Your 'Homestead'...Is your main reason for it to Pay?

[moonwolf]

I read a lot of posts that people make about wanting to homestead, but that they feel it has to 'pay' them in some way. In other words, to produce an 'income' from their 'stay' on the homestead and not so much as being 'self sufficient' in the way it might be understood if one 'lived on', or from the fruit's, of working on your land for your own reasons that may not be necessarily for a farm income or an income generated from flipping the real estate worth of property.

What do you think? If you aren't 'farming' or stewarding your land for someone else's benefit and feel to produce an income from that 'need'.....is that your vision of 'homesteading'. Or is it one of more 'self reliant' to yourself and your family, and making your life not the 'need' from your 'stead to produce a further income if you are happy making it a go by being Self Reliant and responsible to the environment around you?

[sammyd]

I'm not too worried about an income from the place. It's nice to turn extra things into a little pocket cash but it's not foremost in my mind.
I would rather pursuse self reliance. Or at least having to bring in the least amount of stuff possible. With the animals I want to have and the amount of land I have, I probably won't reach total self reliance but I think I can get close.

[Lizza]

Won't having the homestead pay actually make you more self reliant not less? You have to have an income of some sort. If you have to do that (make an income) off of the homestead, well, it takes you off of the 'stead. If however you can make some cash from your place you can stay home and have more time to do all of those things that make us that much more self reliant.

Is that what you were asking?

p.s. I should probably add that I don't actually expect my homestead to support our family but money from things we are already doing just makes sense. My biggest goal in selling our "extras" is to pay, hopefully, for our own expenses (such as selling eggs to pay for our grain costs). For an actual income we have a few home businesses we are trying to build up.

[RoseGarden]

I don't think I expect to draw a salary from the place, no. I do expect to be able to generate as much of my food as possible from it, and as my business is based here I do expect to earn some income from it, if nothing else so it will pay it's own way in taxes. Property taxes go up from time to time, and while I do some work that isn't tied to the place, some of what I do *is* tied to the place, therefore it has to pay it's own way. I don't want to have to commute to a job every day (I'm lazy like that) in order to pay for the taxes.

[hillsidedigger]

I think a main reason for homesteading is to 'save' the costs of many commodities, services and activities. Also, to enhance certain qualities of life and to prepare for a time when commodities and services might not be bought for any price.

[DaleK]

I don't have a homestead, I have a farm. 100% of my family income (wife, 3.5 kids, parents) comes from the farm. If for some reason we can't make a living farming, then we'll have to cut it back to a homestead and I'll get a job in town. Hope it doesn't ever come to that.

[Farmerwilly2]

When my grandfather was away in the war, fighting in Russia, he left instructions for my grandmother to slaughter enough rabbits every week for all of the relatives to have meat on Sunday. My mom and uncles would glean coal off the rail tracks or go barefoot to the field to glean wheat to take to the miller. I made an oath to myself as a young child I would be ready for hard times when they came. I figure that's reason enough to have our place. Don't ask more from it than to keep us warm and fed.

[rileyjo]

If I had an outside source of income like a pension, I wouldn't decline it to prove a point. But, I expect a homesteading venture to show a return. My sheep made a small profit, from meat and wool, even during the BSE crisis. I think lambs are very cute, but I see dollar signs when I look at them. I drew up a little business plan for all of my critters and checked against it occasionally to see if what I was doing was feasible. It didn't make my lifestyle choice any less enjoyable - if anything, I grew more passionate and committed.

[Wisconsin Ann]

thoughtful question, Moonwolf.

For myself (and Michael (my SO)) our moving to a homestead is about moving back to the land. having a place to raise our own food. Use the WHOLE animal from the farm...meat, bones for untensils, hide for leather, etc. Using the clay I dig from the hillside (lots of clay there) for pottery. Knowing that the land is taken care of. We're going to practice no till planting. Harvesting the trees as they need to be taken down. Clearing out the brush so the forest can grow as it should (anyone want a few thousand raspberry bushes and HUGE grape vines?)

Michael has a great job. He's happy with it. However, neither of us likes living in town. We enjoy the quiet of the farm. So, we're moving WAY out. 1.25 hour commute for Mike. (that's a lot around here)

Mike likes to build stuff. He's VERY good at designing things using what is on hand. Building with odds and ends without it looking like it's cobbled together.

I'm a crafter. I spin, weave, sew. I also work with clay. And I'm a scrounger.

We're both interested in alternative energy sources. The new house will be underground dome which we will build ourselves. Composting toilets already ordered. No access to mains, so we're off grid. Using veggie oil to run a listeroid engine for electricity. Solar lights in the chicken coop. Wood cook stove.

The plan is to be self sufficient in 5 years. The animals we have will supply not only good food, but their own replacements (and hopefully a few extras for sale animals). The garden will provide food all year (I'm pretty good at canning and drying food). "the garden" also includes 1 acre of bee and bird friendly grasses and plantings.

I know there are morels on the land..lots of them. I could sell them, but most of our friends love them as much as I do, so I reckon they'll mostly get given away this year. There are more berries and grapes than I can possibly use, so I'll invite the friends who want some to come out to pick what they want.

We won't quit the day job. Don't get me wrong..I'd like to make some extra money...who wouldn't? but... We're lucky. Money will be tight for a while, but it's worth it for us. We can afford to try this. Unfortunately, many feel they can't.

