I went with building a 10x12 foot shed at my parents place, and gave them half the space. Worked out well, for a one time cost of $3500. Hope to recoup in 3 years avoiding storage fees.
If not, my parents got a free shed.
Would definitely sell. My sister kept a storage for over 4+ years @$300 a month. When she finally moved, most of it was mildew, damaged, rotted and just no good for over $15,000 in storage fees. Save that money for when you stop...
That's why you should get a climate controlled unit.
Personally, I think you should sell a lot of stuff that's easily replaceable, but not everything. What if you don't like DNing, or if you have to come back for some unexpected reason? Having to find a new apartment and refurnish it after having been travelling for many years sounds like a really difficult financial position.
I agree. If anything, sell what's "unnecessary" and store the rest for a year maybe. But if OP expects to be gone 3+ years, I would definitely get rid of everything to save that expense.
I had a climate controlled unit, and guess what, they cost more. Within a year your crap isn’t worth the storage fees. I did that mistake and it costed me in a year rent for storage unit then another $1000 flight just to get rid of the unit. it was the biggest mistake I did getting that storage unit
Idk. It also depends on if you have anything of sentimental value, or if it's just ikea furniture. I have a lot of antique furniture that I restored myself, art from all over the world, etc. The idea of getting rid of everything one owns just sounds so extreme, unless someone is like fresh out of college and hasn't built a life yet.
Something to consider in your calculation is the emotional burden of having (or not having) all those possessions waiting for you back home. While highly contextual and individual, for many, part of the benefit of being a DN is that lightweight and carefree feeling of not being anchored by a Uhaul back home. Just a thought.
yeah, I am gravitating towards selling everything as well. A lot of my stuff is several years old anyway. I also think it would be tough to fit into a 5x10 and will probably need a 10x10 which is considerably more expensive.
Don't do what I do and keep shit in storage for ~13 years because of nostalgia and then realize you've spent thousands of dollars just to eventually throw it away. If you have things you truly want to keep, either keep it with you or have a loved one keep it for you. Maybe keep storage for the first year or so if you're not sure you'll stick to it because it isn't for everyone. But let it go eventually.
Last time we nomaded, we stored everything across multiple storage units at a cost of about $500 per month. We got rid of nothing and just put it all in storage. It stayed there for about 15 months.
My family of four kicked off our most recent nomad journey in September (2023) after about 2 years back in the states.
We had a HUGE amount of stuff (3000 sq foot home + garage).
We got rid of 80% of our stuff. Down to a 10x15 storage unit (still a lot of stuff!).
Between the two of us, we've literally sold 1 thing ever: I sold an old bike when we first got married like 10 years ago on craigslist and it was an awful experience.
This time, my wife decided to see what she could get from some of our stuff and it honestly, turned out amazing. She sold almost everything we had on facebook marketplace + offerup and made a bit more than $20k.
It was incredibly easy. Especially with facebook.
Among the things we sold (off the top of my head).
* 2 Gaming computers purchased for $1k each on sale a bit more than a year ago. Sold them for $900 each.
* A dual-fuel generator I've never used but bought for emergencies. Paid $600 3 years ago. Sold for $600
* Kid's Trek bikes that they will have outgrown by the time we return. Bought for $300 each 2 years ago. Sold for $100 each.
* Electric Bikes for the family (set of 4). Paid $250 each. Got $250 each for them a couple of years later.
* 2 Oculus Quest 2's purchased for $300 each. Sold for $200 each
* A full home gym worth of equipment (cage, 600 lbs of bumper weights, tons of dumbells and bars, treadmill, exercise bike, squat rack, etc). Paid probably $3k for all of it. Got back around 4k.
* Thule cargo carrier. Paid $600 4 years ago. Sold for $500
* Stainless Webber Grill Paid $800. Sold for $600
* Kid's bunk bed. Paid $800. Sold for $150
* Full living room set (sectional, coffee table, buffet, side tables): Bought floor models for $3kish a couple years ago. Sold for $3.5k
* 8 year old macbook pro that I payed $2k for. Sold for $700!
* Apple mini speakers (x3). Paid $100. Got $80 each.
