'I quit the rental market to live in a van with my dog - and I feel so free'

Nicole Keefe, a photographer from Newcastle, bid farewell to the endless cycle of UK rentals and embraced life on four wheels with her faithful pooch, McCartney.

Having been no stranger to packing up and moving — clocking in 18 different addresses in her lifetime — the 27-year-old took a leap of faith in September 2023. After a car accident left her vehicle written off, she splashed out £8,500 on a converted Ford Transit van and set off on an adventure that's never really stopped.

Originally parking near her day job as a fashion photographer, her weekends soon blossomed into explorations of the UK's most charming spots from the peaks of to North Wales' rugged coastlines.

READ MORE:

It wasn't long before Nicole traded her 9-5 for the cleansing charm of a Dorset campsite and eventually, she went freelance – snapping pics, sprucing up businesses' social media, and content creation.

She said: "I spend about £650 a month – that's less than I ever spent on rent and now I have more choice on what I spend my money on. I used to live month to month, I couldn't have a social life and I couldn't just buy myself anything."

The open road has been kind to Nicole and McCartney, with the pair finding freedom and a sense of self she never knew: "McCartney is so happy living in the van with me, he loves it, and I've become the best version of myself. I'm more confident and feel so free but settled... I can't see myself ever really going back to a 9-5 job."

Over the years, Nicole has lived in 18 different houses, moving frequently as a child, and later because of "things not going right" with partners in adulthood.

However, she ended up "following a typical path", earning a degree at Coventry University from 2016 to 2020 and later working full-time as a photographer in a fashion studio in Washington, Tyne and Wear.

After three years in the role, Nicole felt "unfulfilled and just miserable." Despite having "worked hard and worked (her) way up", she was still struggling to afford rent and felt she would "almost never" be able to own a home.

According to Rightmove, the majority of properties sold in Washington during the last year were terraced properties, selling for an average price of £126,930.

Around the same time, her car was written off, prompting her to buy a van to live in. In September 2023, she bought a converted Ford Transit on Marketplace for around £8,500.

She said: "It was all very minimalist .... I kept the base the same. There's a kitchen area, sink, bed, solar panels and I added in a fridge, gas camping hob and air fryer and got a new mattress.

"I made it a bit more me adding in some leopard print and just decorating it over time."

While looking for a remote job, she stayed in her 9-5, living in the van and parking in a nearby car park, travelling the country at weekends. In June 2024, she found a campsite cleaning job in a Facebook group for nomads.

After a virtual interview, she was offered the role an hour later so she quit her job and moved to Dorset two weeks later. She worked there for three months and used her weekends to explore the south coast.

She maintains contact with her friends and family, frequently FaceTiming her long-distance partner, and is particularly thankful for the company of her dog.

"When I was moving house all the time it would always take McCartney a month or two to get settled," she explained. "He would cry and bark if he was left alone in the house but he got used to the van in two days and I think he loves his routine."

When she does have to leave him alone in the van, she checks on him regularly and uses a steering wheel lock for security.

After spending three months in Dorset, Nicole felt rejuvenated and more driven. She took up a job at a coffee shop in Winchester while building her freelance work, eventually becoming a full-time content creator for businesses, a photographer, and social media manager in December 2024.

Her online presence under the handle @thevanclub_ has since grown, boasting over 4,500 followers on TikTok and around 1,800 on .

So far, Nicole's travels have taken her to locations such as Snowdonia, Cornwall, Warwickshire, Scotland, and various parts of the North East.

During her travels, she parks in 24-hour car parks or on the roadside, noting that her Transit van is "quite discreet" and she always ensures to "respect the space, not leaving a trace."

Nicole's monthly expenses, which include fuel, gas, wi-fi, gym membership, and van repayments, amount to around £650. Since embracing the van life, she feels more self-assured and says this is her "favourite version" of herself.

She has plans to continue her van life for the next four years and even if she eventually purchases a house, she intends to keep the van for weekend getaways, converting it into a home office when it's no longer roadworthy.