Housing Options for First Year Trucker ?

Sure enough. Nice hotel, cold beer, and a good steak. Could even throw in a highly paid and skilled call girl if one was so so inclined.
I vote for saying thank you to the relatives, burning what you can't carry, and getting on with life. Sometimes if you focus on the small things, the big things just fall in your lap.

 

I had same situation. Ask relatives to use thier address while you running OTR, You won't see them , they won't see you, cause rookie OTR companies can run you as long as you want.
Also within year you will pretty much gonna see entire country , and will nail some states where you will want to buy house and get settled in a future

On a second year you need to look for company who hiring around state where you will want to live
+ you can always ask companie to find you load around one big city or another, and take few days off, even in pay to park spaces, then hop in rental car and see if city is good for you
On a 3rd year you should have enough money downpayment on a house. And after moving you will start to look for something local/ regional. OR just run for next 5 years OTR non stop and buy a house from an action outright...
After that you can go flip burgers cause you already paid off most expensive thing

 

Park at a truckstop and uber to the hotel. The nicer hotels in busier cities may even have a free shuttle that can pick you up.

I lived in my truck for my first year and stacked up $30K in savings. My only recurring bills were a $70 storage unit, cell phone and Sirrius subscription. If I wanted a few days off, I would park the truck and get a rental car to go visit family and friends.

 

I'm as green as they get a under two months in! I have decided to stay out a month at a time! I would do storage and stay at a hotel on time off!

 

For you, already some good advice has been posted.
Live in the truck and go with an irregular route carrier so you can see all the states. Don't look back; hit the road and do some serious travel. Eventually, you'll find somewhere to settle in.
I'm from Tennessee, but like to keep moving. Now I'm living in Nevada with no regrets.

 

Talk to your folks into a room to lease. They can set rent to $150/mo... then have mail forwarded to terminal or wherever you might visit.

To claim Per diem as lease, ($52/day)etc you have to have some financial responsibility to where you live.

as for finding a permanent solution. Wait. Know it sucks, but keep hearing same from everyone.( I’m looking too) Wait until Corvid blows over to make a huge commitment for rent/mortgage. Joy of OTR home can be anywhere...

both TX and WY don’t have state income tax...but again to live there you’d have to rent. Pretty sure giving folks $150/mo...best deal anywhere...even with GA state tax. Can find convenient rent agreements on google etc.

Not an agreement to live, but a convenience to establish residency...maybe that argument will work for you

 

I started out living in my truck. First time I went to my old home town was to renew my drivers license.

Here’s my 2c, assuming you don’t have kids.

Live in the truck, get hotels on 34 hour restarts or when you feel burned out. Another cheap option is $3-8k RV and pay about $300-350 a month on water, sewage, and electrical. When you’re done you can sell the RV for hopefully half what you paid for it. MANY people do this in Texas. Also sell your old stuff and don’t get storage. The reality is anything you’d want to store will be junk by time you can afford a house.

 

Hi Mr. @DARKNIGHTRUCKER ... WELCOME to the TTR forum...
I bet you will find lots and lots of great info and support and everything else here...
I lived in Freightliners from 2008 till 2019 every day.. would stay on the road for 3 to 4 months at a time and then would take one week off in TN near my storage and my vehicle.... I do need my vehicle to at least transport my stuff, cookware, bags, cooler, this and that from the truck to the hotel when I take time off and Uber wouldn't suffice... Besides, I like the freedom to go anywhere at anytime when I am out of the "prison" in the truck with that friggin Elog.....

I suggest that you don't buy any property, don't rent anything other than a storage unit for your belongings close to where you intend to take your "home time"... If you intend to take home time where your company terminal is, just park your vehicle there and when you take your time off, leave the truck there. If they can work on the truck repairs and maintenance while you are off, that's even better!

Hopefully your relatives will let you use their physical address for your mail at no cost. Otherwise, you may offer them some money, or maybe another friend that you trust or a POBox (that's what I use cause I don't want anybody to get my mail).
That would be the cheapest way to deal with that.

As a brand newbie, you don't know yet how you will "survive" in this new endeavor... I suggest that you stick with it for at least 6 months... in order to decide if that's what you really want to do. I am saying that because trucking and living in a truck is not for everybody... It's a HUGE I said HUGE change in anybody's life. But you don't really know if you haven't done it for a while yet...
I suggest that you don't rent anything anywhere... until 6 months trucking when you will have a better idea of what life will be and what you intend to do.

I used to live in a rented apartment when I started trucking.. Had a friend spliting the rent and paying utilities. After 6 months, I got rid of it, he moved away and I got my storage which is still the same since then. Thought about buying a trailer and parking it at a RV place but that would cost considering the rent + other bills they charge.

Living in a truck, cooking in the truck, staying on the road for at least 3 months at a time will help you to save money very quickly... if you build seniority in your company. And then, you can decide what to do. Take it easy, try it first. Don't anticipate anything.

Hotels.. hopefully you will find a home away extended stay hotel that doesn't charge much in the same city where you have your storage. So that you have access to your things if you need during time off. Me, I always need stuff from the storage during my time off. And my extended stay hotel is 5 walking minutes from the storage. When "my" hotel didn't have rooms available (sometimes I had to call them days in advance to reserve the room), I would stay in another hotel managed by a family folks from India and they gave me a great price per week. Cheaper than any other.

Folks here gave great great information.

Let us know how it goes and good good luck to you!! Stay safe out there.

 

Skip the residence, just live in your truck. There is no point in paying rent on a place that you are going to stay in a few days a month at most.

Just stay in your truck, or get a motel.