RE: Tow rigs for big fivers? Advice?
A disaster relief team I volunteer with occasionally upped to a F-450 a while back, and haven't regretted it one bit. Besides solving all their tow/hitch issues, it has a lot more capacity for extra 'gagets.' They have GPS, CB, ham radio, laptops, a little refridgerator, sat. phone, etc. all installed professionally and it isn't messy inside like you'd think it would be. So if you are taking a lot of 'toys' with you, look into the 450/4500 options. Oh, and it tows around 35,000#.
RE: Need to know how to Bank
Just a few suggestions. We use online banking since we travel to Asia a lot. Whenever we know of a big expense, I email our CU manager and let her know. I didn't do that once when driving a long distance. After charging over $150 at gas pumps our card was frozen. They thought it had been stolen. So just keep in touch with your bank or CU manager.
Also, think about banking at the bank of Wal-Mart. No kidding. Not the inside bank, but the 'cash back' feature when using a debit card. We stop and purchase some candy and soda, then get $100 cash back. They don't charge any fees like most ATMs do when away from home.
We also switched investments to company that allows online stuff (Schwab) Other firms have this feature so just shop around for what suits you.
Our CU asked us to be used in their advertisements, so for a while we had our photo posted on the webpage. We like internet banking, but as someone else has stated, BOA is everywhere, so we opened an account with them also.
RE: Tennessee for home base????
In TN you pay no income tax on earned income, but you DO owe on interest/dividends once they pass a certain level. If you are living off investments, check the TN State website and figure out your tax rate. IMHO, I would go for east TN. West TN gets hot in the summer, and middle TN gets ice about once a year, but East TN doesn't get as hot or cold as the rest of the state. And it's prettier. And the food tastes better. And the fly fishing is excellent.
RE: Living on my lot
I'm thinking along the same lines, but slightly different. I've talked to some Real Estate agents about houses that have burned down. In the Branson area, there were several last winter that had all the connections still intact (elec., water, septic) They said that as long as I was outside their 'city limits' that I should be able to put a slab in, and just park there, using the old utilities.
Also, one fairly new CG in Branson had changed to a 'condo' CG. You bought the lot, and parked there free from then on. You only paid a fee for lawn maint. and the basic util. fees. Lots seemed expensive ($25K average) but might be OK for living there during warm weather. (I know Branson shuts down during the winter.)
RE: poor advertising of RVs trailers etc
Should have said a 'no pet' unit. oops.
But as long as I'm still here . . . one large RV dealership is showing photos of the switches and outlets. All units have those. I would like to see the bedroom, bathroom, etc. Some of the best ads now are the place in TX that only sells motorhomes, Motor Home Specialists. They set the camera on a tripod and take photos of slides in and out, awnings in and out, etc. That's a lot better way to show what I'm buying.
poor advertising of RVs trailers etc
I look at RVSearch.com to get general idea of current prices. I'm amazed at how bad some RV dealers' ads are. Most ads have 12 photos which should be plenty to show the unit. Today I found a $90,000 fifth wheel ad, and 10 of the photos were of the tires, shocks, ladder, awning, etc. The two inside shots were both of the fireplace/ent. center. Other ads run photos taken at night without a flash. One even showed most of their photos sideways.
I'm looking to buy a new unit in the next few months. How in the world would I know what I'm getting if the ads are bad?
Also, one claimed their used FW was a non-smoking unit, but in three of the photos you could see the food/water pans on the floor in the kitchen, and a little dog was barking at the photographer.
I guess I'm going to just plow through the horrible ads that these businesses are paying a lot for. Or go to the dealer in person.
Anyone else notice these horrible photos in the ads?
