Full timing in RV and Travel Nurse needs advice

NedRN · Jan 31, 2015

If you are maintaining a tax home with a residence you can return to at any time, you can claim mileage from that home to your assignment, and commute miles from your RV park to the assignment facility. It is 57.5 cents a mile for 2015 (which is supposed to include gas, maintenance, and depreciation). Yes, your RV costs more per mile than that, but your other option will require a tax professional to deduct actual costs and depreciation - not sure that you can depreciate your full cost of a multipurpose vehicle like this - however if you talk to a tax professional, you may be able to have a second home deduction on an RV.

Either way, you will need to subtract the travel allowance your agency gives you for the assignment - usually from $250 to $800.

If you qualify, agencies will give you a per diem to cover meals and incidentals (M&IE), or less beneficially you can deduct them.

Your question about establishing a residence in a tax free state makes me think that you are abandoning your tax home. To establish a new one just as you become a traveler will require professional advice. You might be better off becoming itinerant (without a tax home). Then all compensation you receive will be taxable, and there are no mileage, per diem, or housing deductions or agency tax free reimbursements.

The way state taxes work is that you will owe income taxes primarily in your work state. Your permanent home will give you a credit for income taxes paid in other states. Residing in a lower tax state is beneficial only if you travel to a state with lower or no state income taxes. You will owe any difference to your permanent home state.

Do not follow the advice you read on full-timer sites about mailing addresses. Those are not tax homes and will not aide you in an audit. To be eligible for the tax benefits of business travel (probably most fulltimers are retired or working part time at best), you need to be working away from your tax home where the requirements of the work require at least an overnight rest close to work. If you live full time in an RV, you are never working away from home.

Non RV park choices are boondocking where permitted, or living just as rough in a national forest. Posting an ad on Craigslist for private property parking often gets results at a lower rate. Sometimes it is like housesitting where the owners would like someone there. Both the Moose and Elk fraternal organizations have parks for members at lower rates, worthwhile becoming a member just to avoid expensive dump fees at truck stops.

I don't know the best agency for you and neither does anyone else. There are hundreds of agencies and every one has many long term travelers that think they have the best agency. Everyone communicates differently and the best predictor of success as a traveler is being on the same page as your recruiter. So you will have to do your homework here by calling lots of agencies and picking the best 5 recruiters you talk to to sign up with.

Health insurance? What do you do now? You can COBRA that insurance for 18 months, shop insurance during all those agency calls, get private insurance, or go on an exchange to purchase insurance (if you live in a state with an exchange). You will want to check that the insurance you get will cover you on assignment and has available primary care and specialists there.

In any case, if you are L&D, you will be making tons of money (95th percentile) and can afford good health insurance and being itinerant (don't try to evade taxes illegally, the back taxes, penalties, and interest will ruin your decade if audited). Using an RV for travel nursing is not usually a money saver, do it for the lifestyle. You may not want to drive an RV to Alaska although I know at least one travel nurse who has done so (requires a lot of preparation), or even take the ferry with an RV. No matter what, you probably want to carry Good Sam RV coverage.

skiermom · Feb 1, 2015

Thanks for all the great info! We plan on renting out our home with a rental agency. We will use our truck to pull our trailer. Planning on installing a solar system so we can boondock more. Thanks again.

NedRN · Feb 1, 2015

Renting your home means it is no longer your tax home. It is someone else's tax home. ;-)

HikingNinja, BSN, MSN, DNP, RN, APRN, NP · Feb 3, 2015

I am planning on traveling with my young family in a 33 foot travel trailer and need your best advice and information you have to give. We plan on traveling all around the US; including Alaska. I am an experience L&D and NICU RN. Here are some questions:
Can I deduct gas and some groceries on my taxes?
What are the best travel companies to work for?
How does health insurance work while traveling?
Any great places to work and stay (I am looking to not live in a RV park)?
What are your thoughts on claiming residency in income tax free states?
And last...any good advice for a new travel RN and new full-timer.
I really appreciate any feedback!

I travel in an RV. I contacted a tax professional who specifically works with traveling professionals. I recommend you do the same. As health insurance, if you do a quick search of this forum there's been a lot of discussion. I'm signed up with about 4 -5 agencies at a time to get the best quote and compare. We like rv parks so we use trip advisor, yelp, etc to pick them. So far so good.

Rod, Male Nurse · Feb 3, 2015

My advice is taking as much of the tax free reimbursements as possible. When doing my taxes I calculated what I could have deducted vs. what my agency gave me and it always worked out better taking the tax free money from the start. It sounds like you might have decisions to make regarding your tax home so that might affect what can be tax deductible. I travel in my RV as well and its great.

revkev007 · Feb 7, 2015

I've been traveling with an RV for 3 years and I'm loving it. I stay in nice RV parks for $375 to $500 a month and that includes all utilities. Also they usually are in safer areas (not always) and have a laundry mat (not always). When I've accepted a postion, I call and talk to someone at the hospital or at the Chamber of Commerce about the local RV parks. It saved me in one situation in Tulsa. I do recommend having a tax base as well as a good CPA. For tax purposes you can claim a per diem for every day that you are away from home and it comes up to more than trying to deduct everything. In 2013 I made over 100k and got more back than I ever have. Good luck and good traveling.

raindrop · Feb 7, 2015

How do you come out ahead with an RV? They are expensive to buy, they use a ton of gas, you need insurance on it, the RV park costs money, and the sewage can't be cheap either. And it seems stressful towing your car behind it, or, towing the RV on your Suv/truck. I can't imagine driving across the country like that especially by myself.

kakroll · Feb 7, 2015

RV's are expensive, but you can get a good deal, you have to negotiate price, don't ever pay sticker price! so imagine having an RV payment- lets say $500/mo, then RV park monthly $500/mo. includes all utilities/sewage. Its the same as an apartment/utilites. and its your home that you don't have to pack up and unpack every assignment. Insurance is very reasonable-less than a house insurance a year. I love my RV. Its a 5th wheel , 41 ft, and I have no problem towing it, parking it etc. You learn, and its not difficult. Been across the country and back.

I love my life!

NedRN · Feb 7, 2015

Well said! Watching three good friends travel by RV it is definitely about lifestyle, not about saving money. It is a cool lifestyle though. No unpacking!

revkev007 · Feb 8, 2015

I have a 30' travel trailer. Pd $14k and it's paid off. RV park lot rent $375-$500 mth including utilities. Tax deductions out the wazzou. No motel room between assignments. Pull it with a 3/4 suburban. It's not stressful if you take your time. When I'm traveling to another assignment and I get hungery, I pull in to where ever and cook whatever I want to eat. Oh, and I travel by myself. Insurance is nominal as well.

revkev007 · Feb 8, 2015

Buy used. Only way to go. get the same RV for about half the price. I sold RV's for several years. 60% markup on a lot of them. Been traveling with an RV for 3 years now and I wouldn't have it any other way. Having said that, it's not for everyone.