r/urbancarliving

If you've ever seen how expensive toilet paper and paper towels are, be thankful you don't have to buy them, or buy very much of it.

I use bath towels I buy from Target, as my paper towel and everything, because it's a cheap one-time purchase, And it catches everything. It's a lot less messy. Overall, no paper residue in your ride, and if you have a gym membership or your work has bathrooms, You get to use their TP and paper towels. Even if you have to buy either of those, it's dramatically less than if you had a full-blown apartment or house.

I have one job that is full time but 3 days a week and thinking of picking up a second job to speed up savings and also thinking it will help me spend less time in a vehicle since i spend my days off doing laundry and trying to find places to stay cool anyway. Just seeking any advice and if you have down this before, I would love to hear from you. Thanks in advance.

Think I want to start vanlife / car life but I only have a pickup truck no camper? Any advice on best places to park and where the most accepting place in the us to live like this is? I was thinking either California or Florida. As far as work I was planning on just finding retail and factory jobs. 1 major thing that’s leading me to do this is affordability and wanting to save up and pay off debts. And I just can’t for the life of me think of another effective way than cutting out the $1500+ that I’d be spending on rent! My truck I’ve spent months making sure it’s good changed all the parts so I’m thinking I’ll have atleast a few months to a year or longer of good use without major maintenance as I’ve done everything major from starter to alternator to water pump radiator and timing chain

Hello people of Reddit so I’m(23m) tired of my life as it is rn I live in a tiny town in California and I’m pretty broke but I really wanna leave and explore so I’m considering packing up and living in my car. So im just here to ask for advice and tips on car life. I’m debating trying to set up base in Sacramento or some other city. Is this plausible or should I just suck it up and be miserable in this small town

When you experience such a profound level of disconnection from all living life in a sense that I can not yet put into words when I came back into my body in any level of conscious form literally seeing an ant crawling near me made me almost cry beyond measure - every single form of life here is such an incalculable experience and creation beyond our conscious imagination we must go far beyond the programmed education and concepts of what reality is to even come close to grasping the immaculate beauty and meaning and true purpose for what we are actually here for and it made me sad how many souls before me did not yet get to touch that absolute bliss of being alive not by having but being here so immensely that they are able to find the beauty in all things

If all souls were touched by this divine feeling and state of consciousness it would be much like the final scenes of the movie Arrival in which wars were quite literally ended as the shared humanity within us all transcends the confines of the physical realm alone which allows the people to recognize themselves through others in ways that would reduce all conflict as the pain and suffering would be a like one to another all illusions shattered

I have to always anchor to this place so that I have the hope of the rest of the souls of the earth being able to journey to this point and place and remember who we are and why we are here beyond illusions like "The World Cup" and even more

Hello all,

I am really not sure what to do and the car life has a dare I say it "warm" feeling when it comes to stability. I am in my late 20's who has been with family due to cost of studio apartments. I am single so no one to impress or discuss potential living arrangements with. My family is leaving the state to be closer to another family member. They did not invite me and the house they are looking at only has room for them. I have never lived on my own and I have 2 jobs where I live. I am barely home as it is but I could look for a roommate type situation which I am not opposed to. The only thing stopping me from doing that is why pay for a room that I will hardly be at? I make decent money so why not just save it all and live out of the car? I am just nervous about parking and address issues. I typically travel/vacation by car so I use my vehicle to sleep / hangout / cook in, which makes it familiar to me. I have never been kicked out of somewhere but I fear that if I choose to do this. I have somewhat of a setup with how often I travel, would just need adjusting for full time living.

Can you guys give me some tips / tricks / ideas for what I may need to do this or should I consider the roommate option instead?

I currently have a small SUV so it would be tight but with the cash I save, I may be able to upgrade to a bigger SUV.

long story short got kicked out for a short period of time, am pretty much dead broke but have to live in my car for a few days. getting my paycheck in a few days then i can move in w one of my friends, while getting a new job i have lined up that pays better than my current one.
it feels really weird because i thought id be crying and in absolute pain getting kicked out, but this first day has just been so much fun. im normally cooped up in my room practically 24/7, especially after a bad breakup recently and losing my social groups, but today i went and did random things ive always wanted to but just was too lazy. i visited the river, walked the trail, went to the library, just sat at parks and enjoyed nature. i met new people too, and drank a bit with strangers and we did random stuff and worked out and talked about life. the only bad things are its really hard to get food because im broke, hard to start making more money, and really hard to sleep in my car. im just really restless and not even tired, its 3am as im writing this.
im very hopeful for my future, even if im only doing this for a week or so i feel like im going to learn a lot from this. if anyone has any advice for short term car living let me know, ive currently been walking around town to conserve gas, found spots i can charge my phone, get water, and use the bathroom 24/7, just need to get like $20-50 more dollars somehow so i can get a planet fitness membership to shower, do my laundry, and get basic hygeine for when my supplies run out. im most likely going to thug it out for the next 5 days, probably sell some of my old stuff, but any advice is appreciated. going to enjoy this short little journey

Edit:Thank you all so much for the tips and encouragement! I’m trying to go through all of the posts! Good luck and my best to everyone!!

Well, it’s officially on the calendar, the weekend I start car living. As a man of almost 50, a father of three (they live with their mom) and a dog owner, I’m completely ashamed and embarrassed. Every path I choose to take has led me to the to this point. I accept that but I’m still ashamed.
The two week countdown begins.

So this morning I got a knock on my window and a lady tells me that she knows for a fact that the cops have been called on me and so I should leave right now. She kept saying go right now.

This was a good samaritan. I was so flustered I drove off in my underwear. Was so happy to get out of there before cops arrived.

Important to note that in my country it's not illegal to sleep in our cars or anything like that. So the fact that this happened to me in the neighborhood that I actually lived in for several years as well.. in a spot that I don't even go to very often and I haven't been there in like a month.

Well I'm so happy that this person was inspired to warn me and I was able to get out of there in time before any problems came that I would have to deal with.. I am actually experiencing anxiety tonight when it comes to choosing another spot.

My heart goes out to all the people living areas that it's actually illegal to park in overnight. Because I feel so exhausted and weary changing parking spots every night.

Hi all, I’m currently looking for full time employment in SoCal. I’m at a point where I don’t mind living in my car for 3-6 months until I’m able to save a good chunk. Hardest part is I have cats and I’d have to find a living arrangement for them.

My biggest concern is the heat. I currently drive a small suv with tinted windows but obviously won’t have my AC running overnight. I’m also female so I don’t trust leaving my windows down overnight.

So far, I’m in between these 3 areas:
Los Angeles / Beverly Hills
San Diego
Laguna Beach

Wherever I’m able to find employment really

im looking at these storage units prices in my city and they are not bad. 5X5 climate controlled unit going for $20/ month. I could stand in it and put a mirror in it and it’ll help me choose my outfits better because it is hard asf to do that in the car. The access to the units closes at 10 PM but open at 6 am. I have an issue with having so many clothes in my car because I want to be fashionable and it bulks up my trunk space for my small car. idk for 20$ a month imma give it a try. i would store the clothes im not using and go into the unit maybe 2x a week. i already have a unit in my other hometown and its pretty easy to use