new member

quadcam79 · #1 10/02/07, 11:29 PM

Hey everyone, I've been lurking on the board for a few weeks and finally registered, well about 5 times until I was approved, i guess someone didn't like my email address or something.
Anyway, My girlfriend/soon to be wife and I live in Northeast Florida and we're currently looking to buy a home on a few acres. because If I have to look at another subdivision or stripmall I'm gonna puke.
we just put an offer on a place that was 3.5 acres but it was just a little above our budget so we didn't get it. So looks like we're going to have to settle for 1-2 acres.

anyway, I'm not totally new to farming/homesteading or Hippieness (what my friends call me) I grew up in Northeast Pennsylvania and I was pretty much raised by my very Pennsylvania Dutch grandparents. Let me tell you the PA dutch know homesteading, my grandfather was a regular mcguyver, that guy could make something out of nothing. My grandmother was a typical PA dutch wife, she cooked, baked, canned and cleaned all day everyday.

About 9 yrs ago I managed to finally escape away from the country life and headed to the beaches of florida. I had a great time for a couple years,lots to do, great weather, parties etc. But eventually you tire of all that, settle down with someone and just want to be away from all of the noise and traffic of the beach. Well, my time has come, I'm ready to get back to my roots, except we wont be going back to Pennsylvania we'll be staying here.

I found a ton of great info on this board, also want to thank cowgirlone for the info on the prawns and the link to the aquaponics site. I kept saltwater reef aquariums for a few years so the transition to freshwater aquaponics is very appealing to me.

We plan on purchasing a home on a few acres just outside of the city, once we get the house I plan on getting a few animals with specific purposes chickens (eggs and BBQ chicken) , digging a pond if there isnt one already and stocking with bass and channel catfish, goats (milk, cheese, yogurt, etc.) peacocks (just cause they are cool and I dont know anyone personally who actually owns any) and pigs (bacon, pork chops, sausage).

Not only are animals in the plan but Solar, wind and hydro power. I'm currently learning the in's and out's of setting up a solar array and building a solar water heater. I'm also learning to build a wind generator from an old treadmill motor (generator), plus figuring out how to pull water from a pond, through a heat exchanger installed over the central air unit (cooling like a radiator in a car)
and then pushing the water back to a waterfall on the pond and using the water flow to turn a water wheel to generate more electricity.

So I have a ton of plans for self sufficiency.... now we just have to find the right place, not so easy in a large city...huge houses crowded onto 1/4 acre lots..ugh, who would want that

bill not in oh · #2 10/02/07, 11:42 PM

Welcome and enjoy your journey - good luck finding your perfect piece of land...

Windy in Kansas · #3 10/03/07, 09:10 AM

Welcome to the forums. Sounds like you have good plans and goals. I hope you are surprised and have a really nice property come onto the market for you at a reasonable price.

suburbanite · #4 10/03/07, 09:13 AM

quadcam, you may want to wait a few months as the credit/housing crunch hasn't bottomed out yet; prices in many areas are still falling and you might find you can get more in January than you can now.

Jan Doling · #5 10/03/07, 10:03 AM

Welcome to Florida! You are just the kind of people we like to import. Get land far from the city and commute. That way you will have a few peaceful years before the city starts to encroach on your land.

katlupe · #6 10/03/07, 10:21 AM

quadcam, welcome to our board and our homesteading community! I notice you said that you wanted to use solar. I wish I had been into this lifestyle when my husband and I lived in FL! We could have generated so much power. We talk about it all the time. How we might have stayed there if we had been homesteading then. Good luck to you.

katlupe

Sparticle · #7 10/03/07, 10:53 AM

hi there and welcome. I wanted to get away from the city too when I first decided to get back to my roots. I found a run down house on 3-4 lots in what was a bad neighborhood right out of town. I did this so that I could house the animals I wanted and start saving for the next leap to the country. I was a little worried because it was a "bad neighborhood". I was lucky enough that I had Banditos on one side of me and 3 families living in one house (didn't speak any English though) on the other side. They ended up BOTH being great neighbors and I felt safer with them being on either side of me. I was nice to them, and they were nice to me and watched out for us. There were crack houses and stuff like that in the neighborhood, but the people never bothered me. My point is, that if you have some good dogs and you think you can handle it, consider maybe getting something well below your income level so that you can have more options later. Maybe you could take a lower paying job in a few years and move even further out or retire sooner and get a bigger piece of land.

I eventually moved further out on 5 acres, sold that this year and moved out to where we have 23 acres (not living on it yet, will build later).

Either way welcome! you will find this place is amazing in that anything you can think of, someone here has probably already done it and is willing to share. There are all types here and sometimes there are conflicts, but just try to ignore the trolls and you'll have fun.

Farmer Dave · #8 10/03/07, 11:30 AM

Welcome to our little Homesteading community here on the web.

Bladesmith · #9 10/03/07, 07:22 PM

Whats your budget, roughly?

quadcam79 · #10 10/03/07, 08:18 PM

roughly? low... about $130k
my GF just finished nursing school a few months ago LPN, she started on her BSN now. cant count my income because my ex rakes about 65% of my income for child support

We may have found something today, my GF's friend has a friend who is selling a place on 2.5 acres, home is totally redone inside and he's asking $115k w/owner financing.

I have to stay reasonably close to the city since I have a 5 yr old daughter that I take on the weekends. So this may work for awhile, we want alot more land but finding that in this area of Florida (jacksonville) within reason isn't going to happen. theres some great places to the southwest, gainsville, ocala but it's just too much of a commute right now

Bladesmith · #11 10/04/07, 08:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by quadcam79

roughly? low... about $130k
my GF just finished nursing school a few months ago LPN, she started on her BSN now. cant count my income because my ex rakes about 65% of my income for child support

We may have found something today, my GF's friend has a friend who is selling a place on 2.5 acres, home is totally redone inside and he's asking $115k w/owner financing.

I have to stay reasonably close to the city since I have a 5 yr old daughter that I take on the weekends. So this may work for awhile, we want alot more land but finding that in this area of Florida (jacksonville) within reason isn't going to happen. theres some great places to the southwest, gainsville, ocala but it's just too much of a commute right now

The irony is sickening sometimes. We just took our home in Central Florida OFF the market after a year and a half. We listed just as the market went downhill faster than Brittany's career choices.

We have 5 acres on the Central Florida Ridge, 5 miles from Bok Tower (The highest point in Florida, which makes us about second highest) and NO RESTRICTIONS. Only one immediate neighbor, and bordered by orange groves on both sides, as well. manufactured house 2180 sq ft, built in 2005-6.

5 minutes from the local mall, but you'd never know it.

We started out at 200K, and got down to 175K before we gave up. The market just stinks.

Good luck with your search though. When home builders are giving away cars and harleys jsut to get you to buy a McMansion, it's a buyers market