For more than a year and a half, the prominent personal finance personality known as Mr. Money Mustache has been publicly championing a new kind of urban development: a completely car-free, walkable, and bikeable community in Arizona called Culdesac Tempe. Now, he is taking his own advice, packing up his electric vehicle, and moving there for the winter.
The move marks a major milestone for the blogger, whose real name is Peter Adeney, as he enters a new chapter of life following nearly two decades of early retirement. When Adeney first stepped away from his demanding career in the tech industry back in 2005, his primary motivation was straightforward: freedom. Specifically, he wanted the autonomy to devote his best working hours to raising his son, suspecting that a traditional corporate ladder climb would leave little room for active, hands-on fatherhood.
Eighteen years later, that calculated risk has yielded a deeply fulfilling life adventure. Reflecting on the passage of time, Adeney notes that it has been thirteen years since he first wrote about his son starting kindergarten—a milestone that now gives way to high school graduation. That long-stretch of early retirement provided the necessary space to experience new ventures, navigate through genuine hardships, and embrace a slower pace of life when circumstances demanded it.
Now, with the intensive child-raising phase drawing to a close, Adeney is cashing in a portion of his metaphorical "freedom chips" for a significant lifestyle pivot. On the first of December, he plans to pack his essential clothing, tools, gadgets, and a prized mountain bike onto a Tesla Model Y for a road trip across the mountains, escaping the approaching Colorado winter alongside his son.
Transitioning to a Car-Free Community
Adeney and his son have booked a spacious two-bedroom apartment for a four-month stay at Culdesac Tempe. Under the arrangement, his son will split his time between Arizona and Colorado to maintain a routine with both parents, while Adeney will remain in Tempe for the duration of the winter season.
For Adeney, the relocation is designed to disrupt his daily routines, forcing him to invent an entirely new lifestyle away from the familiar comforts of his established Colorado community and the active construction projects that frequently occupy his time. This deliberate disruption, he argues, is a necessary mechanism for keeping life engaging and meaningful.
While the Tesla Model Y will serve as an electric moving truck for the long-distance trek, carrying two people and four months’ worth of supplies, its role will change drastically upon arrival. Once settled in Tempe, the vehicle will be parked offsite, allowing Adeney to fully immerse himself in the car-free lifestyle promoted by the community. Daily errands and local travel will rely on walking, cycling, the adjacent light rail system, and the neighborhood’s on-site bike, scooter, and vehicle-sharing options.
A Broader Statement on Deliberate Hardship
Beyond the personal enjoyment of a warm winter and a new community of peers, Adeney views the move as part of a larger philosophy regarding intentional life changes. In a prosperous society, he points out, human tendencies often lean toward comfort-seeking behaviors—defaulting to streaming entertainment, convenience foods, and routine luxuries once basic shelter and food are secured.
To counteract this natural drift toward complacency, Adeney advocates for setting life’s personal treadmill to a slightly steeper, healthier incline. This philosophy involves questioning the status quo and introducing deliberate challenges, whether through relocation, pursuing a better work-life balance, or challenging the body with new physical routines and environments.
This mindset is rooted in personal history. Twenty-four years ago, Adeney made the bold move to leave his family, friends, and previous life behind to move to the United States alone at age 24. Looking back, he acknowledges that while pulling off such a move today would feel daunting given his current comfort levels, he remains deeply grateful for the foundational courage of his past self.
To reinforce these ideas, Adeney points to recent readings, including the book Dopamine Nation by psychiatrist and author Dr. Anna Lembke. The central premise explores how the human brain establishes a baseline for happiness based on the most demanding activities it undertakes. According to this framework, willingly engaging in hard tasks makes everyday life feel more rewarding, whereas eliminating all hardship can render normal pleasures bland and unmotivating.
Managing Home Base and Looking Ahead
While Adeney establishes his winter base in Arizona, his property in Colorado will also undergo a temporary transformation. His main home features a two-bedroom upper level and a separate lower-level apartment with its own entrance. While normally used as a single unified living space to host a steady stream of visiting friends, the setup allows for a practical application of the Mustachian principle of generating income while traveling. Over the winter, he hopes to rent out one section of the home to a trusted acquaintance who can keep an eye on the property, while leaving the remaining space available for his own periodic visits back north.
As for what lies beyond the four-month experiment, Adeney maintains an open-ended perspective. Once March concludes, he plans to return to his Colorado home base, though the experience will undoubtedly inform his future adventures. Whether the experiment serves as a blueprint for long-term seasonal migration or simply another chapter in a life defined by intentional choices, updates on the Culdesac residency will continue to be tracked through his dedicated online page.