Many people travel the world while they are young and have no commitments. It’s much harder to consider long-term travel when you have rent or a mortgage to pay off. That said, just because you’ve got bills to pay doesn’t mean that you can’t still take a year out to travel. Below are some ways to take care of paying bills while travelling.
MOVE OUT + SELL YOUR CAR
This might seem like a drastic measure to take, but it is one of the most popular ways of dealing with the problem of paying bills while travelling.
If you’re renting, you could simply plan to move out and travel instead of renewing your tenancy – which could take care of rent and utility bills. If you’re a homeowner, you could plan to sell your home and possibly even use some of the money to fund your travels if you’ve got enough equity. What about all my possessions? These could all be placed into temporary storage while you travel. There are companies such as https://kincumberselfstorage.com.au/ that you can rent storage from. This rent is likely to be a lot cheaper than continuing to pay rent back home.
Selling your car could meanwhile take care of expensive bills such as auto insurance. If you’re still paying car finance, you may want to wait until most of this is paid off before selling your car. You can then look into getting a place and a new car when you get back. Of course, if you love your current home and car and don’t want to part with them, this may not be an ideal option.
RENT OUT YOUR HOME
If you own your home, you may have the option to let a temporary lodger move in. They may be able to continue paying the bills as a tenant while you’re away. You could keep your possessions in there or move them out. You can find out more about renting your home to a lodger as you travel here at https://www.my-travelmonkey.com.
This is harder to do if you’re renting. A landlord may allow you to sublet your home or you may be able to agree with your landlord to move in a temporary new tenant in your absence (in which case, you’ll have to move out all your stuff). And if you have a car, lending it to someone while you travel may also be an option.
FIND WAYS TO EARN MONEY WHILE TRAVELING
Working as you travel could allow you to continue paying bills while travelling back home. Of course, you’ll likely have to be making as much abroad as you were back home (plus extra if you want to cover the cost of travelling), which could be difficult. A flexible work-from-home job could give you the option to work from any location providing that you have an internet connection. Copywriting, graphic design and social media marketing are a few jobs that allow you to do this. Alternatively, you could plan to travel and stay in one place for a few months. This could allow you to take up a non-flexible job but you’ll still need to be able to pay for travel accommodation on top of your bills back home. Accommodation options such as homestays could be a solution to this.
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You may also enjoy these articles: 10 ways to get more out of your travel adventures + my ultimate travel packing guide
This has been a collaborative post. All thoughts and opinions expressed above are not my own
