The journey to get out of the rental trap is one we all seek. Even owning a house is a bit of a hassle when one stops and thinks about the cost of mortgages, land taxes and the sort. The cost of upkeep on a house can be astronomical when you think about it. The typical cost of rent is usually around $550 minus any utilities. In one year, you've spent $6,600 which could easily cover the cost of a down payment on a house, car or something you might need, such as a medical bill being covered etc.
So my journey to leave that trap, to get away from paying for someone else's home, that's not even mine, began the moment I left Ontario. I believe it even began before that but the journey was much harder, or seemed to be much harder. Over the past 3yrs that I've been in British Columbia, I've made some amazing connections with some amazing people. I've busted my ass off on maintaining those connections and keeping those connections positive. Then, in 2020 Covid hit. I was at my lowest mentally and felt that, despite all the good that had been happening for me, I would be forever trapped paying for someone else's purchase. That I'd never own my own home. Something I could, in the end, call mine.
Then my 34th birthday hit and somehow, someway, out of the blue, as if the very Fates aligned, I was gifted a Travelaire Rustler 5th wheel camper. While in good condition, she's in need of some work and it's work I'm willing to put into her because, at the end of the day, she's mine. No one can take her from me. The ownership papers are mine. She's in my name. And she's home.
This journey to get out of a rental trap has been mentally and emotionally exhausting and I want those who read this, to understand just how exhausting it can be, to be paying month to month rent on something, that at a moment's notice, for any reason, can be taken away from you. Landlord's family wants to move in? Boom. Evicted. And it's legal. The harsh reality is, I was tired of paying for someone else's purchase. I was tired of financing someone else's holiday to some exotic land I've never even heard of nor been too. I was tired of having to figure out where my money, which by and large, is limited even at the worst of times, was going to be going. I was tired of being told to save up for a 'rainy day' and being unable to do so because, somehow, someway, I was still having to pay for something or other. And relying heavily on others for help, that oftentimes, never came.
And what many may not realize is, I've been downsizing in preparations for living in a tiny home ever since I left Ontario. All the clothing I own, fits in two suitcases and one laundry hamper. Considering that at one point, my clothing could fill six garbage bags and in fact, at one point, when donated, did, is astounding as to how far I've come on this journey to minimalize my impact I have on my home, my life, and the stressors that often accompany it. Am I going full 'hillbilly deluxe'? No. I just have come to realize that the things that when I was a teenager and young adult (early twenties), simply aren't as important now as they were then and this has been the biggest driving factor for me to continue to downsize.
I don't need much. I don't need much to survive nor thrive. When I've had people ask me "why don't you just rent an apartment?" this actually hurts quite a bit. It makes me feel like my journey is being belittled and devalued. That the thought processes that went into this journey mean nothing to those who've been included in the process. When asked to 'stock up' on 'x,y,z' I feel overwhelmed because it feels like people don't understand that, this is a camper. A small camper. It doesn't come with a whole lot of storage space and what space is provided, is limited at best. Any storage I have, will need to be fixed, custom made, and or bought and selected carefully to make sure, that I'm making the most of the space provided to me.
This journey has been exhausting but I know now, there's a light at the end of the tunnel. And the end of the rental trap is in sight. I may need to pay a padd fee but I'm comfortable with paying that. If I'm asked to leave, I have the option to move elsewhere. I have the option to move some place that better suits me. But the one thing that can't be taken is my home and that in the end, was the biggest stressor in my life. And now that the end is in sight for that, I'm so very grateful.
Aki.
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