Now ye're talking - to a man living in his van

pinkyeye

Don't mean to rain on your parade OP but I don't see where you're going to buy anything for 50k, even a derelict cottage. When I moved to the small village I live in currently houses were for sale for 100k, they're now 165k and there's fcuk all around.

A site up the road is for sale for 100k, 1 acre.

I could be proved wrong but I don't see anything selling for 50k anymore. And even if it is it will take another 100k to build something liveable on no?

Wildly Boaring

pinkyeye wrote: »

Don't mean to rain on your parade OP but I don't see where you're going to buy anything for 50k, even a derelict cottage. When I moved to the small village I live in currently houses were for sale for 100k, they're now 165k and there's fcuk all around.

A site up the road is for sale for 100k, 1 acre.

I could be proved wrong but I don't see anything selling for 50k anymore. And even if it is it will take another 100k to build something liveable on no?

Did a 10 second search in north cork.

https://www.daft.ie/11856097

MrMusician18

Wildly Boaring wrote: »

Did a 10 second search in north cork.

https://www.daft.ie/11856097

If he bought that he'd still be sleeping in the van!

John_Rambo

handlemaster wrote: »

I wasn't replying to the OP, everyone should know a motor vehicle is not an asset.

You got me on the other I am jealous would love to live in a va
I did see before a guy on youtube who works remotely lives 6 months of the year in the US. He bought a motorhome, big comfortable stays in caravan parks. Look well happy with himself.

I'd normally agree with you 100% but when it comes to good, well looked after campers you'd be surprised. I left my camper in for a service & undercarriage rubber spray. The garage owner called and offered to buy it for 4k more than what I bought if for with no work done! I've only had it for a few months.


There's a broad range of potential buyers for a good camper with everything working from mains, 12v, solar and gas. From various trips I've done this year I can see who's interested:


-Retirees with time to hit the continent
-Families for weekends and the France trip with wine for the year (me)
-Wealthy millennial Festival conglomerates
-Sports people (from surfers to triathletes) (me)
-People like our AMA that want to try vanlife for saving or an alternative lifestyle
-Lads & chics with a few bob for non-drink driving adventures & craic
-Avid dog owners tired of no-pet holiday policies
-Earth friendlies avoiding jet fueled holidays

It's hard to get a good one though. Takes lots of research and a few months of traversing the country viewing and rejecting and moving very fast if you spot the right one. Note, there's a concerted effort from our insurers to put barriers in place to have a daily driver camper. Engineers reports for conversions with roof height restrictions etc...

Wildly Boaring

MrMusician18 wrote: »

If he bought that he'd still be sleeping in the van!

Yep and I assume he would be in any 50k cottage. But work for a few weeks and get a room habitable.

That's how I'd operate in his shoes.

pinkyeye

Wildly Boaring wrote: »

Did a 10 second search in north cork.

https://www.daft.ie/11856097

What's your point??

The cost of that is 60k, plus stamp duty, solicitors fees and at least another 100k before you can live in it??

I'm confused.

Wildly Boaring

pinkyeye wrote: »

What's your point??

The cost of that is 60k, plus stamp duty, solicitors fees and at least another 100k before you can live in it??

I'm confused.

We see this differently.

Op is happy in his van. I assume happy to live in it and gradually do room at a time by hand.

That was first one I saw in a 10 second search.
Stamp duty is €600
Solicitor €900 ?
Red herrings really.

Gloomtastic!

pinkyeye wrote: »

Don't mean to rain on your parade OP but I don't see where you're going to buy anything for 50k, even a derelict cottage. When I moved to the small village I live in currently houses were for sale for 100k, they're now 165k and there's fcuk all around.

A site up the road is for sale for 100k, 1 acre.

I could be proved wrong but I don't see anything selling for 50k anymore. And even if it is it will take another 100k to build something liveable on no?

100s of them out there if you look at myhome.ie

Day Lewin

Gloomtastic! wrote: »

100s of them out there if you look at myhome.ie

Plenty of fixer-uppers in Westmeath, Cavan, Leitrim, Roscommon for about 50K or even less. It's well doable, if you're willing for some DIY graft.

