We live rent-free in strangers’ houses with our children – saved over £20k in 8 months and lived off Bag for Life

IMAGINE living a life without rent or mortgage, without the worry of having to pay a single penny for household bills.

It sounds like a dream scenario, but it’s exactly like that for Nikki Robson, 43, and her husband Ry, 40, who “live” in houses owned by strangers.

Even better, they managed to save over £20,000 on living costs after selling most of their possessions and increasing their value.

Since last September they have been on a housekeeping odyssey with their two young children and all Nikki and Ry have to do in exchange for the free roof over their heads is take care of the owners’ pets and plants.

Nikki says: “Aside from the £99 babysitting website membership fee, we’ve spent nothing on accommodation in 11 months and saved over £20,000 on rent and bills.

“We’re on a mission to save money.”

‘We each have a scholarship for life’

So far, the family has stayed in 16 homes across the UK and Europe for anywhere from four days to six weeks at a time, meaning they have to travel as light as possible.

“We have a lifetime bag for clothes and shoes, as well as another bag for toys for the children. We also have two laptops, toiletries and a bag or two of food,” adds Nikki.

The family’s monthly rent at their former home in Whitstable, Kent, was £1,200 and bills came to around £400-£500.

Now, Nikki says her only expenses are two cell phones, food, car and travel insurance, gas, and Nikki’s minimum costs for her online business @blossomandstardust, which sells nature-based educational resources.

She says: “If we go on a day off, we usually use our Tesco Clubcard points.”

‘We took children out of school’

The family turned their backs on “normal” life in June 2023 after Nikki and Ry, a musician, became fed up with the rising cost of living.

They decided to take their children Ziggy, eight, and Cherry Blossom, seven, out of school, signaling the start of a new life for the family of four.

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Nikki recalls: “We took the kids out of school and left in a converted van.

“Our goal was to travel during the summer and see what happened.

“We had a lot of festivals lined up where I would do workshops in the children’s area for my craft business or where Ry would play in exchange for tickets for the weekend. It was a really fun experience with the kids.”

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‘We quickly realized how easy it was’

However, a few months later, the family realized that life on the road wasn’t so fantastic.

Nikki explains: “We really enjoyed van life, but with the cost of fuel and repairs, it was more expensive than we anticipated, so we turned to housekeeping. We sold the van and bought a tiny car for £900.

The more we did this, the less attractive it became to spend £1,700 on rent and bills!”

Nikki Robson

“A friend of ours regularly looked after the house during the holidays and I thought it was a good idea for us until we decided on our next move.

“We signed up to the same babysitting site as her and quickly realized how easy it was and how much money we could save.

“The more we did this, the less attractive it became to spend £1,700 on rent and bills!”

Luxurious living – for free

Housekeeping not only helped the family save money, but also allowed them to see places most can only dream of, including Switzerland, the French Alps, Paris, the Netherlands, the Scottish Highlands, as well as several locations in England.

Nikki says: “We stayed in three sophisticated houses with games rooms including table tennis.

“A house in Surrey had 25 acres of private land. We also stayed in a mansion in the Scottish Highlands that was previously owned by Mohamed Al-Fayed and overlooked a lake.

“We spent a magical white Christmas there, looking after two Highland cows.

“We also stayed in a luxury apartment in Switzerland overlooking Lake Zurich and a traditional wooden chalet in the French Alps with a fireplace and mountain views.

“There was even a climbing wall in the children’s room!”

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Double bed drama

In exchange for offering free accommodation, owners – often on holiday – get peace of mind knowing that their pets and their homes are well looked after.

Nikki explains: “We water the plants, keep the house clean and look after your pets, which means the animals can maintain their daily routine rather than going to catteries or kennels.

“Although the owners don’t normally stock the fridge, they often leave us welcome gifts of treats or some vegetables and fruit.”

But Nikki says running the house full-time comes with downsides.

“We like to eat healthy and it’s hard to do that when you’re constantly on the move. We ended up spending more money on food than we would have when living in a single house, but we saved a lot of money overall,” she adds.

And sleep can also be a problem.

“Ry and I had a super king bed in our old house and I don’t understand how people can sleep comfortably on a regular double bed!” Nikki laughs.

Home comforts

As for the kids, Nikki admits they miss things like attending regular clubs like gymnastics and seeing friends in Whitstable.

She says: “The kids grew up moving around and traveling a lot, so this is quite normal for them.

“As we move around, we always look for local homeschool groups and they interact and find friends as we go.”

Although the kids’ relationships are currently short-term, Nikki believes they have the potential to make lifelong friends and says the positives for Ziggy and Cherry Blossom far outweigh the negatives.

“They have pen pals, they play with kids who don’t speak the same language, and they see kids living completely different lifestyles than they do, so they gain perspective on the world,” she explains.

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Flexibility is key

Nikki says it’s a common misconception that homeschooled children don’t have opportunities to socialize.

“Ziggy and Blossom have brilliant social skills and feel confident and comfortable in almost any situation,” she says.

“Learning happens naturally in everything they do. We are members of English Heritage – we always check out local sites – we also do ‘home’ projects and they read it every day,” says Nikki.

The family’s flexibility is key to their success, booking home shows a few months in advance and remaining adaptable to their locations.

During breaks, they visit friends or family, always ensuring they have a place to stay.

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No weight of bills

Recently, her nomadic lifestyle was put to the test when Cherry Blossom was diagnosed with genetic kidney disease, FSGS and had to spend two weeks in hospital.

Nikki, who shares her family’s adventures on her Instagram profile @travelsandtantrumsexplains: “Neither Ry nor I could work during this period, and for the next three months we had to stay within a certain radius of Evelina Hospital in London for weekly appointments.

“Of course it would have been nice to have a home base during this time, but not having the burden of paying rent or bills was actually a huge relief.”

For now, Nikki and Ry are happy to continue this lifestyle as long as the kids like it.

The family’s dream is to save enough money by taking care of their home to eventually buy their own land and live off the grid.

Nikki says: “It’s a wonderful way to save money whilst having amazing family travel experiences.

“I hope that one day, in the not too distant future, we will be in our little wooden cabin of our dreams, with a vegetable garden and goats and chickens roaming around.”

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