Nomadland by J Bruder

[Cypress]

I am posting a link to a web page that provides a well written synopsis of this book. It's recently written and chronicles the lives of folks living way outside the norm of our culture. Some are by choice but most have become RV and van dwellers for economic reasons. The age range is mostly 60+

The book is for sale through Amazon. But, after reading how it is to work at an amazon fulfillment center, I will make sure to find an alternative way to purchase things in the future. I got this book on library loan.

In a way, it is simple living, choices have been made around where and how folks live.

https://www.jessicabruder.com/nomadlandbook/

[Teacher Terry]

There have been a lot of articles on this. Most of these people are not happy living in RV's and following cheap, hard labor jobs. They would be better off renting low income senior apartments and applying for other benefits in order to make ends meet.

[pinkytoe]

It is in my library queue. Since we moved here, we see quite a few older RVs parked in the corners of strip center parking lots. And older folks at the park who are obviously living in their cars.

[Florence]

I listened to the audio on Hoopla through our library. It is a hard way to survive.

[Lainey]

There have been a lot of articles on this. Most of these people are not happy living in RV's and following cheap, hard labor jobs. They would be better off renting low income senior apartments and applying for other benefits in order to make ends meet.

Terry, I second this. My older retired sibling has a govt-subsidized 1 bedroom apt in a senior complex that he rents for $450/month. Rent is scaled to your monthly income, although I don't know what the exact proportion is. His only income is social security.
The complex is secure with a buzzer system main door, and has free parking in a locked lot, plus a pool. There's a manager or assistant at the front desk during daytime hours. The complex is in a great part of town, with easy access to buses and light rail.
Why any senior would bother with the stress of maintaining a large vehicle and traveling across country for $10/hour jobs just doesn't make sense.

[iris lilies]

Terry, I second this. My older retired sibling has a govt-subsidized 1 bedroom apt in a senior complex that he rents for $450/month. Rent is scaled to your monthly income, although I don't know what the exact proportion is. His only income is social security.
The complex is secure with a buzzer system main door, and has free parking in a locked lot, plus a pool. There's a manager or assistant at the front desk during daytime hours. The complex is in a great part of town, with easy access to buses and light rail.
Why any senior would bother with the stress of maintaining a large vehicle and traveling across country for $10/hour jobs just doesn't make sense.

There is a lack of subsidized housing in many areas. That is one reason for the nomadic life.

Another is pure lack of economic sophistication, an inability to understand how much the mobile life really costs. Think of all of the people we know living a mortgage-full ecistance with time payments on their toys. These are not smart financial decisions.

A third reason is that any senior subsidized place comes with rules. Many people are not so keen on that.

Yet another reason is that economic uncertainty and constant struggle is an expected way of life for many, they really do not know or value another way. You are thinking like a middle class person with middle class value of stability. Not all think like that.

Probably the forced nomadic life is a combo of the above.

[Tybee]

Terry, I second this. My older retired sibling has a govt-subsidized 1 bedroom apt in a senior complex that he rents for $450/month. Rent is scaled to your monthly income, although I don't know what the exact proportion is. His only income is social security.
The complex is secure with a buzzer system main door, and has free parking in a locked lot, plus a pool. There's a manager or assistant at the front desk during daytime hours. The complex is in a great part of town, with easy access to buses and light rail.
Why any senior would bother with the stress of maintaining a large vehicle and traveling across country for $10/hour jobs just doesn't make sense.

I went ahead and followed the link (thank you Cypress, great topic!) to the Harpers article here, and it is absolutely worth a read, and helps to explain why this woman ends up in this situation:

https://harpers.org/archive/2014/08/...of-retirement/

[Float On]

Terry, I second this. My older retired sibling has a govt-subsidized 1 bedroom apt in a senior complex that he rents for $450/month. Rent is scaled to your monthly income, although I don't know what the exact proportion is. His only income is social security.
The complex is secure with a buzzer system main door, and has free parking in a locked lot, plus a pool. There's a manager or assistant at the front desk during daytime hours. The complex is in a great part of town, with easy access to buses and light rail.
Why any senior would bother with the stress of maintaining a large vehicle and traveling across country for $10/hour jobs just doesn't make sense.

Wow. Your sibling is in a great place. I've never heard of one with a pool or fully staffed office or being in a 'great part of town'. Here the waiting list is years long for a crappy old apartment in a hard to get to area of town not within walking distance of anything. Rent is pretty high for low social security income so not many can afford cars and must depend on the OATS bus for trips to Dr or Supercenter shopping.

[catherine]

There have been a lot of articles on this. Most of these people are not happy living in RV's and following cheap, hard labor jobs. They would be better off renting low income senior apartments and applying for other benefits in order to make ends meet.

To each his own. Some may prefer to be less boxed-in, as they would be in a low-income senior apartment. Some may not have outgrown a sense of adventure. Some really like to feel productive, even if standing on an assembly line chatting with coworkers.

I read the Harper's article, which was great--thank you, Cyress, and thanks for the encouragement to read it, Tybee. If you get very little SS, like some of these people, and have no savings, making ends meet can be really difficult. But JUST living on a very small social security check in subsidized housing watching game shows all day seems more miserable to me than just doing what you can to better your situation with like-minded folks.

As the opening song in Spamalot goes, "I'm not dead yet."

[Float On]

I went ahead and followed the link (thank you Cypress, great topic!) to the Harpers article here, and it is absolutely worth a read, and helps to explain why this woman ends up in this situation:

https://harpers.org/archive/2014/08/...of-retirement/

That was a good article, Tybee. Thanks for sharing.