making a living and homeseading in a small town

[lexa]

I will expose myself as a megalopolis girl by asking this, but how do people actually live in small towns?
I grew up in Moscow (15milion people) and lived in NYC for 3 year and than moved to Columbia SC, which is not that big but still lots of people and plenty of jobs and things are pretty much figured out.
It is kind of obvious that there are people who commute or have skilled labor jobs. But lets say, if a single mother without college education or much work experience or money saved up wanted to start a new life and work towards owning some land and a small house, what could she do? What kind of jobs can be found in small town? How can she support herself and her children, can she?

[Callieslamb]

What do you consider a small town? I think opportunities will vary according to what kind of area you are talking about. Many small towns are actually fairly close to other small towns and offer quite a bit of opportunity. It isn't easy and I certainly wouldn't move somewhere without a job first.

DH works 16 miles N in a town of 10,000 at the Whirlpool corporate headquarters. Maybe that's a commute to you? To us, it's just getting to work. WP employs a lot of people in this area. As does the hospital and school district and WP support businesses. We live 1/2 mile from a town of 672 people. There's a gas station, grocery store, PO, school, tractor repair, car repair, 2 bars, library, bank, dr office, feed store, lumber store, funeral home, and drive-in hamburger joint. We have policemen and firemen. Within 5 miles are 10 large orchards that keep a thriving migrant worker polulation going as well as the tractor repair shop. 8 miles West there's a town of 7,000 with more stores, schools, a college, etc. 15 miles south is a town of 20K with 2 colleges, etc, etc, etc..... We have a large winter road crew that are hired to work in the county. And 2 nuclear power plants within 30 miles....

People from our church work as custodians, bankers, IT, nurses, nurses' aids, teacher's aids, teachers, family counselors, housekeepers, and engineers.

People here are hurting for jobs. It hasn't always been this way. I sometimes think the more rural areas are hardest hit in poor economies, but I'm sure thost that live in a town wouldn't agree. Is there anyone NOT hurting todauy? Many, many people moved out of the area with the down turn in the economy. Without the job we wouldn't have come here. In rural areas, many people farm, or work at farming. I'm pretty sure they aren't making much money.

[45n5]

i've made my living for over 5 years using the internet, i live in the middle of nowhere

in 2013 there is no reason why you can't live in the middle of nowhere and make a part time to full time income using the internet

google the term "affiliate marketing" to get you started thinking

I also wrote a thing about it on my new blog, check my sig

otherwise most people drive to where a job is, whether it's 15 mins or an hour

[unregistered168043]

Its not easy but remember, your expenses will be much lower living in the country. The average median income in my town is something like 19K per capita. I have city friends that say they would never work for 20-25k per year. They make more but they have to because living expenses in the city are much higher. I may make 25k but in the end I end up with more than my city friends who make 35-40k.

Lets break it down, I own so many acres w/house which cost me what a one bedroom would go for in the city. On that property I produce a great deal of my food, all my heating fuel, and most of my entertainment. A city man would have to pay for his place, then still buy all his food, and buy oil or gas for heat and cooking. On top of that the cost of having fun in the city is a back breaker. What do you do for fun in the city? Go out with friends, eat, drink, see a show, etc.. What do we do in the country? Hunt, fish, hike, cook a nice meal, crack open a few at home with friends. Just the sheer volume of options in the city ( ways to spend your money ) is astounding. I have a friend that makes 70K per year yet is perpetually broke...he has no idea where it goes, just everything is about spending money in the city...the clothes, the newest ipad, the restaurants, taxis, shops, etc,etc.

When I lived in the city I had plenty of employment and made a salary that would make many envious. But the truth is I had a hard time staying afloat as money just seems to disappear there. Now I work less ( outside the homestead ), make less but live better.

[farmerDale]

We live in the middle of no where. We farm. My wife is an interior designer. She is a piano teacher. Teaching, nursing, farming, owning myriad businesses, mechanic, seed salesman, parts man, there are piles of rural jobs in rural regions. Farming has many spinoffs alone, in the services necessary to keep the farms running. Rural people have generally a more independent spirit. They are more apt to be in business, make their own way.

The question is kinda interesting. It is simply a foreign concept to an urban soul to understand how livings are made in the sticks. Just as we rural folks 3 hours from a place with traffic lights, have a hard time getting our head around why on earth one would actually CHOOSE to live in a city.