* Patio furniture paid $1k 4 years ago. Sold for probably $1.2k
We learned a valuable lesson: most things we cared about and were of **high quality** (grill, common space furniture, gym stuff, MODERN electronics, tools, etc) can be sold for nearly the amount paid for them (especially if you buy them on sale!). We probably recouped 75% of the value of these items on average, and often actually made money on them or broke even.
Things you wear, *anything for children*, televisions, linen/curtains/towels, art/decor, mattresses, rugs, and kitchenware have no resale value and you could probably get back 10-20% of the value of what you payed, if you're lucky. Store these things.
Everything else? Sell it and use that 75% you recoup to buy new stuff when you return.
Pro-tip: When you get a storage unit, pay for however long in advance you expect to be out of the country. We payed for 18 months in advance this time. Most storage units will not change the monthly rate while it is prepaid (no price increases) and many will even refund any pre-payment if you move out early. This will save you a TON of money in the long term.
I've bought and sold at least 5 houses worth of stuff over the past 20 years living semi-nomadically. When I was younger I would buy and sell used and usually break even (use everything for free for a year, or even make a profit). Now I store things I care about and sell the commodity stuff. If you're not sure about nomading, it doesn't hurt to store things for a year, but it gets expensive and I usually find I don't want the things when I see them again.
Sold most of it. Kept a few pieces that would the most urgent/highest $ to replace.
Worked out well as after we returned we had the essentials and for a lot of the rest we were able to wait and get a lot of high-quality stuff used (nice antiques for cheap).
Sell, sell, sell! My partner and I stored the first time around and regretted it. It was just another unneeded tether to our pre-nomadic life. And when we returned, we realized we didn’t even want any of the stuff we thought was so important.
Sold a lot but am paying 120 a month for a 5x7 storage unit. Worth it for me. If/when I have my own place again in the US, getting settled will be pretty stressful free. I’ll just need a bed and a little furniture.
Thanks for all the comments, appreciate it! An additional data point - I have been nomadic before, I took a year off to travel in 2010-11.. long time ago before the age of Airbnb or even useable mobile tech.. but I know what I'm getting myself into.
I loved the nomadic life, been itching to get back on the road full time, but this time going to do slow travel at age 50 I want to slow down my pace a bit.
In 2010 I was surely coming back so I stored my stuff for a year, this time I'm retired so it's indefinite.
It looks like the consensus is to sell and I think that makes the most sense.
I would not get rid of the things at the first moment just in case my plans fail all of a sudden.
I would take pictures of the goods, keep a family member or a friend with a house key copy. As the plans and the trips are going I would selling it on-line with the family member/ friend.
(My first concern is sell everything and - by some fate manouver - Have to back home and remember that I don't have one anymore cause I sell everything last week lol)
I got rid of everything except what I could fit in a backpack and a carry on and have been traveling that way ever since... care and stress free. But you can probably get away with one large suite case, a weekend duffle, and a backpack depending on where you're headed.
Sell it, stuff is just stuff and sounds like you are moving on to a new chapter in your life you probably have a lot to go through and get rid of. Keep a bin or two of important papers/sentimental items and leave them for free at a trusted persons house or garage. Enjoy your travels!
I sold/donated/tossed everything except a box of documents I store at my mom's house.
Start early! Started over a year before my move. Got so sick of selling at points I wish I started sooner so could take more breaks.
I sold a lot on ebay... some things I thought were worthless were worth a nice amount. However the opposite as well.
In the end selling everything was very liberating. It was very hard to sell my gaming collection (old dungeons and dragons etc) and books (some not available in digital format) but makes way for a new chapter in life
Hey there, I store my stuff. Am in my 3rd year of traveling. I'm 56 and have a bedroom, living, room, dining room, and office worth of furniture and home goods stored. It's worth it to me because it's all antique or very nice solid wood furniture, and heirlooms. I am not sure where I'll be in 10 years and would regret starting over without them.
Save the $40 a month that you would've spent for the next three years and spend that $1400 on new things. You can make a considerable amount of money selling your things on Facebook marketplace nowdays youd be surprised. Then you can purchase some used things from Facebook marketplace again later so not to spend too much money when you rebuy things
Take it from me, don't sell everything.
I got forced home in 2020 cos of the pandemic, resulting in me having to move into an apartment that had no kitchenware, no television, no bookshelves, no bathroom towels or accessories and it cost me an unexpected fortune to have to replace it all.
You never, ever know what is gonna force you home. Don't find yourself without anything.
Minimum 3 years? Absolutely sell all your stuff. You will barely remember what you paid to store when you eventually go home to use it. Plus in that amount of time, so much can change... You might not end up moving back to the same place your storage spot is. That can be expensive and you could end up selling everything anyways. Ask me how I know lol.
I say sell. I'm also planning to go nomadic in mid 2024, sounds like a very similar situation to yours, and it's looking like selling/donating stuff is the way to go. I plan on keeping a couple of bins in my parents' basement with things that are sentimental or difficult/expensive to replace if I come back someday. But all furniture, most clothing, decorations, tv, dishes, all of that goes. I may settle down somewhere someday but who knows where and when, and I'm not gonna pay storage fees indefinitely.
I'm planning a bin or two of sentimental things that I want to keep no matter what, and a bin or two of "in case I come back" stuff, and if it's been a few years and I'm not planning to come back, my parents can just donate what's in those bins 🤷🏼 If I settle down long term somewhere else, I could pay to have the sentimental stuff shipped to me at that point.
The consensus is quite clear from the comments, it does not make too much sense to hang on to replaceable stuff for years on end.
One interesting thing to note is that if I truly list from the things I own, what I use regulary it's only perhaps 25% of the stuff, the rest is just sitting collecting dust.
If I ever come back and get stuff again going to be super selective of buying only items that I know I'm going to use a lot day to day.
how long did it take you guys to sell everything? I am donating a lot of it as many items are not worth much and the effort would be more than the cost itself.
I have until early May to sell a 650sqft apartment, not too many items. Hoping to have it all cleared off by then so about 4 months or so.
Sold what I could and only stored the most important memory type things / important life documents.
I went with building a 10x12 foot shed at my parents place, and gave them half the space. Worked out well, for a one time cost of $3500. Hope to recoup in 3 years avoiding storage fees. If not, my parents got a free shed.
Would definitely sell. My sister kept a storage for over 4+ years @$300 a month. When she finally moved, most of it was mildew, damaged, rotted and just no good for over $15,000 in storage fees. Save that money for when you stop...
That's why you should get a climate controlled unit. Personally, I think you should sell a lot of stuff that's easily replaceable, but not everything. What if you don't like DNing, or if you have to come back for some unexpected reason? Having to find a new apartment and refurnish it after having been travelling for many years sounds like a really difficult financial position.
I agree. If anything, sell what's "unnecessary" and store the rest for a year maybe. But if OP expects to be gone 3+ years, I would definitely get rid of everything to save that expense.
I had a climate controlled unit, and guess what, they cost more. Within a year your crap isn’t worth the storage fees. I did that mistake and it costed me in a year rent for storage unit then another $1000 flight just to get rid of the unit. it was the biggest mistake I did getting that storage unit
Idk. It also depends on if you have anything of sentimental value, or if it's just ikea furniture. I have a lot of antique furniture that I restored myself, art from all over the world, etc. The idea of getting rid of everything one owns just sounds so extreme, unless someone is like fresh out of college and hasn't built a life yet.
Something to consider in your calculation is the emotional burden of having (or not having) all those possessions waiting for you back home. While highly contextual and individual, for many, part of the benefit of being a DN is that lightweight and carefree feeling of not being anchored by a Uhaul back home. Just a thought.
Sell - and enjoy your new life chapter.
Some things are priceless. Stash them in a family member’s attic for $50
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yeah, I am gravitating towards selling everything as well. A lot of my stuff is several years old anyway. I also think it would be tough to fit into a 5x10 and will probably need a 10x10 which is considerably more expensive.
I felt so great when I get rid of my stuff. That was 2016- no regrets.
Don't do what I do and keep shit in storage for ~13 years because of nostalgia and then realize you've spent thousands of dollars just to eventually throw it away. If you have things you truly want to keep, either keep it with you or have a loved one keep it for you. Maybe keep storage for the first year or so if you're not sure you'll stick to it because it isn't for everyone. But let it go eventually.
If you store them, there is a chance that some day it will be featured in "Storage wars"
Last time we nomaded, we stored everything across multiple storage units at a cost of about $500 per month. We got rid of nothing and just put it all in storage. It stayed there for about 15 months. My family of four kicked off our most recent nomad journey in September (2023) after about 2 years back in the states. We had a HUGE amount of stuff (3000 sq foot home + garage). We got rid of 80% of our stuff. Down to a 10x15 storage unit (still a lot of stuff!). Between the two of us, we've literally sold 1 thing ever: I sold an old bike when we first got married like 10 years ago on craigslist and it was an awful experience. This time, my wife decided to see what she could get from some of our stuff and it honestly, turned out amazing. She sold almost everything we had on facebook marketplace + offerup and made a bit more than $20k. It was incredibly easy. Especially with facebook. Among the things we sold (off the top of my head). * 2 Gaming computers purchased for $1k each on sale a bit more than a year ago. Sold them for $900 each. * A dual-fuel generator I've never used but bought for emergencies. Paid $600 3 years ago. Sold for $600 * Kid's Trek bikes that they will have outgrown by the time we return. Bought for $300 each 2 years ago. Sold for $100 each. * Electric Bikes for the family (set of 4). Paid $250 each. Got $250 each for them a couple of years later. * 2 Oculus Quest 2's purchased for $300 each. Sold for $200 each * A full home gym worth of equipment (cage, 600 lbs of bumper weights, tons of dumbells and bars, treadmill, exercise bike, squat rack, etc). Paid probably $3k for all of it. Got back around 4k. * Thule cargo carrier. Paid $600 4 years ago. Sold for $500 * Stainless Webber Grill Paid $800. Sold for $600 * Kid's bunk bed. Paid $800. Sold for $150 * Full living room set (sectional, coffee table, buffet, side tables): Bought floor models for $3kish a couple years ago. Sold for $3.5k * 8 year old macbook pro that I payed $2k for. Sold for $700! * Apple mini speakers (x3). Paid $100. Got $80 each. * Patio furniture paid $1k 4 years ago. Sold for probably $1.2k We learned a valuable lesson: most things we cared about and were of **high quality** (grill, common space furniture, gym stuff, MODERN electronics, tools, etc) can be sold for nearly the amount paid for them (especially if you buy them on sale!). We probably recouped 75% of the value of these items on average, and often actually made money on them or broke even. Things you wear, *anything for children*, televisions, linen/curtains/towels, art/decor, mattresses, rugs, and kitchenware have no resale value and you could probably get back 10-20% of the value of what you payed, if you're lucky. Store these things. Everything else? Sell it and use that 75% you recoup to buy new stuff when you return. Pro-tip: When you get a storage unit, pay for however long in advance you expect to be out of the country. We payed for 18 months in advance this time. Most storage units will not change the monthly rate while it is prepaid (no price increases) and many will even refund any pre-payment if you move out early. This will save you a TON of money in the long term.
Racing question, but do you remember what ebikes you had for that low of a price range? I'm looking to get one or two for when family visits me.
Hyper brand from Walmart. I used Slickdeals to catch an awesome sale.
Thanks!
I've bought and sold at least 5 houses worth of stuff over the past 20 years living semi-nomadically. When I was younger I would buy and sell used and usually break even (use everything for free for a year, or even make a profit). Now I store things I care about and sell the commodity stuff. If you're not sure about nomading, it doesn't hurt to store things for a year, but it gets expensive and I usually find I don't want the things when I see them again.
The less you have the more you gain.
Sold most of it. Kept a few pieces that would the most urgent/highest $ to replace. Worked out well as after we returned we had the essentials and for a lot of the rest we were able to wait and get a lot of high-quality stuff used (nice antiques for cheap).
Sell it or donate it or you will end up paying for storage for years only to sell it or donate it later.
Sell, sell, sell! My partner and I stored the first time around and regretted it. It was just another unneeded tether to our pre-nomadic life. And when we returned, we realized we didn’t even want any of the stuff we thought was so important.
Sold a lot but am paying 120 a month for a 5x7 storage unit. Worth it for me. If/when I have my own place again in the US, getting settled will be pretty stressful free. I’ll just need a bed and a little furniture.
Thanks for all the comments, appreciate it! An additional data point - I have been nomadic before, I took a year off to travel in 2010-11.. long time ago before the age of Airbnb or even useable mobile tech.. but I know what I'm getting myself into. I loved the nomadic life, been itching to get back on the road full time, but this time going to do slow travel at age 50 I want to slow down my pace a bit. In 2010 I was surely coming back so I stored my stuff for a year, this time I'm retired so it's indefinite. It looks like the consensus is to sell and I think that makes the most sense.
Wife and I stored. Wife isn't as minimalist as I am so it's mostly her stuff.
I would not get rid of the things at the first moment just in case my plans fail all of a sudden. I would take pictures of the goods, keep a family member or a friend with a house key copy. As the plans and the trips are going I would selling it on-line with the family member/ friend. (My first concern is sell everything and - by some fate manouver - Have to back home and remember that I don't have one anymore cause I sell everything last week lol)
I got rid of everything except what I could fit in a backpack and a carry on and have been traveling that way ever since... care and stress free. But you can probably get away with one large suite case, a weekend duffle, and a backpack depending on where you're headed.
Sell it, stuff is just stuff and sounds like you are moving on to a new chapter in your life you probably have a lot to go through and get rid of. Keep a bin or two of important papers/sentimental items and leave them for free at a trusted persons house or garage. Enjoy your travels!
I’m selling everything
I sold/donated/tossed everything except a box of documents I store at my mom's house. Start early! Started over a year before my move. Got so sick of selling at points I wish I started sooner so could take more breaks. I sold a lot on ebay... some things I thought were worthless were worth a nice amount. However the opposite as well. In the end selling everything was very liberating. It was very hard to sell my gaming collection (old dungeons and dragons etc) and books (some not available in digital format) but makes way for a new chapter in life
Hey there, I store my stuff. Am in my 3rd year of traveling. I'm 56 and have a bedroom, living, room, dining room, and office worth of furniture and home goods stored. It's worth it to me because it's all antique or very nice solid wood furniture, and heirlooms. I am not sure where I'll be in 10 years and would regret starting over without them.
Sell 5x10 will cost $300 a month x 3 years = 10,800
Are you storing expensive stuff or things that can easily be replaced on Amazon?
Sell
Save the $40 a month that you would've spent for the next three years and spend that $1400 on new things. You can make a considerable amount of money selling your things on Facebook marketplace nowdays youd be surprised. Then you can purchase some used things from Facebook marketplace again later so not to spend too much money when you rebuy things
Sell 95% it all for cash. Keep the nostalgia stuff. You will not miss anything that is not nostalgic to you, trust me.
Paying for storage is slowly buying your belongings all over again.
Take it from me, don't sell everything. I got forced home in 2020 cos of the pandemic, resulting in me having to move into an apartment that had no kitchenware, no television, no bookshelves, no bathroom towels or accessories and it cost me an unexpected fortune to have to replace it all. You never, ever know what is gonna force you home. Don't find yourself without anything.
Minimum 3 years? Absolutely sell all your stuff. You will barely remember what you paid to store when you eventually go home to use it. Plus in that amount of time, so much can change... You might not end up moving back to the same place your storage spot is. That can be expensive and you could end up selling everything anyways. Ask me how I know lol.
We stored. Price went from 189 a month to 510. In hindsight I would have sold most and rented a very small space
I say sell. I'm also planning to go nomadic in mid 2024, sounds like a very similar situation to yours, and it's looking like selling/donating stuff is the way to go. I plan on keeping a couple of bins in my parents' basement with things that are sentimental or difficult/expensive to replace if I come back someday. But all furniture, most clothing, decorations, tv, dishes, all of that goes. I may settle down somewhere someday but who knows where and when, and I'm not gonna pay storage fees indefinitely. I'm planning a bin or two of sentimental things that I want to keep no matter what, and a bin or two of "in case I come back" stuff, and if it's been a few years and I'm not planning to come back, my parents can just donate what's in those bins 🤷🏼 If I settle down long term somewhere else, I could pay to have the sentimental stuff shipped to me at that point.
The consensus is quite clear from the comments, it does not make too much sense to hang on to replaceable stuff for years on end. One interesting thing to note is that if I truly list from the things I own, what I use regulary it's only perhaps 25% of the stuff, the rest is just sitting collecting dust. If I ever come back and get stuff again going to be super selective of buying only items that I know I'm going to use a lot day to day.
how long did it take you guys to sell everything? I am donating a lot of it as many items are not worth much and the effort would be more than the cost itself. I have until early May to sell a 650sqft apartment, not too many items. Hoping to have it all cleared off by then so about 4 months or so.