Home Is a Boat, an RV, or a Van: The 360,000 Americans Who Live in One (2024)
Most of them own it outright, and their median household income is less than half the nation’s. A count of the households whose home is a boat, RV, or van, from Census microdata.
Key findings
- In 2024 1-Year, about 199,417 occupied U.S. homes (±8,371) were a boat, RV, or van, housing roughly 359,395 people.
- That is only about 15.0 of every 10,000 occupied homes, so it is a rare way to live, not a rounding error: the count is far larger than the "van life" image suggests.
- Most are owned, not rented: 53.1% are owned free and clear and 69.3% are owned outright or with a loan, while only 19.5% pay rent (for a slip, pad, or space).
- Their median household income was $38,580, versus $81,220 for all occupied homes, so these households earn under half the national middle income.
- They cluster in the Sun Belt and the Pacific coast: Texas, California, Florida lead by count.
The Census Bureau classifies every occupied home by the kind of structure it is, and one of those categories is "Boat, RV, van, etc." This looks at the households whose home falls in that category, using the 2024 1-Year American Community Survey Public Use Microdata Sample. These are occupied dwellings (owner- and renter-occupied), weighted with the housing-unit weight (WGTP). "Owned free and clear" means no mortgage or loan on the dwelling; "rented" typically means paying for a slip, pad, or space rather than the vehicle itself. Incomes are shown in constant 2024 dollars using the Census income-adjustment factor (ADJINC).
Boat, RV, and van homes, 2024 1-Year
Who owns, and how much they earn
Where boat, RV, and van homes concentrate
| Occupied homes | Occupied boat/RV/van homes |
|---|---|
| Texas | 29,514 |
| California | 22,149 |
| Florida | 18,651 |
| Arizona | 12,907 |
| Washington | 12,076 |
| Alabama | 8,228 |
| Tennessee | 6,840 |
| Oregon | 6,537 |
| Georgia | 5,617 |
| North Carolina | 5,378 |
| Oklahoma | 5,084 |
| Missouri | 5,075 |
Only states with enough sampled units to be reliable are shown; bars are point estimates and the table lists margins of error.
Leading states
| State | Boat/RV/van homes | People | Per 10k homes | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 29,514 ± 3,224 | 54,478 | 25.8 | 338 |
| California | 22,149 ± 2,837 | 38,961 | 16.1 | 241 |
| Florida | 18,651 ± 2,928 | 35,842 | 20.4 | 205 |
| Arizona | 12,907 ± 2,143 | 21,527 | 43.3 | 138 |
| Washington | 12,076 ± 2,157 | 21,887 | 38.1 | 121 |
| Alabama | 8,228 ± 1,946 | 11,852 | 40.0 | 72 |
| Tennessee | 6,840 ± 1,581 | 12,520 | 23.4 | 82 |
| Oregon | 6,537 ± 1,340 | 12,433 | 37.5 | 90 |
| Georgia | 5,617 ± 1,482 | 13,290 | 13.3 | 60 |
| North Carolina | 5,378 ± 1,650 | 9,607 | 12.0 | 56 |
| Oklahoma | 5,084 ± 1,324 | 7,931 | 31.7 | 68 |
| Missouri | 5,075 ± 1,612 | 9,112 | 19.8 | 50 |
Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level, from 80 replicate weights. Sample is the unweighted number of such homes surveyed in each state.
Data Sources & Methodology
The figures on this page are computed directly from the source data below. Narrative text accompanies the figures but never generates them.
American Community Survey (ACS) Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS)
- Publisher:
- U.S. Census Bureau
- Vintage:
- 2024 1-Year
- Access:
- BigQuery
- Cadence:
- annual
De-identified individual person and housing records from the American Community Survey, the Census Bureau’s largest household survey. The 1-year PUMS file lets analysts compute custom estimates for demographic, social, economic, and housing characteristics down to the Public Use Microdata Area (PUMA) level.
The ACS is a continuous survey that samples households throughout the year. The 2024 1-year PUMS file is a sample of de-identified person and housing records collected over calendar year 2024, representing the resident population of the United States.
Every record carries a sampling weight (PWGTP for persons, WGTP for housing units) that expands the sample to population and housing-unit totals. All statistics on this page are weighted estimates; any unweighted record counts are shown only to convey sample size.
Margins of error are computed from the 80 replicate weights supplied with the PUMS file using the Census Bureau’s successive-difference replication method, and are reported at the 90% confidence level unless stated otherwise.
Sub-state estimates use Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs), statistical areas of at least 100,000 residents. The 2020-vintage PUMA boundaries apply to 2022 and later ACS data.
- PUMS is a sample of roughly one percent of the population, so every estimate carries sampling error; small subgroups and small geographies have wider margins of error.
- Figures are survey estimates, not a complete count, and can differ from administrative records or the full ACS tabulations.
- Dollar amounts reflect the survey year and are not adjusted for inflation across vintages unless explicitly noted.
- PUMA boundaries are redrawn after each decennial census, which breaks strict geographic comparability across the boundary change.
How these figures were produced
- Estimate type:
- Weighted survey estimate (housing-unit level)
- Weighting:
- WGTP (housing-unit weight)
- Confidence level:
- 90%
- Error estimation:
- Successive-difference replication over 80 replicate weights
Suggested citation
U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 1-Year American Community Survey Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS). Analysis by Matt George, itsmattgeorge.com. Retrieved 2026-10-15.