Corkvanlife

Muahahaha wrote: »

Kind of reminds me of that scam some enterprising Irish university students were pulling years back. One of them had travelled to Russia and realsied that Ladas there were worth much more on the Russian market than they were here. So a group of them got together and bought up tons of Ladas here and shipped them back to Russia where they could double their money by selling them locally.

How's that a scam. It's supply and demand. Fair dues to them.

Danzy

pinkyeye wrote: »

What's your point??

The cost of that is 60k, plus stamp duty, solicitors fees and at least another 100k before you can live in it??

I'm confused.

100k to make it livable, to make it nice?

You might as well have said 200k, go all out

You plucked that figure from your proverbial.

Muahahaha

Corkvanlife wrote: »

How's that a scam. It's supply and demand. Fair dues to them.

This was way back in the early 1980s, iirc they got away with it for a few summers but eventually got arrested in Russia over something to do with it. Not sure of the exact details if it was import taxes or just plain illegal. I can only guess communist Russia wasnt impressed with the enterprise and a stop was put to it. But yeah I agree, fair play to them.

Day Lewin wrote: »

Plenty of fixer-uppers in Westmeath, Cavan, Leitrim, Roscommon for about 50K or even less. It's well doable, if you're willing for some DIY graft.

Yeah and sure he has the van to live in too while the work gets done. You could go leather and tongs for a few weeks to get one room habitable and then just use that room like a bedsit with bed, tv, sofa, etc. Ikea sell mini kitchens now for €99 which have a sink, shelves, drying and hanging racks. That a fridge and a two burner hob and you're pretty much habitable in one room.

Then just chip away at it in the weekends and start completing the other bedroom, kitchen, living room, bathroom, etc. It might take 12-18 months to get to full completion but at the end of it he has a house on his own land with little or no mortgage. Theres a lot to be said for that, Im fortunate enough to be mortgage free and by god it really increases your standard of living when you've got way more disposable income that isnt being pumped into a house for 30 years or towards rent indefinitely.

Nekarsulm

OP, we have a campervan, and its very frustrating the number of height restriction barriers around the country.
Used to like staying along the quays in Wexford town, ( just pay the fee leaving the car-park) but barriers have gone up there too, in the last week.

Ginger83

pinkyeye wrote: »

Don't mean to rain on your parade OP but I don't see where you're going to buy anything for 50k, even a derelict cottage. When I moved to the small village I live in currently houses were for sale for 100k, they're now 165k and there's fcuk all around.

A site up the road is for sale for 100k, 1 acre.

I could be proved wrong but I don't see anything selling for 50k anymore. And even if it is it will take another 100k to build something liveable on no?

Site beside me asking 25k!!!!!!!!

Fair play OP, best of luck with it. You'll always get a few who'll turn their nose up.

How about this....

https://www.daft.ie/cavan/houses-for-sale/virginia/cloughergoole-virginia-cavan-1956805/ 35k

https://www.daft.ie/cavan/houses-for-sale/blacklion/carricknagrow-blacklion-cavan-2097613/ 15k

Hi OP,

Fair play for doing this. What do you work at? Interested to know what sort of job would facilitate working from home and down the country once you get your dream house.

Steer55

Wildly Boaring wrote: »

Did a 10 second search in north cork.

https://www.daft.ie/11856097

That house is not bad at all, there is a lot worse out there. It looks very dry and once all that junk is put on a bon fire, it woud look very different.

Here is another one in North Kerry that looks pretty grim but it does have mains water which I guess is the only bonus

https://www.daft.ie/kerry/houses-for-sale/listowel/corridans-cross-ballylongford-listowel-kerry-1623382/

BorneTobyWilde

I knew a man who lived in a wheel, but he got a puncture, so now he lives in a flat.

Steer55

pinkyeye wrote: »

Don't mean to rain on your parade OP but I don't see where you're going to buy anything for 50k, even a derelict cottage. When I moved to the small village I live in currently houses were for sale for 100k, they're now 165k and there's fcuk all around.

A site up the road is for sale for 100k, 1 acre.

I could be proved wrong but I don't see anything selling for 50k anymore. And even if it is it will take another 100k to build something liveable on no?

