I sold my house and moved into an RV full time. Our RV is a used 2021 Grand Design Reflection 337RLS fifth wheel — and six months later, we’re still on the road and loving it. The decision felt huge at the time, but the numbers don’t lie: we’ve cut our monthly living expenses nearly in half while gaining freedom we never had before. Here’s the exact average budget from six months of real receipts — no fluff, no hidden costs, just the truth about what full-time RV life costs a family of four (plus one dog).
Our 6-Month Average Monthly Costs
Category | Monthly Average | Details & Notes |
|---|---|---|
Campgrounds & Parking | $380 | Heavy boondocking + Harvest Hosts; some months $0, others $800 for family visits |
Fuel | $420 | ~1,200 miles/month, diesel averaged $4.10/gal |
Groceries + Eating Out | $720 | Costco runs + occasional restaurants; same as house life |
Propane | $45 | Diesel heater + cooking; minimal in warmer months |
Starlink + Cell Phones | $180 | Unlimited data for remote work; no cuts possible |
Insurance (Roamly full-timer) | $138 | Saved 42% switching; covers pet injuries too |
Maintenance & Repairs | $120 | Tires, batteries, slide motor fix ($600 one month) |
Miscellaneous (tolls, laundry, dump fees) | $100 | Small stuff adds up |
TOTAL | $2,103 | $25,236 for 6 months |
That’s $2,103/month for a family of four (two adults, two kids, one dog) — compared to our old Denver house budget of $4,200+ (mortgage, utilities, property tax, commuting). We’re saving $2,097 every month, or $12,582 in six months — enough to pay cash for solar upgrades and still bank thousands.
More: 10 Most Affordable Class C Motorhomes You can Buy Right Now
How Our Costs Evolved Over the 6 Months
- Months 1–2 (Jan–Feb): Average $2,600 — we paid for more campgrounds while learning routes and boondocking spots. Rookie mistake: over-planning paid sites.
- Months 3–4 (Mar–Apr): Dropped to $1,900 — mastered Harvest Hosts and BLM land. One $600 slide repair spiked maintenance.
- Months 5–6 (May–Jun): Steady $1,800 — summer boondocking in cooler mountains kept propane low.
Biggest surprise: groceries stayed identical to house life. We thought we’d eat out more, but the RV kitchen is actually easier for quick meals.
Unexpected Expenses (The Real Talk)
- One-Time Hits: $1,200 lithium battery upgrade (month 3) — already paid back in free camping.
- Repairs: $600 slide motor (month 4), $300 new tires after a sidewall blowout.
- Health: Vet visit for the dog ($250) after a cactus encounter — covered partly by Roamly pet injury rider.
- Comfort: $400 for a better mattress topper — stock RV mattresses are brutal.
The Non-Financial Wins After 6 Months
- Kids are thriving with homeschool on picnic tables.
- We’ve seen places we only dreamed of: desert sunsets in Quartzsite, pine forests in Flagstaff, beaches in California.
- Work-life balance improved — no commute, more family time.
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Selling the house felt scary, but six months in, we have zero regrets.
Six months into full-time RV life, the biggest surprise isn’t the money we’re saving — it’s how much richer our days feel.We’ve watched sunrises over the red rocks of Sedona from our bedroom window, grilled dinner beside a quiet lake in northern Arizona, and fallen asleep to complete silence under star-filled skies that city lights used to hide. The kids have learned more from real-world adventures — geology in the desert, wildlife in national forests — than they ever did in a classroom. Our dog goes on three walks a day instead of quick backyard breaks, and we’re all moving more, eating better, and stressing less.
Sure, there are trade-offs. Laundry days mean a laundromat trip, mail arrives at a forwarding service, and showers are shorter to conserve water. But those small inconveniences pale compared to the freedom of choosing a new “backyard” every week or two.
The financial freedom is real: we’re banking enough each month to build an emergency fund we never had before, and we’ve already paid cash for upgrades like lithium batteries and better tires. The lifestyle is addictive — every time we think about “settling down again,” we look at each other and laugh. Why would we?
If you’re dreaming about selling the house and hitting the road, know this: it’s scary at first, but the other side is everything people say it is — and more. We’re proof that an ordinary family can make it work, one mile at a time.
