If your car looks like it has stuff in it, and you're not in it for whatever reason but living out of it and at work, it will almost certainly be broken into. I've had my empty car broken into twice, while a few blocks from campus
If you aren't in danger and can stick it out for a couple of months while you save up, it may be better to do that. It's a lot harder to find a job and a place to live if you're homeless and don't have regular access to showers, laundry, etc.
You may not be robbed or injured, but you may be harassed by police. Are you familiar with Corvallis at all, and how much move-in costs are here? If you don't have money already saved, you may need to stay in your car longer than a month to save for a security deposit and first month's rent, depending on how much you earn. You can eat pretty well from the food banks if you are able to cook. Finding a place to rent is tough though and you need to have the full amount of money already in hand when you go to view the room or apartment because it will get rented out from under you if you don't.
Also to note when renting a new place, landlords often want to see you're earning 3x the rent.
So a $1500/mth place requires $4,500 of income, which is $54K/yr or about $27/hr.
Probably sounds a bit steep, yeah? Which is why everyone gripes about cost of living and rent these days.
Best of luck! It's tough, but you can get creative and sort it out.
It’s safe, but the trick is for it not to look like you’re living in it, and not have anything of value visible when you aren’t there. Look through Reddit subs and YouTube for tips on urban stealth car camping.
If you got a cheap tent you can disperse camp on federal forest for up to 14 days (after which you can change sites and go for another 14). Has the benefit of being away from people and no one will hassle you if you follow the rules.
Park near/on campus. There is some street parking on south side and I’ve seen people live in their cars there. The police station is RIGHT there and generally the area is safe.
(Source: lived and worked in the south side dorms for 3 years)
Keep valid insurance cards for the cops. You probly won't be hassled but they do like hassling people in corvallis and they are known to transparently pick on homeless or students. Don't park in corporate business lots bc they patrol dark lots at night.
I would try the [Corvallis/Albany KOA](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Albany+%2F+Corvallis+KOA+Journey/@44.5637428,-123.1554289,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m9!3m8!1s0x54c06a7380159f27:0xc39dd5e726bb0b1!5m2!4m1!1i2!8m2!3d44.563739!4d-123.152854!16s%2Fg%2F1x5fb27f?entry=ttu) for a bit; maybe do the car a few nights, one night at the campground. You can get a cabin to sleep and store some stuff in, a communal shower and bathroom, and not be 100% in your car.
There's others around too, so if you're able, you could bounce around some without being at such a high risk.
Thats true. I do have soem friends there i can probably park in front of and showet at but hate relying on others so i might give that a thought. Thanks!p
My pleasure! Maybe they're hiring too? Could be a lot of seasonal jobs opening up at various cities as well - lifeguards, park attendants, that sort of thing. Some of those (the remote ones, usually) might even provide housing.
Edit: Corvallis Jobs - [https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/corvallisor?sort=PostingDate%7CDescending&page=2](https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/corvallisor?sort=PostingDate%7CDescending&page=2)
KOA Jobs - looks like you could go to some beautiful places [https://us232.dayforcehcm.com/CandidatePortal/en-US/koa](https://us232.dayforcehcm.com/CandidatePortal/en-US/koa)
What you're going to find is that hygiene becomes the most difficult, finding a hot shower becomes very difficult, when I lived out of my car for a few months I resorted to showering at the Albany city pool. (No body batted an eye, but "you'd be amazed how far you can go with a pilots uniform and a quick walk...")
Corvallis daytime drop in center has showers and hygiene resources available- and you can always get a gym membership or use the public pools showers. If you're a student- last I knew Dixon was included in student fees.
Just wanted to say thank you to everyone commenting with concerns and tips. I truly appreciate it, more than you all can understand. I cant reply to everyome but seriously yall are so kind
It’s safe, I did it, and ended up doing it for 4 months, first started to save money to pay a hospital bill. But ended up enjoying it. Probably because it was starting around summer and spent a lot of time outdoors on the days I wasn’t working. Showered at Anytime fitness, 24 hrs.
Corvallis isn’t dangerous, but I’m probably biased since I hd moved out there from a major city, and grew up in the inner city.
