The Secret to Living Well on $ 11 , 000 a YearKimberly Palmer Thursday , October 20 , 2011 Our last story on frugal living , " The Secret to Living Well on $ 20 , 000 a Year , " stirred up some heated comments , many of which argued that $ 20 , 000 a year represents a king ' s ransom . " Someone should do an article on how to live on less than $ 10 , 000 per year . I am a single mother who is doing just that , " wrote Rici of Wyoming . An anonymous commenter from Texas wrote , "[ I ' m ] not impressed . I live on $ 8 , 796 a year . "" I am retired and living on less than $ 1 , 000 a month [ from ] Social Security , " wrote Liz Ortiz of Colorado . Glenn Morrissette , 42 , wrote in to say that he lives on just $ 11 , 000 a year , and he does it by living full - time in an RV . As a result , he pays no rent , needs no car , and can live wherever he wants . Unlike Joseph Fonseca , the writer we profiled in our " Living Well on $ 20 , 000 a Year " article , Morrissette has health insurance . A professional musician , he can work by computer from any location . He might not have a family support , as the teacher living on $ 40 , 000 a year does , but we thought Morrissette ' s story was interesting enough to share . We spoke with Morrissette , who is currently in New Jersey , about his lifestyle , which he also describes on his blog , To Simplify . Excerpts : Why did you decide to live in an RV ? I had an apartment in Burbank and was the typical Los Angeles apartment dweller . I started to feel a strong desire to simplify my life . I had a garage full of stuff I never used , my closets were full , and I started to see that it was costing me money to have an apartment big enough to hold all the stuff I never use . Glenn MorrissetteMy initial plan was to scale back and move into a smaller apartment . Before long , I realized I didn ' t need too much to be happy . I could fit into a small space . That ' s when the RV idea occurred to me . I was just sitting in traffic and an RV pulled up . I said , " I could probably fit in that thing . " The more I looked into it , the more I realized how practical it would be . For what I was paying for rent in LA , I could own my " house " free and clear and not pay rent , and own my car as well . How do you stay under $ 11 , 000 a year ? The two key things that make it possible are not having rent or a mortgage payment . I own my RV , so that was an initial expense [ of about $ 14 , 000 ] , but I have no house or car payment . Gas is controllable ; I don ' t drive if I don ' t want to . Most months , I spend less than $ 300 on gas . I estimate that I save about $ 1 , 000 a month compared to what I was spending in LA . What do you eat ? I eat pretty well . I don ' t skimp on food . I eat a lot of grass - fed meats , fruits , and vegetables . .. some people call it the caveman diet . I go to farms , farmers markets , and health food stores . I probably spend about $ 250 a month on food . I could spend a lot less if I didn ' t care about eating well . Do you have health insurance ? Yes . I ' m self - employed so I purchase my own plan . I have a high - deductible plan and pay $ 80 per month . It would be even cheaper if I was 28 . I don ' t understand young people who say , " I can ' t afford health insurance . " Last year , my appendix ruptured , and the insurance was a life - saver . I learned my lesson . What about clothes ? I ' m a pretty basic jeans and T - shirt kind of guy . I don ' t have to go to the office , so I don ' t need a wardrobe . I have nine to 10 shirts and a couple pairs of jeans . I do have a suit so I can get dolled up when I have to , but my normal wardrobe is pretty minimal . I do one load of laundry every week , and I don ' t see the point of owning more clothes than I can do in one load of laundry . Do you spend money on entertainment ? I don ' t go out much at all . I prefer the food I make to what I get in restaurants . More often than not , I ' m disappointed . I ' m pretty health - conscious and I want my food to be real food , so I ' m content eating what I make . The idea of spending $ 30 at a restaurant -- that seems like four to five days ' worth of food to me . Years ago , I ate out every single meal . I ' m kicking myself now , if only I had invested that money instead . I ' m not a big drinker , although I drink somewhat socially . I ' m a pretty simple guy . Music is my life . Even if I ' m not working , if I have a free day , I will spend a big chunk doing music . It ' s a profession and a hobby . Do you splurge on anything ? The food I eat . I don ' t feel like I ' m skimping at all . It ' s a form of health insurance to me . And I just try to put myself in interesting places . I ' m surprised how easy it is to do that . A lot of stuff is free out there . There ' s a lot of beautiful scenery in this country and it doesn ' t cost anything just to park . You can just drive into a national forest and live there for two weeks . I always try to give myself great real estate , whether it ' s by an ocean , a lake , or in the center of a cool little town . So I always have a great front yard , real estate that people would pay millions of dollars for , and it doesn ' t cost me anything . I ' m pretty frugal otherwise , and I don ' t miss it . I used to be part of the whole consumerist cycle , buying stuff I didn ' t need , and I don ' t do that anymore . It ' s liberating . I can maximize my savings . That ' s true freedom , to get to the point where I can say no to work anytime I want because I have a big enough nest egg . I ' m not there yet , but that ' s my goal . Do you have a retirement account ? Yes , I ' m an avid investor . I guard my nest egg like crowned jewels . But I don ' t see myself ever retiring . I love what I do . I ' d much rather do what I love and live small , and enjoy life . This article is part of a series related to being Financially Fit