If you are new to homesteading, you should know that technically, you can be a homesteader almost anywhere with only a little bit of land... technically. But honestly, you're going to have a tough time homesteading if you don't find a good piece of land with certain features. In this video, An American Homestead explains what features to look … [Read more...]
Warning for Everyone About to Start Homesteading
The Youtube channel, Homesteady, always makes high-quality videos. The production values--music, lighting, imagery--are great, and Aust and Kendra always have good advice. If you've never seen their channel, the video below is a pretty good introduction. The topic of this video is for people who are about to start homesteading, and it's a … [Read more...]
5 Tips for Buying a Homestead
Thinking of buying a homestead? Good for you! You're about to begin a difficult but satisfying journey that will change your life forever. You might be eager to get started, but before you rush out and purchase a piece of land, you need to spend some time learning all you can about buying land. And one of the best ways to do that is to hear … [Read more...]
Top 10 States for Living Off the Grid
You can live off the grid just about anywhere, but some locales are more suited for a self-reliant lifestyle than others. There are many “best places to live off grid” lists floating around on the internet, but the majority of them focus on just one key aspect of setting up an off-grid homestead: weather. Yes, weather and climate are very … [Read more...]
14 Towns Where You Can Find Free Land
There was a time when getting free land in the United States was relatively easy. Thanks to the Homestead Act of 1862, anyone who was willing to stay put and farm for five years could claim a 160-acre plot of land. Of course, that was over 150 years ago, and the days of free land are far behind us. Or are they? If you're willing to move, there … [Read more...]
How To Buy Your Dream Homestead: 55 Financial Tips
Do you yearn for your very own homestead but just can’t figure out how to afford it? You are not alone. Fortunately for you and tens of thousands of potential homesteaders and prepper retreat dreamers, the government might actually be here to help for once. While “free land” for homesteading and farming doesn't really exist anymore, in spite of … [Read more...]
10 Mistakes People Make When Going Off the Grid
After I graduated from high school, my parents decided to go off the grid in case the Y2K bug turned out to be a disaster, among other reasons. The problem is, they weren't as knowledgeable as they thought they were. After decades of occasionally reading magazines like Mother Earth News, they thought they knew a lot about off-grid living, but it … [Read more...]
18 Tips For Buying An Affordable Property For Getting Out Of Dodge
Do you ever dream of running to the hills and leaving the city behind forever? I don't blame you. It seems like society is getting more dysfunctional every year. Unfortunately, it's not as easy as packing for vacation and shopping for a hotel online. Moving off the grid is a huge undertaking that is very expensive if you don't know what you're … [Read more...]
Creating a Homestead Business: Legalities and Liabilities
One of the best things about owning a homestead is having extra food that you can sell. It's just one of many ways you can make money homesteading. However, it's not as simple as throwing some food in a bag and trading it for cash. If you're not careful, you could get sued or even imprisoned. I have mixed feelings about all the rules and … [Read more...]
9 Tips for New Homesteaders
If you are thinking of homesteading or are just starting out, you probably have been immersing yourself in tons of information and advice. Maybe some of it is helpful; maybe some it is confusing. And just maybe, you are feeling overwhelmed. Yes, there is a lot to learn, but no, you don’t have to learn it all at once. You couldn’t even if you … [Read more...]
8 Worst Mistakes New Homesteaders Make
Living a self-sustainable lifestyle on a homestead where you can take care of your own land, plants, and animals can be very satisfying. For many people, the idea of not being dependent (or at least less dependent) on outside sources for food or other resources makes them feel free. If homesteading appeals to you for the same reasons, you … [Read more...]
How Much Land Do You Need For Homesteading?
Through several email conversations, I've learned that many of the people visiting this site don't actually have a homestead yet. They're doing what they can where they live, but for most of them, having a chunk of land for homesteading is a long-term goal. This is great, but when setting goals, it's best to have a specific plan rather than … [Read more...]
10 Ways to Find Simplicity On The Homestead
Many people have a romantic view of the homestead life: enjoying the fresh air, watching their animals, sipping iced tea, and so forth. The reality is that homesteading is a lot of work. A lot. Not that you won't have any downtime, but in all likelihood, you'll be much busier than you were in the city, especially in the beginning. If you … [Read more...]
Interview With a Tiny House Homesteader
Sometimes the very best resource comes from the minds of those who are doing things a little differently. Funny enough, when you talk about homesteading, you are talking about such a unique experience because every piece of land is different and every homesteader’s challenges are different. In this article, the author offers up a great … [Read more...]
Starting a Homestead? Better Watch This Video First!
I love a cautionary tale. I think the internet is full of things that just sound too easy. We have an army of articles written by experts, but they are written without a basis of the lack of knowledge the reader will possess. It’s within these cautionary tales that we often find ourselves having second thoughts about things rather than diving … [Read more...]
3 Things to Think About Before Going Off Grid
So you want to go off the grid... But have you asked yourself why you want to go off grid? You no doubt have several reasons, but it's important to articulate those reasons. Discuss them with your family and make sure everyone is on the same page. Why is doing this so important? Because there is more than one way to go off grid. Are you going … [Read more...]
Homesteading: The Dirty Truth
Since this site is brand new, I'm going to spend the first few months focusing on information for brand new homesteaders and people thinking about homesteading. The thing about most homestead articles and videos is they tend to focus on all the good stuff: fresh produce, canned food, pretty barns, cute animals, lovely countrysides, and so forth. … [Read more...]
