Living in a van in SF
Getting a little tired of dumping so much salary into an apartment that, while still being in SF is still an hour to muni to work, under an apartment that is both my landlords apartment and the stomping ground for 2 young boys who have never been disciplined in their life and will literally slam basketballs down repeatedly on the floor at 7am when they get up, and I get parking tickets at nonstop because there is absolutely no parking nearby. Plus my girlfriend is going to live abroad for a couple years so it doesnt make sense for me to have a 1000 sq ft apartment without sharing, and I dont really want to room with random people. My parents live in the South Bay and I still have a bed at their place. But I dont wanna commute the 2 hours to SF and dont wanna live at home. Im a pretty avid surfer, fisherman and diver and only dream of a life where I can do these things before work, and come into work showered and clean. I was looking into buying a Promaster or Sprinter, outfitting it with shower, bathroom and full bed. Slapping a vespa or small motorcycle on the back and living out of that. The idea being I can park near ocean beach or pacifica, wake up, surf, shower and head into work on the motorcycle. Whats the general conensus on this? Im really not only doing it to save an estimated $60000 on rent/living in sf over 2 years, but because the girlfriend is abroad now is kind of the best opportunity and Ive always been curious about it. And does anyone know anyone who lives in a van and is pulling this off successfully?
Rent a room closer to work for $1500/month
Are there actual places where you can park a van like that and have it connected to sewage, electricity and water? I know they have such places for rv’s in national Parks but never saw an urban one. What will you do for food and will that be sustainable over a few months? Sounds like fun either way
Not planning on hooking up. Composting toilet only needs to be emptied every few weeks, recirculating showers can provide a 15 minute shower with 2 gallons of water. Solar for electricity. Typically people keep 2 30 gallon water jugs, 1 fresh, 1 grey. You can always fill up water at gas stations or parks with faucets.
Oh and in terms of food, a little electric stove, I’ve even seen some people do ovens, just make one pot stir fries and simple meals and things like that. And a fridge that runs off solar.
I’ve read people do this and address the shower part with gym memberships
Just rent a place in Pacifica then...
If you end up doing it, please come back and tell us how it’s going
Matt Foley was pulling off the van life pretty well. He wasn't in the bay though, just down by some river.
A lot of van lifers are on YouTube. I like Jennelle Eliana. There are soo many people who will show you what their lives are like, so I would browse through YT and see if it’s a lifestyle you are okay with.
Jennelle is an actor not a real van lifer. She is a youtube plant. A real van lifer is dave2d
show me some actual proof not infowars2.0.org then we can talk 😘 be blessed
An easier option is to just get another girlfriend...
Are there legal places to "camp" in a van in SF?
Sounds pretty dope IMO. I would sprinter and outfit. I been wanting to do that for a while myself. Although living at home with your parents might be far you could at least just stack some cash to invest in something better for the future even if it's only for a few months
The mention of my parents house with a bed was just to imply that if something ever happened, van breaks down, totaled, something like that I’m not instantly homeless. I lived at home and commuted to SF for a few months and wanted to kill myself. Leaving at 8am, getting back at 7pm, sometimes even later if something happens on caltrain or there’s an accident on 280. My mental health was NOT good during that commuting time. Kudos to anyone who can sustain 3-5 hours of commuting a day.
This sounds like a total best of both worlds scenario. I envy the fact that this is an option. Parking could still be an issue. Might want to look into a few things. 1. Parking spot you can rent in a quiet area. You will really be at the mercy of others. And at finding a place that's level to park. Sounds minor... Can be a bigger issue than you realize. 2. Rv park that you can use to dump tanks, Park for a weekend, etc. Good luck