A dad is saving £1,000 a month by living in a converted ex-army van. He has created the ultimate toy for his kids to live in while they visit him.
Campervan builder Liam Black, from Sheffield, South Yorkshire, has lived in a van for four years.
He has amassed an online following of tens of thousands of people and created a £30,000 per year business from his newfound van-building skills.
The dad-of-two began his van life journey four years ago, buying a campervan whilst in a previous relationship. After the relationship ended, it left Liam with a campervan.
He planned to stay in it for a few nights until he found somewhere to live... but that became a few weeks, and his accidental van life began.
When it came time to move, Liam - who has two kids, Alice, 10, and Phoenix, 2 - calculated the costs, realising that £800 a month on rent, deposits, and fees meant most of his wages disappeared.
He decided he didn’t want to pay that much a month, so chose to remain in the van.
Liam, 41, began in a Volkswagen T5, but it was so small he couldn’t stand up.
He moved onto a Mercedes Sprinter Van, and then later a small canal boat.
The dad decided the boat wasn’t for him, however, and after five months he sold it.
In 2021 he bought a Land Rover Defender for £7,000, and with his tools and knowledge was able to fit it out for £3,000.
He received £5,000 of electrical components for free because of the success of his YouTube Channel, 'Liam The Terrible', where he has 35,000 followers.
He has added £15,000 value to the Land Rover, and reckons it is now worth £25,000.
When he first moved into his van, he was saving about £900 a month, living a minimalist lifestyle.
Now, despite earning more, his costs are greater because he runs his own business and has a larger van, but is still able to save more than £1,000 a month.
In total, he spends about £410 a month and, spends roughly £240 a month on fuel.
Van insurance is about £60 a month and internet and a phone bill is a total of £110.
His electricity is free, using large solar panels on the roof to power his air fryer and induction hob.
The most difficult obstacle was downsizing to the small van, selling off, and giving away his things to live in a smaller space.
Although sometimes his mental health is affected, the upside is he can move the van anywhere in the world.
And he has gained a great following of supportive people, reaching 12,700 followers on Instagram.
He said: “I am a father of two kids, I live in the van full time.
“Just over four years ago, I was in a relationship where we had a campervan and the relationship deteriorated a bit.
“When it ended, I had this campervan, I stayed in it for a few nights until I found somewhere to live.
“This turned into a few weeks. This began my accidental van life journey.
“Looking at costs, £800 rent for the first month then a deposit and fees and that was my wages gone.
“I thought do I want to be paying this kind of money every month.
“I bought a boat, a small canal boat, and borrowed the money £3k, then I bought a bigger van at the same time.
“My daughter said she preferred staying in the van.
“The boat had a mooring fee and more costs involved. Five months later we sold the boat.”
He said: "It’s been four years that I’ve lived in a van.
“First, I had a Volkswagen T5, which was too small I couldn’t stand up. More like a campervan.
“I upgraded to a Mercedes sprinter van, which broke. I then bought a bigger van for a year.
“In 2021 The Land Rover Defender I live in now looked cool and came up for sale.
“I had the tools and knowledge to fit out the van, so I bought that for £7k. Very cheap vehicle.
"It’s probably worth around £25k now.
He added: “I struggle with my mental health sometimes. I would rather be in mentally in this position and in a van than mentally in a home and skint.”
The positives of living in the van appeared to outweigh the negatives, he claimed.
Liam said: “I can move and be somewhere nice, wherever I go I have everything. I have my bed; I can make coffee. I have all my possessions.
“I loved the Peak District. I was there during lockdown, and it was completely empty.
“Being there and not seing anyone for weeks on end was amazing. I woke up to beautiful sunrises every morning.
“I’m proud of not struggling through Covid and being able to turn that negative situation into a positive one.
“I built a business during Covid, building campervans for people who also want to live a van life.
“I had a roof deck on my van and I could just lay there. I was living my best life.
“I don’t see any downsides to living in the van.
“The only negative is other people’s opinions and people being narrow-minded.
“A lot of people frown on it. I’ve had a few people be nasty, assuming I’m poor, unclean destitute, down and own.
“It’s untrue and they shouldn’t be judging people anyway.
“I have moved around a lot previously but for the most part, I was living around the peak district. I stayed local to my children and my previous office job.”
“My advice for moving into a van would be to stick with it, it will be difficult at first.
“The first three months will be the hardest but after that it’s amazing.
“It’s not for everyone but stick with it.”
To view Liam’s adventures, visit his YouTube Channel LiamTheTerrible