[deanm]

Originally Posted by Wisconsin Ann

We won't quit the day job. Don't get me wrong..I'd like to make some extra money...who wouldn't? but... We're lucky. Money will be tight for a while, but it's worth it for us. We can afford to try this. Unfortunately, many feel they can't.

So you won't quit the day jobs even in five years if you become sulf-sufficient?

[Irish Pixie]

I look at my place as a farm rather than a homestead, and I feel it should contribute to it's upkeep and taxes. We have about 70 acres of managed timber, and the farm has been harvested of it's rockpiles. This summer the creek rock will be harvested, and right now we're having hemlock logged. In fact, we're having a lot of hemlock logged as it's crowding out the hardwood. All of our firewood, and we heat entirely with wood, comes out of the woodlot. I use 20 of the 40 open acres as pasture for my horse breeding business which also generates income- some years better than others. The other 20 acres will eventually be hay field, but it takes big money to start a hay field over that's lay fallow for over 25 years so that is a ways down the road.

We also garden and have chickens which increases our self sufficiency.

Stacy

[Spinner]

My homestead pays by saving me the money I would be spending if I couldn't raise meat, veggies & fruit here. That's a lot of money I don't spend at the grocery store. Sometimes I make a little money selling things on the side, but as a general rule, the place is a money saver not a money maker.

[caroline00]

yes, our current main crop is children and the pay we are striving for is happy, healthy children.

we also raise our own meat, veggies and starting to produce fruit.

[gone-a-milkin]

Our place also doesn't make us money..at least not yet. But it saves us tons, plus...how can you compare the satisfaction, flavor, nutrition, and experience?...not in financial terms, in my opinion.

I also harbor some of those "end times" thoughts, and do want to be able to survive and protect my family, if something Big were to happen,[if it isn't already]. Also, it is scary how little Most People know about their food and environment. I want my kids to understand their connection to the Earth.

What an excellent thread. Thanks, Moonwolf.

[moonwolf]

Well, for those who have their land registered as a farm to produce farm income, that's understandable.

We mostly all seem to have to work away from our place we live to 'make a living', and I'm no different. I've gone the route also to grow out some produce to sell via farmer's market, and even have produced income from an 'on site' business on part of the property. It continues in various forms keeping the 'income' going from sources I need to keep living where I live. I don't necessarily see my 'depenendence' on making an income 'on site', but do so 'off site' for an employer elsewhere. The income that I might supplement like others suggest is part of homesteading, but not a main source. I do see a good deal of living on the land is to be self sufficient to grow food for our own source including the wild foraged items (blueberries, edible mushrooms, hunting, fishing). So, it seems to come down to a 'percentage' and 'time' for what we choose to be doing FROM our homestead. If it's a farm to produce farm income, I see that in a different light.

[Wisconsin Ann]

Originally Posted by deanm

So you won't quit the day jobs even in five years if you become sulf-sufficient?

I should clarify: Mike has a day job. He's an engineer. I'm pretty sure he'd keep his job even if he won a big lottery. He does want to be fully self sufficient by the time he retires, tho.

I will be working full time on the homestead. The animals, the garden. Beating the dirty clothes against a rock...er wait..no...no laundry.

I'm a crafter. Jewelry (enameling), spinning, weaving. Pottery. I'd love to find a way to make a lot of money on the farm, but it's the WAY of life that's important to me. Daily chores, caringfor the animals, tending the garden,etc. But it also includes the walks in the woods, listening to the birds, watching the Bald Eagle pair circling in the sky, taking the day and going fishing!, counting the deer tracks thru the backyard, taking a jar of honey to the neighbor and being invited in for coffee....that stuff

[deanm]

Originally Posted by Wisconsin Ann

I should clarify: Mike has a day job. He's an engineer. I'm pretty sure he'd keep his job even if he won a big lottery. He does want to be fully self sufficient by the time he retires, tho.

I will be working full time on the homestead. The animals, the garden. Beating the dirty clothes against a rock...er wait..no...no laundry.

I'm a crafter. Jewelry (enameling), spinning, weaving. Pottery. I'd love to find a way to make a lot of money on the farm, but it's the WAY of life that's important to me. Daily chores, caringfor the animals, tending the garden,etc. But it also includes the walks in the woods, listening to the birds, watching the Bald Eagle pair circling in the sky, taking the day and going fishing!, counting the deer tracks thru the backyard, taking a jar of honey to the neighbor and being invited in for coffee....that stuff

oh, ok. I was just curious. I was just thinking "wow, they're going to put all that work and resources in to self-sufficiency and still go off to jobs everyday after it's accomplished."

I hope it works out for you exactly like you want. It sounds cool.

[southerngurl]

Since you always have to pay rent on your property (called "taxes") you can never really be self reliant.

[moonwolf]

Originally Posted by southerngurl

Since you always have to pay rent on your property (called "taxes") you can never really be self reliant.

that's true. However, to pay those taxes doesn't assume one needs to generate an income from that property. It can be paid from income from a source not connected to the property such as an external job not on site.

[EDDIE BUCK]

The way I look at it is,when I walk outside and look around and not see a house except mine, Im getting paid, when I listen and hear birds churping,wind rustling leaves, woodpeckers pecking, crickets churping and not hearing cars going by, not to afraid let my dog out for fear of her getting hit by a car,and watching my grandchildren play not worring about them getting on the road. Am I getting paid? YOU MIGHTY RIGHT, no not with money, but peace of mind.