Big Trip Countdown

The Quinns reveal their top five planning priorities for full-time travels. 

 

Do we rent or sell?

That is the question we get asked so often. I will start off with saying that when the idea to travel came about Dereck and I agreed to never compromise the security of our future home, whether we kept our house or sold it to invest the proceeds.

In 2019, the last time we left, we sold everything and kept the money in an investment account. We never used it to travel. I have previously had rentals, and with having a new born baby, I did not want to have to worry about any issues that may arise renting out our home. Besides, our house was newly built and I worried I’d never feel happy with the house after someone had lived in it.

Having that money was very reassuring, especially when COVID hit, it was a lifesaver. We had nowhere to go and no jobs, so having enough cash to secure a home loan made the whole process so much easier and quicker. I think it took us seven days from the owners accepting our offer to us getting the keys. (Being in the middle of the COVID lockdown, we bought it sight unseen.)

Our dream was to buy a large property after our travels. But I follow real-estate as a hobby, so we decided against investing in a rural area during the pandemic and stuck to a ‘blue chip’ area, in case the market crashed. So, here we are living in a beautiful location along the Swan River

in Perth, WA. Fortunately, the property market rapidly grew over the past 12 months but had it gone the other way things may have been different.

This time, we plan to travel indefinitely, so we’ve keeping our property as a rental. This is a great source of income compared to the minimal term deposit returns the banks are offering in the current climate.

We are aware rental ownership comes with headaches, so we will see how the first 12 months go renting it while travelling. A real estate agent will mind the property, but if we feel it’s too much we will sell and again put the money aside for when we decide to settle.

For us, that security of not worrying where we will find the money to settle down makes travelling a lot more enjoyable but you may feel differently.

Storing Our Belongings
Here’s what we stored last time. Truth be told, we were lucky enough to sell our house furnished, so we did not really have to worry about storing too much.

  • Beds
  • TVs
  • Fridge
  • Washing machine
  • Dryer
  • Table and chairs
  • Swings and trampoline
  • 10 large boxes filled with kitchen, clothes and linen
  • Shed stuff

All this went into storage at my grandparents’ house as storage was expensive. This time, we’re lucky enough to have a house that came with a large storage area, so now we can lock up our items until we come home.

After living a very minimalist life for so long I have even culled on storage items by half the amount again.

Kid’s Schooling

This is a big thing I have been doing a lot of research about since we decided to travel again. Previously, our children were enrolled with School of Isolated and Distance Education (SIDE), however, this time, I have decided to enrol them with Kalgoorlie School of the Air.

Both are fantastic programs and
we had no issues with SIDE, but since being home Koby, our middle child, had been diagnosed with dysgraphia and dyspraxia, he does struggle to keep up with his year level. The principal at Kalgoorlie agreed to help us by teaching him roughly 6 months behind his year level. This way he still progresses but without the struggle to comprehend what he is learning.

We are so grateful Kalgoorlie School of the Air offered to help us with this as any parent who home-schools their children will tell you it comes with its own struggles, let alone teaching a child who is already struggling. We’re really looking forward to this new school.

Resigning from Work

I am fortunate enough to be my own boss. I work from home, hairdressing. I have a very loyal clientele and my clients understand I will be back one day to do their hair. I gave my clients eight weeks’ notice so they could book in a final cut with me one more time before we left to travel.

Dereck, however, is currently an employee of a large mining company. He is a very loyal employee and respects his colleagues, and gave them 10 weeks’ notice of his departure. However, I believe four weeks’ notice is sufficient.

Preparing your Car and Caravan

Preparing your car and caravan for travel is a huge process. Making sure you have the right equipment to be able to see the places and adventure where you desire can be as expensive as you want to make it. So make sure you do thorough research and understand what it entails to travel where you want to travel. Things like making sure you have the right GVM/GCM for safety and right insurance to cover you are vital. 

When we prepare our car and caravan, safety and reliability is our number one priority and should be yours, too, because if you’re stuck out in the bush, the Australian desert can be a very scary place so I cannot stress this enough. Always be prepared.

Make sure you always have things like:

  • a satellite phone;
  • spare fuel;
  • spare tyres;
  • parts for your car;
  • a very well equipped first-aid kit;
  • and knowledge on how to mechanically repair your car if in danger.

I hope this never happens to anyone else but in 2019/20 we found ourselves trapped in a bushfire. Fortunately, we were prepared, and I believe that this is what helped us survive this traumatic event.

We have met people whose partner’s were not able to hitch up the caravan and drive them to the nearest hospital in an emergency. So, ensure both drivers can hook up, reverse and tow the caravan if they’re physically able.

Preparing to travel full time can be nerve-racking and stressful but it can also be a very enjoyable experience if you do your research and you’re prepared. If you’re looking at travelling full time and need some tips feel free to send us a message we are always happy to help where we can.