A cultural thing, if you will.

[vicker]

Lexa, I live not to far down the river from you, and most folk here commute to either Orangeburg or Columbia for work. There just isn't a lot of work here. I grew up here and it is a way of life. You learn to do what you need to. My ex asked the same question before we moved to West Virginia where there were few jobs. It is hard to explain, but you just do it and find what you can. I have always been able to do handy man work and stuff like that, but that is much more in demand in the city than it is in a rural place, where people tend to do for themselves. You can go to school and learn a trade that is high demand. People find a way

[geo in mi]

I've said this before and some people take it as a joke, but find yourself a town about a twenty minute commute from a larger town/job center. Then find a store front, on the right hand side of the street in line with the morning flow of traffic towards the larger job center--with good parking...........

Then learn how to make good donuts and coffee............



geo

[Yvonne's hubby]

Most small towns have restaurants, and somebody has to do the cooking, or waiting on the customers. Some have pubs.... again, low skill wage making opportunities for those who dont mind making money for someone else. Of course there are always business opportunities for those who would rather work for themselves. Everything from lawn cutting, and handyman type services to internet sales. The size of a town really doesnt make as much difference as does the drive, ambition and creativeness of the person.

[tentance]

it depends on how skilled a person is, whether they need to be in a city or not. lawyers and doctors can't find a lot of openings in a small town, but nurse aids and waitresses are in demand everywhere.

[WJMartin]

In our area many of the businesses are small sef-owned, my husband is a mechanic and two of our sons work with him, we make a good living because my husband is a good mechanic and we have a good reputation, a couple of generations. That is going to be the hardest part, the time it takes to get a good reputation if you run your own business. In my area every resturant is looking for help, every nursing home, hospital ect. there are alot of jobs available here, we are looking at cuts in the defense industry and some have been cut in oil but you'd be surprised how many jobs are available. I've been considering doing dog grooming from my home, the one good groomer here has an 8 month waiting list. We are close to two larger cities and we are considered a "bedroom community". Lots of oppurtunities if you are a hard worker and the suggestion of a coffee/doughnut shop is good too, the only place we have is way off the beaten path and they have all the business they can keep up with.

[motdaugrnds]

I know what I would do if I were in your situation...and I'm assumming you are physically/mentally/emotionally healthy.

I would take a short trip around that small town, getting to know it. How many places are there that serve the general populace. Any that serve food, i.e. grocery stores and/or restaurants? I would then go back to my little acreage and study it as to what I could grow/raise on it that might be of use to the small town businesses. I would then return to the small town and talk with the different owners asking if they would be interested in purchasing "home-grown" items. (There would be a number of "health" reaons why this might be of interest to the food services at this time.)

Then I would create my homestead in such a way that would provide what those small town businesses expressed an interest in.

[Pheasant283]

Originally Posted by 45n5

i've made my living for over 5 years using the internet, i live in the middle of nowhere

in 2013 there is no reason why you can't live in the middle of nowhere and make a part time to full time income using the internet

google the term "affiliate marketing" to get you started thinking

I also wrote a thing about it on my new blog, check my sig

otherwise most people drive to where a job is, whether it's 15 mins or an hour

I am liking the idea of affiliate marketing, just need to do some more reasearch to get a better understanding of how it works and how to get started.

[Pheasant283]

As far as jobs in a small town goes, it holds true where I live anyway, if you are willing to learn and work hard you can get a job.

[COWS]

If you are thinking of gardening in the Columbia area, be aware that all land around there is not the same. It's not the Ukraine there. Much of the land is poor and eroded.
East of Columbia there is a lot of good bottom land on the North side of the Congaree river, but much of it is covered with industry. You would enjoy going down to the Congaree Swamp national monument. When the weather is dry you can walk from the park headquarters over to the river, which I think is a 5 or so mile walk through the swamp. I've done it, it's interesting. When it rains properly in the upstate the river floods a wide area of the swamp. On the South side of the river the land is much poorer. The ocean used to come up to the Columbia area and as it receded if left sandy soil where the beaches use to be. The area around Columbia was used to grow cotton which wore out the land and caused erosion. Fort Jackson is also in an area of sandy poor soil. At one time I was more intimately acquainted with Fort Jackson than I wanted to be and can testify to the poor soil. Past there going toward Camden there is some good soil.

Columbia being the state capital has a lot of jobs for government workers of one type or another. There are also insurance companies headquarters there with jobs for secetaries, etc.

