Temporary Housing After a House Fire: Live in an RV on Your Own Property

By Mike Wojciak, founder, Agile RV Housing. Published November 12, 2026. Last updated November 12, 2026.

Agile RV Housing places a furnished travel trailer or fifth wheel on your own property while your house is repaired after a fire, and it is usually paid through the additional living expense part of your homeowners policy. Your family sleeps under one roof again, at your own address, close to the contractor and the school.

What should a family do in the first days after a house fire?

In the first days after a house fire, call your insurance company, stay out until the fire department says it's safe, protect the property, and save every receipt. Most families spend those first nights in a hotel, which is the right call. Once your adjuster approves the housing, your family can move into a furnished RV on the lot.

• Call your insurance company right away and ask what to do first. The U.S. Fire Administration's After the Fire guide puts this first.
• Don't go back inside until the fire department says it's safe.
• Don't turn the utilities back on yourself. Ready.gov says the fire department makes sure utilities are safe to use or disconnected before it leaves.
• Protect the property from more damage or theft. That can mean boarding up windows and doors. Oregon's insurance regulator also says not to rush into repairs before you get instructions from your adjuster (Oregon DFR).
• Save every receipt for money you spend because of the fire: the hotel, meals, laundry, and storage (Washington Office of the Insurance Commissioner).
• When your adjuster is assigned, ask about a furnished RV on your property. Agile RV Housing sends the written estimate your adjuster needs.

A hotel works for the first week. Over the months a fire repair takes, a family of five ends up split across two rooms with no kitchen, and the dog may be boarded somewhere else. That's when an RV on your own lot makes sense.

What does the RV on your property include?

Agile RV Housing delivers a furnished travel trailer or fifth wheel and sets it up in your driveway or side yard. It has a full kitchen, a full bathroom with a shower, heat and air conditioning, beds, and a living area. Linens, bedding, and kitchen utensils come with it, so you aren't rebuying a household after a fire.

Our most common unit is around 40 feet, about as large as an RV gets. The largest floorplans sleep six to eight, with a master bedroom, a bunk room, and a loft for kids. When the driveway or lot has less room, we bring a smaller unit sized to fit.

The kitchen has a stove, microwave, sink, and counter space. Internet is set up for your stay. Pets are always welcome, so the dog stays with the family.

How much does an RV cost compared with the hotel rooms your family needs?

An RV from Agile RV Housing costs $120 to $140 a night, tax included. A family of five needs two hotel rooms, and two rooms cost more per night than one unit in every area in the table below. Delivery and setup are quoted for each property, and your adjuster approves them the same way.

The fair comparison is the hotel rooms your family needs. A unit at the top of our range, $140 a night with tax included, sleeps a family of up to five. That family needs two hotel rooms. Two rooms cost more before anyone adds restaurant meals, pet fees, or laundry, and the RV has its own kitchen.

Agile RV Housing usually bills your insurance company or the temporary housing agency directly, so the housing cost doesn't run through your bank account. Ask your adjuster which payment method applies, and get it in the written approval.

Hotel rates are GSA FY2027 per diem lodging rates, sampled September 8, 2026, the same figures used in our temporary housing cost comparison. The rural row is GSA's standard rate. Each small metro row is the median of GSA's listed localities in that region. The RV rate is Agile RV Housing's published nightly rate. Download this table as a CSV.

How does homeowners insurance pay for the RV, and for how long?

Additional living expense, also called loss of use, is the homeowners coverage that pays the extra cost of living somewhere else while a covered fire leaves your house unlivable. It can pay for an RV on your lot the same way it pays for a hotel. How long it pays depends on your policy and its limit.

The Washington insurance commissioner describes it as paying "the difference between your temporary living expenses and your normal spending" (WA OIC). Oregon's guide to filing a claim after a fire lists meals, rent, and transportation that exceed your normal expenses (Oregon DFR). Your mortgage and your normal groceries stay yours. The added cost of living elsewhere is what the coverage pays.

The limit is on your declarations page. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners puts it plainly: "Some policies have a dollar limit; some may also have a time limitation" (NAIC). Ask your adjuster for both numbers early.

I founded Agile RV Housing, and in my experience a rebuild after a house fire usually takes 4 to 8 months. That range comes from the jobs I have seen, not from published data, and your contractor's schedule is the real answer for your house. Our stay has a 30 day minimum, then runs month to month with no maximum, so the housing lasts as long as the repair. Our placements average about five months.

