As the movie Nomadland revealed to the world, since the financial crash of 2008, people have been turning to vehicles as a way to survive the high cost of living. The pandemic also fueled an increase in the nomadic lifestyle.
In 2020, my co-investigator Scott Rankin and I are looking at how people who live in vehicles balance work and life. In doing so, we found that these people were able to achieve work/non-work harmony by coordinating the movement of their truck with their work lives.
This year, I continued this research to better understand why people live this way. After living out of a van and touring the southern United States meeting people who live in vehicles, I have just completed preliminary analysis of surveys answering who and why people live this nomadic lifestyle.
Read more: Not everything is land of nomads: how #vanlife made mobile living a middle-class aspiration
These surveys were completed voluntarily by those living in vehicles, most permanently, some seasonally. The findings provide interesting information not only about who or why people live in vehicles, but also about the adventurous nature of those who choose to live this way.
Who lives in the vehicles?
Everywhere I went in California and Arizona, I saw people living in their vehicles. Sometimes they were hidden in plain sight, parked next to a park in San Francisco or in a neighborhood in San Diego. Other times, they congregated in large convoys, in places like Quartzsite, Arizona.
People of all ages and genders participate in the van life. My survey found that women were just as likely as men to live in vans. Of the 85 responses to the gender question, 53% were women and 47% men.
The median age of van occupants was 42 years. In addition to young people who lived in vehicles, there was an equal proportion of retirees who chose to live in vehicles.
People of all ages and genders live the van nomadic lifestyle. For retirees, living in a vehicle allows them to stretch the value of their limited retirement savings or income.
(Shutterstock)
Why do people live in vans?
After asking respondents to rank the reasons they chose to live in a vehicle, those ranked from top to bottom are: 1) freedom, 2) low cost of living, 3) adventure, 4) connection to nature, 5) ) minimalism, 6) avoiding undesirable weather, 7) starting a new life, 8) looking for work in different places, 9) working remotely, 10) being alone, 11) joining a partner or 12) leaving a partner.
A pickup truck overlooking the coastline in Big Sur, California.
(Angus Duff), Author provided
Above all, the inhabitants of the vehicles sought to be free. Whether they were retiring in a $100,000 Mercedes truck or young Canadians working in a $5,000 truck, respondents wanted to be able to move their home to wherever it was best for them.
For some, living in a vehicle provided a way to survive, while minimizing the cost of living was the second reason respondents chose to live in a vehicle. As one respondent said:
“As a millennial, the cost of living has risen significantly from previous generations, but wages have for the most part stayed the same.”
For others, living in a vehicle minimized their costs, allowed them to work less, or allowed them to maximize their rent-free income. For retirees, living in a vehicle provided an opportunity to stretch the value of their limited retirement income or savings.
The next three reasons—adventure, connection to nature, and minimalism—suggest that people who live in vehicles value an adventurous, outdoor lifestyle. Van living allows them to act on this desire and be in nature whenever they want.
By living a simple life that is completely contained in a vehicle—the essence of minimalism—truck-dwellers can go on a new adventure whenever they want. Being able to pack up and move to a new place also connects to the number one reason many live in vans: freedom.
A parking lot full of pickup trucks in San Diego, California.
(Angus Duff), Author provided
The sixth reason for living in a vehicle was to avoid undesirable weather. Many of the people I spoke to lived a truly nomadic life, living in the northern states or Canada for half the year, working the land in tourism or agriculture, and then moving south in the winter to avoid the cold living and working in Arizona. or southern California.
Living in a vehicle allowed workers to move with the weather as a way to take advantage of job opportunities, without the need for winter clothing or coats. As long as the temperature stayed comfortably above freezing, they could sleep comfortably without the need for an oven, just a little extra bedding on cold nights.
Is this just a passing fad?
These preliminary results confirm that, for many, the decision to live in a vehicle is a choice with the goal of being free, self-sufficient and having the ability to live how and where they want. The results also suggest that living in a van is a lifestyle that is not constrained by gender or age, but rather a viable alternative for those seeking a more affordable and less constrained living option.
And it turns out that living in a van is not a passing fad. While many of the respondents were new to the van life, on average, respondents indicated that they had been living in a vehicle, full or part-time, for an average of 2.5 years.
Seventy-eight percent of those surveyed lived permanently in a vehicle, while 22 percent owned or rented a home and regularly traveled in a van or motor home. From my conversations with van dwellers, most of the latter category were retirees who lived at home in the north for most of the year, then traveled south to live in their vehicle during the winter months.
As the housing crisis deepens, we may see more people embrace life in a van as a means to survive the high cost of living. It will be up to the cities and government to accept this alternative living arrangement and consider having parking and facilities to support those who choose to live this way.
Source: news.google.com