If the person is handy much of the work can be done by themselves, it is basically all labour apart from the electrics and boiler installation. You pay 100,000 easily to a builder but not everyone has that kind of money or the capacity to take out a loan.

Op there is a very interesting Facebook group called Cottageology, many of the posters on there have beautifully restored derelict old cottages and stone houses all over the country and they often post similar houses which are for sale as well.

Good luck with your endeavour, I think you have a marvellous spirit about you. Personally think its appalling that people have to resort to sleeping in vans when they are so many vacant houses all over the country.

Steer55

Another cottage in great shape, I remember a neighbour many years ago lived in similar style house, two bedrooms one on either side of the fireplace. there are plenty of similar priced properties around, just need to search.

https://www.daft.ie/kerry/houses-for-sale/lixnaw/garrynagore-lixnaw-kerry-2029837/

DeepBlue

Steer55 wrote: »

Another cottage in great shape, I remember a neighbour many years ago lived in similar style house, two bedrooms one on either side of the fireplace. there are plenty of similar priced properties around, just need to search.

https://www.daft.ie/kerry/houses-for-sale/lixnaw/garrynagore-lixnaw-kerry-2029837/

Each to their own but I think I'd prefer to live in a van. :pac:

spaceHopper

Think he's looking for a place in the NW because of good surfing in the area

Steer55

DeepBlue wrote: »

Each to their own but I think I'd prefer to live in a van. :pac:

Bought an old house in the city during the recession, a wreck, 60,000 cash. Did it all up, most of work done by myself. Took me 3 years. Recently valued at 240,000. Each to their own as you say.

Kevhog1988

Steer55 wrote: »

Bought an old house in the city during the recession, a wreck, 60,000 cash. Did it all up, most of work done by myself. Took me 3 years. Recently valued at 240,000. Each to their own as you say.

Well Done!!

Ginger83

Steer55 wrote: »

Bought an old house in the city during the recession, a wreck, 60,000 cash. Did it all up, most of work done by myself. Took me 3 years. Recently valued at 240,000. Each to their own as you say.

Good stuff, we did similar with an old school.

Donald Trump

BorneTobyWilde wrote: »

I knew a man who lived in a wheel, but he got a puncture, so now he lives in a flat.

I heard that he moved back out of the flat after he re-tired

Donald Trump

Ginger83 wrote: »

Site beside me asking 25k!!!!!!!!

Fair play OP, best of luck with it. You'll always get a few who'll turn their nose up.

How about this....

https://www.daft.ie/cavan/houses-for-sale/virginia/cloughergoole-virginia-cavan-1956805/ 35k

https://www.daft.ie/cavan/houses-for-sale/blacklion/carricknagrow-blacklion-cavan-2097613/ 15k

In fairness, those are both in Cavan.


And the previous owners both had to leave the county after their relatively profligate spending on their house decor put their neighbours' "scroungyness" to shame and they were ran out of the villages with pitchforks post-haste for having notions.

Ginger83

Donald Trump wrote: »

In fairness, those are both in Cavan.


And the previous owners both had to leave the county after their relatively profligate spending on their house decor put their neighbours' "scroungyness" to shame and they were ran out of the villages with pitchforks post-haste for having notions.

Haha, sure its full of blow ins now. Just take a trip to Ballyjamesdub, 1 half dubs, the other Brazil

Boards.ie: Niamh

OP hasn't been online for a few days so I am going to close this up before ye start a GoFundMe to buy him a cottage in Cavan

Thanks so much for all of the questions and to our guest for his really interesting answers, definitely something to think about. If you have any more questions about campervans in general, you can post in the Motorhomes, Campervans & Caravans forum here.

Thanks again everyone!

I'm living in my van, AMA

Hi All,


Wow, I'm blown away with all the positivity.


Ive been offline for a few days, but will endeavor to answer everything today and tonight.


Thank you Guys

tjhook

OP, you have been coming up with brave and clever solutions to very real challenges.

How did you research these solutions? Was it just the Internet and your own problem-solving?

Not to get into a political discussion, but did you consider engaging with the Traveler community? They presumably have a long history of dealing with some of the practical challenges. I'm thinking particularly about stuff like waste management, temperature control, cooking in enclosed spaces, power, food storage, etc.