Keep a copy of the estimate, the written approval, and every invoice. North Carolina's Department of Insurance tells homeowners to keep receipts for all additional living expenses (NC DOI). For the full approval and payment steps, read how homeowners insurance pays for an RV on your property, and for your carrier's own wording, see our loss of use guides by insurance carrier.

Can you live in an RV on your own property while the house is rebuilt?

In many places, yes, with temporary approval from your city or county while the house is repaired or rebuilt. The rules differ by address. Some require a permit, some set a time limit, and most expect power, water, and sewer connections. Our free zoning check confirms the rules for your address.

Rules differ from place to place, and they change. These eight are examples from official sources, not a complete list. For your own address, use our zoning check. Most reports are ready in a few minutes, and if a county's rules need confirmation from our staff, we follow up within one business day. Georgia homeowners can also read our guide to living in an RV on your property in Georgia, which covers city versus county rules. Download this table as a CSV.

You're in a hotel now. How do you switch to an RV on your property?

Ask your adjuster, or the housing agency handling your claim, for a furnished RV on your property. You choose a reasonable temporary housing option, and it doesn't matter how long you've been in the hotel. An RV on your lot is commonly approved even when a hotel was the first option offered. Get the approval in writing before you move.

Here are the words to use with your adjuster: "I'd like to stay on my property in a furnished RV while the house is repaired. Agile RV Housing can send you a written estimate." Then ask, "Can you approve the housing and the nightly rate in writing before we move in?"

Your insurance company may suggest places to stay, and what it approves is the cost of a reasonable option. Agile RV Housing sends the written estimate, and approval is usually one phone call or a short email.

If a national temporary housing agency handles your housing, your coordinator is likely with ALE Solutions, Alacrity, Sedgwick, CRS, or National Corporate Housing. They place displaced families every day, and Agile RV Housing is set up for each one's process and billing. Tell your coordinator you'd like an RV on your property, and that Agile RV Housing can send a written estimate.

How soon can the RV be ready after approval?

Delivery is about four days from approval to move-in. The main variable is scheduling the electrical contractor, and after a fire that often means a temporary power pole. We start the electrical work alongside delivery, not after it.

How do sewer, water, and power work after a fire?

Power is often shut off after a house fire. When it is, a licensed electrician and your utility set a temporary power pole on the property, independent of the house. Water runs from an outside spigot through a drinking water hose and a pressure regulator. Sewer ties into your sewer cleanout with a sealed connection, the septic inlet, or a scheduled pump-out.

Don't try to turn the house's utilities back on yourself. The RV doesn't need them. If the house still has usable service, the electrician can add a dedicated 30 amp or 50 amp RV outlet off the existing panel instead. Family floorplans usually need 50 amp service. Electrical work almost always needs a permit and an inspection.

If the house's water is shut off at the meter, the connection can often be made ahead of the damaged plumbing, or the utility can restore service to an exterior line only. Where no supply works, the unit's fresh water tank is filled on a scheduled delivery.

On septic, we confirm the system has room for the household before connecting. Where there's no cleanout or septic connection, a pump service empties the holding tanks on a schedule, typically weekly or biweekly. Our page on RV power, water, and sewer hookups covers each connection in detail.

Can a family live in the RV through the winter?

Yes. When cold is in the forecast, Agile RV Housing uses four-season units with heated underbellies, heavier insulation, and dual pane windows. We install insulated skirting around the base, heat tape exposed lines, use heated water hoses and tank heaters, and run supplemental heat underneath, so you keep running water through a deep freeze.

A fire rebuild of 4 to 8 months can easily cross into winter, so ask about it when you call. Our winter RV housing page covers the full cold weather setup.

Who do you call to get started?

Call Agile RV Housing at (850) 605-4922. Tell us your insurance company, your claim number if you have one, and the property address. We confirm your coverage with your adjuster, check what your city or county requires for your address, and send the written estimate your adjuster needs.

Our phones are answered 7 am to midnight Eastern, every day, and service techs are on call 24/7 once you've moved in. If you'd rather we call you, use the form below. More about how it works is on our temporary RV housing page.

What else do families ask about housing after a house fire?

Sources checked November 12, 2026: U.S. Fire Administration, After the Fire (FA-46). Ready.gov, Home Fires. Oregon Division of Financial Regulation, Filing a homeowner claim after a fire. Washington Office of the Insurance Commissioner, Additional living expenses coverage. North Carolina Department of Insurance, Basic Homeowners Insurance. National Association of Insurance Commissioners, What are additional living expenses. GSA, Per Diem Rates. The eight local rule sources are linked in the table above.

Call Agile RV Housing at (850) 605-4922, or check the rules for your address.