>>2496241"Van Life" is best enjoyed if you have some reason to travel in order to make that way of living worthwhile. The convenience of living rent/motel free means that a 3 month trip becomes a lot more achievable to those with only a couple grand savings.
Driving a van is a bit of a PITA and you will want to do short hops from town to town and do a bit of exploring, then rest up overnight and go another 30mins/hour down the road and explore that place, or do whatever.
Great if you're travelling to rock climb every major spot in the country, or surf every good beach, go to every national park or go to every Six Flags ect. You kind of need a directive to make the most of it.
As a permanent way of living it is one step departed from living in a motel or a tent.
If you are intending on doing it for a cheap existence and not a holiday then go find a homeless community like Slab City and live there in your van because that's the true permanent living solution. You won't run into any issues with squatting there.
If you have a job, rent a place because the benefits far outweigh the money you save living inside a 3x2meter box.
