Living Out of My 2000 LX 470

[RobRed]

Also remember that if you lock yourself in the LX, and then go to open the locked door from the inside at some point, you will set the alarm off which will cause you to fumble around in the dark to locate your keys to turn alarm off...

How do you know this?

 

[ExplorerTom]

Wal-Marts allow overnight camping in their lots. Not super glorious but there's a toilet and food close by.

 

[v_man]

How do you know this?

Hey some people enjoy the pleasant note of the LX470 horn at 5am...on vacation.

 

[braves0six]

Seriously appreciate all the responses. It's refreshing to see positive comments and genuine concern from most of you all.

There are other options besides living in the vehicle. I suppose I should explore those more before committing to living in my car. Which was the purpose of this post, to ask for advice from those with experience and more knowledge. Thankfully, this is not a down on my luck story. I have a good job (can kind of work remotely but thats reserved more for the occasional work from home day) and could move back home to TN if I truly needed to. It's just at what point is rent too much? It's as expensive as it is because people are paying it. I do appreciate the concerns though.

If I do decide to live out of the LX, it would be a temporary arrangement until I could get ahead or I get sick of it. Then I would I have a decent set up for weekend trips when I needed it.

I think taking out the 2nd row of seats is a great idea. Storage being an issue to think about. I would like to avoid getting any type of storage unit. As some of you have mentioned, at what point is living out of my car costing me more than its worth? Might as well pay rent if I'm paying a lot of money to live out of a car.

I would love to buy a little camper or something like that. I just don't have the financial means to do something too big. (Perhaps the real issue here is my handling of my finances)

Again, appreciate all the responses. If I decide to do this I'll reach back out for more advice.

 

[redthies]

I hate to hear this story. My first thought is to say "I am sorry you are having to make this decision"

It just saddens me to think that someone, with the ability to work, only has a vehicle as their fallback position.

You will be in my prayers

JD, you are obviously a caring and compassionate person, but you need to re-read the first sentence of the first post (and frankly, everything else in this thread).

The OP said “I would LIKE to move into my LX”. He is just trying to save some money to put to future use, and most people's biggest expense is their rent or mortgage. He's never said he can't afford rent, just that it's not what he wants to do.

My biggest outlay is rent (sold my house a few years back), and I looked closely at buying another place, but costs are ridiculous where I live. The rent I pay now is only $200 more than the mortgage I had on a $350,000 house. The house and property I live on now is worth around $5.5 million. To say where I am “stuck” renting is fair, but need a roof and shop space for work. It's never a perfect balance whether you rent, own or live out of your vehicle. They all have their positive and negative points.

I live most of the summer out of my truck and slide in camper, and even that gets old in time. I've slept in the back of my 60 series for a few months in Central America, and even on a trip like that, being just in the car wasn't always a ton of fun. I think for the day to day, finding a cheap trailer to set up like Sheepnjeep suggested is a much better idea. Put one months rent towards it. You'll be happy you did!

 

[JDHFJ40]

JD, you are obviously a caring and compassionate person, but you need to re-read the first sentence of the first post (and frankly, everything else in this thread).

The OP said “I would LIKE to move into my LX”. He is just trying to save some money to put to future use, and most people's biggest expense is their rent or mortgage. He's never said he can't afford rent, just that it's not what he wants to do.

My biggest outlay is rent (sold my house a few years back), and I looked closely at buying another place, but costs are ridiculous where I live. The rent I pay now is only $200 more than the mortgage I had on a $350,000 house. The house and property I live on now is worth around $5.5 million. To say where I am “stuck” renting is fair, but need a roof and shop space for work. It's never a perfect balance whether you rent, own or live out of your vehicle. They all have their positive and negative points.

I live most of the summer out of my truck and slide in camper, and even that gets old in time. I've slept in the back of my 60 series for a few months in Central America, and even on a trip like that, being just in the car wasn't always a ton of fun. I think for the day to day, finding a cheap trailer to set up like Sheepnjeep suggested is a much better idea. Put one months rent towards it. You'll be happy you did!

I thought about not posting what I posted because I thought it may be taken personally. That wasn't my intent. If you read it that way, I am sorry. What I said was that it saddens me to think that someone, with the ability to work, only has a vehicle as their fallback position. I guess I meant that I know that many people who are sick or disabled or unable to work, often find themselves in a spot where they can't afford a roof over their head. Or as the OP said, needing to stop paying rent to get ahead. That was a general statement and not directed at the OP.

To me, food and water in my mouth (and my family) is top priority and shelter, or a roof over my head is right behind it. Many people find themselves in a financial bind because they get priorities out of whack. Cell phones costing $800-1000, eating out at $10, $20, $50 or more a pop, coffee, alcohol, the list can go on and on. Now, I say that to say that the OP never said he was forced to make the decision to move into his car and it sounds like he may have more options. I also don't assume that he is putting other spending items in front of what I deem more important priorities. He does state "(Perhaps the real issue here is my handling of my finances)".

I wish the OP luck and will admit that I have never been in his situation. I have also only lived alone for a short period of time. I quickly realized that $1000 rent alone wasn't a good idea when I could split a 2BR or 3BR place for almost half the cost individually.

Hopefully the OP can make his Lexus into a comfortable short term living option and gets to stay in California with the good job (his words not mine) rather than moving to a more affordable location or continuing to pay astronomical rent prices if he choses that option. As mentioned, rents are going up everywhere so the one factor in the equation that is likely to NOT change is the rental rates. Being a residential landlord and commercial rental property owner, I am excited to see rates going up in our area. People are moving to the Southeast from the Northeast and from out West and bringing high rent expectations with them.

I wish good luck to the OP and I hope you can follow up with good news of an improved situation or at least a kick @$$ upgraded vehicle. :safari-rig: