Moving to a motorhome permanently - Maria and Jöran tell us about it

Guest writers: Maria and Jöran

We're getting close to the deadline for handing in the keys and becoming free mobile nomads in a campervan! You can find our previous posts here:

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Before moving out

In 2014 we sold the house that had been in my family since 1923. My children were the 5th generation there. Why not keep it? A lot of work with old houses and gardens. Renovating what was needed was something we had neither the money nor the desire to do, and I didn't want to pass that job on to the children. Selling felt right.

Today we can say that we were really lucky! The place is no longer an idyll in the countryside. The house has been demolished by Skövde Municipality to make way for a 10-unit pre-school and a recycling centre.

In autumn 2014 we moved into an apartment to prepare as much as possible. From the house's nine small rooms plus garage and outbuildings to a 3-room apartment to finally be able to fit in a motorhome. Talk about clearing!

There is still some furniture and things you want to keep that we rented a small storage room for. Then there was official paperwork to arrange, the mail to solve, insurance and a small plan on where we go first. The idea was to travel more than it turned out and this is due to several reasons.

Authorities

Let's start by trying to understand the jungle of laws on what you can and cannot do. Civil registration to begin with. You can't be a nomad; you have to have a "real" address so that taxes are paid in the right municipality. What do you do then? Well, you become illegal and have an address where you do not live. (You live where you mainly sleep most of the time).

We had really good friends who we lived with on paper. We really wanted to pay in the municipality we lived in, but the municipalities we asked and the campsites don't want to. Another rule is that you have to move after 6 months, otherwise it counts as permanent residence. Hope there will be a lighter law soon so it will be easier to live alternatively! You who are about to move out, has it become easier?

The mail was the next item on the list. Now we were lucky that the good friends also took care of the mail and if it was something important, they took photos so we got the mail. Most things we had arranged to receive via Kivra or mail, but then there are some who still want to send with Postnord because they think it's safer ...??? All advertising and all subscriptions were cancelled.

The next step was which insurance to have. Again, they are a bit behind in terms of alternative accommodation. You must have a residential address for home insurance. This may have changed since we moved out but I remember it being tricky. It may be noticeable that I'm not much for paperwork and such, but everything worked out in the end!

New start

Now it was time to think properly about a new motorhome - AGAIN. A flatbed is super flexible if you are out on the roads a lot but now it was to live all year round in a motorhome so then you have to think a little more. What do you need? One that can handle summer and winter. It needs to be spacious so we have room for all the everyday things we want to bring along. We wanted to be able to have a patio to get another room.

Magnolia Magis

We ended up buying a Ci Magis 65XT -16. We have been asked how we could afford a new one. Then we usually compare that this is our home. How many people have a mortgage? We have a car loan ...

Then the fun of making it ours began. The carpet had to be put in, covers for the chairs sewn, bed mattresses changed and redecorated. Storage was adapted. Really fun! It is even more fun when you buy an older car so you can really fix just as you want! You might not start repainting doors or something like that in a brand new car. The name came from the fact that it felt like a lady, a magnolia, and there was Magnolia Magis born.

Finally, where should we go first? We had aimed to go down to Skåne directly but due to illness we had to start a little closer. I managed to get a herniated disc in my lumbar spine at the beginning of 2017. Just when we were going to empty the apartment and fix the most! Lying from the floor, I controlled the husband who had to pack and clean. Well, no evil that has no good with it;).

Sitting in the car was a pain and I had booked physiotherapy. The choice fell on a very nice campsite outside Karlsborg: Stenkällegården. Really idyllic right at Tivedsskogen next to a lake. There were also very nice hosts. We stayed here from April to September 2017.

I think it was thanks to that environment that both my herniated disc and fatigue syndrome got so much better. Even the allergy was gone despite the forest and birches! So tips for those of you who are at risk of exhaustion: camp in the countryside! Walks in the forest and on meadows, sit on a jetty with your feet in the water and listen to the birds sing.

Why we went camping

Staying a week or a month in a campsite is expensive!!! If you intend to stay out for 52 weeks, there is a big difference between monthly rent and seasonal rent. Season is usually 3 or 6 months. An example Stenkällegården's prices 2022:

• Campsite with electricity 300 SEK/day or near the lake 370 SEK/day.
• Summer season 1 May-25 September from 13,000 kr plus electricity. Which is about 90 kr/day plus electricity.
• Winter season 15 Oct-15 April 7 000 kr plus electricity. Which is about 40 kr/day plus electricity.

Camping is good in that you have access to everything practical such as laundry, dishes, toilet, shower, kitchen, wifi etc. We also had our small car so we could go shopping and go on excursions in the area.

Fria

Then came the date when keys were handed in! Now a wonderful time began! Nature, not a lot of obligations, no house to worry about, better finances, time for recovery. Today it is easier to work from home too! Imagine sitting and working and looking out over the lake, for example.

(Speaking of which, here's a spoiler for the next post: Our caravan that has been converted into an office is for sale!)

Hope you follow along in the next post! Then we move on to Skåne and change motorhome AGAIN!

Have a great spring and take care! /eMJi

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Jöran and Maria Selin

Jöran and Maria are the names behind the former blog Magnolia Magis. They sold the house and lived 3 years outside first in a motorhome then a caravan. Travelling mostly in Sweden and Europe. Today they have switched to a small cabin in the forest and a camping-equipped Land Rover Defender with which they hope for many nice trips.

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