Silicon Valley is a gold rush type of town. In these environments, people are willing to live very minimally in the manner you describe. Van dwellers all around MV and PA are proof of that. There's euphoria in the air and a sense that nothing else matters. But to the rest of the world, or even here if/when the gold rush ends, people (even very poor people) settle into their normal lives and start to demand a little more comfort and convenience.