West of Columbia is a small town, Ridgeway, which is a bedroom community for Columbia. I know of one couple in the area who retired from good jobs and do organic gardening, selling produce at the local farmer's market. Others in that area have chickens and sell eggs and meat chickens, also sell fresh pork from having a few hogs. None of these people have to do it for a living.

COWS

[sisterpine]

Heres an idea...visit a couple of small towns that you find enticing. Spend the day, have breakfast or lunch there and talk to folks. Use your eyes ears and mouth to find out what folks do who live in that town. Grab a local newspaper so you can look it up online when you get home. Then decide which of those professions/jobs suits you and get yourself trained up to do that job. If you are a single parent plan on living in town or on the edge of town just cause it is easier for both you and the kiddos to have others around sometimes.

[sisterpine]

Oops forgot to add that I also have a business on the internet- check my signature as well. We get out spending money from the business but also have additional income that we depend on for living.

[highlands]

Originally Posted by lexa

I will expose myself as a megalopolis girl by asking this, but how do people actually live in small towns?
I grew up in Moscow (15milion people) and lived in NYC for 3 year and than moved to Columbia SC, which is not that big but still lots of people and plenty of jobs and things are pretty much figured out.
It is kind of obvious that there are people who commute or have skilled labor jobs. But lets say, if a single mother without college education or much work experience or money saved up wanted to start a new life and work towards owning some land and a small house, what could she do? What kind of jobs can be found in small town? How can she support herself and her children, can she?

First question is "What is a small town" in your view? I suspect that what you consider to be a small town is a city to me. Our town has about 1,000 people and nearby towns are similar. The city, several towns over, is just under 10,000 people as is the next city close to that. The biggest city in our state is under 40,000 people. So first realize we're probably thinking about 'small' in totally different ways. That said...

I have lived in small towns virtually all my life except for a few months in cities. I create my own employment. I provide product and services to people. Most of the people I know also create their own jobs. Some people do commute to the nearby cities (see above) or further. I don't know what the ratio is, just that I don't know many people who are employees or work in the cities but I do know many who are self-employed or otherwise create their own work.

The biggest difference is we probably live on a whole lot less than you can imagine living on. We spend far less than the federal poverty level and we live fine on that. We don't go hungry. We have clothing. Our house is warm. We have the things we need. I do find that I spend very little money since I don't go in town. Going in town costs money - that's when I tend to spend. I imagine that if one were going in town all the time then life would be more expensive.

Things that people do who I know out here include:
farming
logging
forestry
general store
post office
making wreaths
sewing
mechanic
construction
engineering
writing
photography
lawyer
doctor
veterinarian
town clerk
teacher
pottery
welding
child care
elderly care
cooking
hauling
butcher
...the list goes on.

Most of that does not require a college degree. In fact, a college degree might hamper you since you need to pay for it and it takes time to get. A lot of people learn on the job, learn growing up or just learn stuff through life. It is a myth that everyone should go get a degree. There is a whole industry fostering that myth because they make money from it.

There is a lot of opportunity out in the country and you can produce your own food, your own heat and a lot of other things as well as simply living a lot more inexpensively than in the cities.

[Harry Chickpea]

LOL! At first, I thought Lexa came from Moscow Vermont, and was calling that a big city.

[TedH71]

I went from living in a city of 1 million (Austin, TX) to a town that is 500k people (Wichita, KS) and there IS a big difference. Lower cost of living and much less bad traffic. We're thinking much less now. My family lives in Tyler, TX which is around 100k people.

[JLMissouri]

I am often amazed at how people live in the city. With expensive rent, insurance and crime it would be hard to get somewhere. I guess it is all perspective, I have never lived in a huge city. The largest city I ever lived in was 25,000 and I hated it.

I think it is much easier to pull yourself up by your boot straps in a small city, town or in the country. The jobs are fewer and further but your expenses will be less. I have never had to look hard for a job, and have had some pretty good jobs. I have done farm work, logging and even worked on a barge for awhile as well as more city type jobs like a corrections officer and working for a couple factories.

My county has a population of about 15,000 and it is one of the largest Missouri counties. I live five miles from the city limits of the county seat. There is almost everything your will need in town. Within 40 miles there are two colleges five hospitals, atleast 10 nursing homes, and several larger factories and such. Finding a job isn't hard, finding a good paying job is a little harder.