seems that ways that people get around this is by having a gym membership and using their facilities. Alongside this it’s a case of timing and using your imagination.
You might find yourself settling down for an evening in when a police officer comes and knocks on your door to tell you to move on. As far as I can tell, it’s not illegal to sleep in a van but it’s not necessarily going to make you popular.
Safety. If you were to take this adventure on by yourself, there may well be some nights when the wind banging on the windows would you make you long for that ordinary life you once had.
If you want to make your mind up yourself, have a look at these stories about living in a van.
http://www.thedebrief.co.uk/news/real-life/meet-the-young-women-beating-the-housing-crisis-by-living-in-a-van-20160864383
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/04/24/vanlife-the-bohemian-social-media-movement
Or forget the dry list making approach and take a look at #vanlife. Then perhaps just toss a coin and do something crazy.
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