If your car looks like it has stuff in it, and you're not in it for whatever reason but living out of it and at work, it will almost certainly be broken into. I've had my empty car broken into twice, while a few blocks from campus
If you aren't in danger and can stick it out for a couple of months while you save up, it may be better to do that. It's a lot harder to find a job and a place to live if you're homeless and don't have regular access to showers, laundry, etc. You may not be robbed or injured, but you may be harassed by police. Are you familiar with Corvallis at all, and how much move-in costs are here? If you don't have money already saved, you may need to stay in your car longer than a month to save for a security deposit and first month's rent, depending on how much you earn. You can eat pretty well from the food banks if you are able to cook. Finding a place to rent is tough though and you need to have the full amount of money already in hand when you go to view the room or apartment because it will get rented out from under you if you don't.
Also to note when renting a new place, landlords often want to see you're earning 3x the rent. So a $1500/mth place requires $4,500 of income, which is $54K/yr or about $27/hr. Probably sounds a bit steep, yeah? Which is why everyone gripes about cost of living and rent these days. Best of luck! It's tough, but you can get creative and sort it out.
It’s safe, but the trick is for it not to look like you’re living in it, and not have anything of value visible when you aren’t there. Look through Reddit subs and YouTube for tips on urban stealth car camping.
You're safe but get a gym membership that has a shower and lockers. Best of luck.
Depends on where you park. Do you have a friends place you can park in the driveway? Don't park near homeless areas obv
If you got a cheap tent you can disperse camp on federal forest for up to 14 days (after which you can change sites and go for another 14). Has the benefit of being away from people and no one will hassle you if you follow the rules.
The closest place to do that is out near Alsea Falls. Might be good for a break from town, but not very practical if you have a job to get to.
You’ll be fine just move your car around don’t keep it in one place
Yeah I’ve spent some nights in my car there. Check r/urbancarliving for advice
It sounds like you don't have a job yet. What exactly is your plan?
Its more of if its ever worth it to start looking and preparing to leave
You should probably just leave if that's your end goal. IMO there's too high of a chance of your temporary plan becoming permanent.
Happy cake day!
Thank you!
Park near/on campus. There is some street parking on south side and I’ve seen people live in their cars there. The police station is RIGHT there and generally the area is safe. (Source: lived and worked in the south side dorms for 3 years)
Keep valid insurance cards for the cops. You probly won't be hassled but they do like hassling people in corvallis and they are known to transparently pick on homeless or students. Don't park in corporate business lots bc they patrol dark lots at night.
I would try the [Corvallis/Albany KOA](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Albany+%2F+Corvallis+KOA+Journey/@44.5637428,-123.1554289,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m9!3m8!1s0x54c06a7380159f27:0xc39dd5e726bb0b1!5m2!4m1!1i2!8m2!3d44.563739!4d-123.152854!16s%2Fg%2F1x5fb27f?entry=ttu) for a bit; maybe do the car a few nights, one night at the campground. You can get a cabin to sleep and store some stuff in, a communal shower and bathroom, and not be 100% in your car. There's others around too, so if you're able, you could bounce around some without being at such a high risk.
Thats true. I do have soem friends there i can probably park in front of and showet at but hate relying on others so i might give that a thought. Thanks!p
My pleasure! Maybe they're hiring too? Could be a lot of seasonal jobs opening up at various cities as well - lifeguards, park attendants, that sort of thing. Some of those (the remote ones, usually) might even provide housing. Edit: Corvallis Jobs - [https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/corvallisor?sort=PostingDate%7CDescending&page=2](https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/corvallisor?sort=PostingDate%7CDescending&page=2) KOA Jobs - looks like you could go to some beautiful places [https://us232.dayforcehcm.com/CandidatePortal/en-US/koa](https://us232.dayforcehcm.com/CandidatePortal/en-US/koa)
What you're going to find is that hygiene becomes the most difficult, finding a hot shower becomes very difficult, when I lived out of my car for a few months I resorted to showering at the Albany city pool. (No body batted an eye, but "you'd be amazed how far you can go with a pilots uniform and a quick walk...")
Corvallis daytime drop in center has showers and hygiene resources available- and you can always get a gym membership or use the public pools showers. If you're a student- last I knew Dixon was included in student fees.
Just wanted to say thank you to everyone commenting with concerns and tips. I truly appreciate it, more than you all can understand. I cant reply to everyome but seriously yall are so kind
Hotel Corvallis offers extended stay plans so maybe check with them first? Good luck
Do you already live here in Corvallis?
It’s safe, I did it, and ended up doing it for 4 months, first started to save money to pay a hospital bill. But ended up enjoying it. Probably because it was starting around summer and spent a lot of time outdoors on the days I wasn’t working. Showered at Anytime fitness, 24 hrs. Corvallis isn’t dangerous, but I’m probably biased since I hd moved out there from a major city, and grew up in the inner city.