OK Homesteaders I need ideas (soon to be homeless & unemployed!)

Put up a steel pole barn. It will be as cheap as a trailer and safer in a tornado than a house. Finish off only the barest of the interio - and have more space to live in a great barn ready to go when you need it! We priced a 40x60 at $15K - that included the well and concrete floor and someone else putting it up for us. You won't need that much space for simple living. You can built it yourself - very quickly.

..............http://www.rvonline.com

...............(4) Mfgers you should consider...................
...............Teton.... , out of business but built very good trailers . ...............Hitchhiker.....still in business and building trailers.....
...............Excel.....still in business , building highend canpers...
...............Travel Supreme... , out of business but their campers are some of the best built ! Teton , was considered too be one of the top (3) mfgers as you will see if you do your research , before spending your $$$ !

..............All the above mfgers put gelcoat fiberglass on the exterior of their trailers , there is NO substitute for gelcoat . It is very thick and very heavy , and expensive , but it is the best . , fordy

I vote for the trailer on your own place.

I'd also look for a 40' shipping container that you can use for material storage. You could also pile dirt up on the sides of it and use it as an above ground storm shelter.

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If the grass looks greener it is probably over the septic tank. - troy n sarah tx

Our existance here is soley for the expoitation of CMG

we live in a 35 ft travel trailer. I bought it online on ebay. Paid $2700.00 for it, of course we had to go get it (another $1000.00 roundtrip fuel) but you can look for ones in your area. I noticed alot in that general area when we were looking. I ended up going from NM to Michigan to get ours, but it was/is well worth it. It's paid for and ALL mine.

....................I've been living in a 33 foot Travel Supreme since Dec of '06 ! Very well built trailer and I don't regret it for a minute . No property taxes , and it is as nice as any mobil home I've seen and it can be moved , if necessary . , fordy

I personally think that the living at the work site is the only way to go...however, I'm thinking that erecting anything anywhere that there is a tornado "season" requires a different set of rules. We don't live in "tornado America" so the camper/trailer idea makes sense (here) but I suggest you dig a hole and put a roof on it and build a dome over that.

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practically everything is practical

If it were me, my priorities would be:

1. Using my own land, rent that bobcat and toss a decent tornado shelter in the ground..it's something that you'll need anyway..better sooner than later..

2. If you can find one..CHEAP..haul a run-down trailer onto the property and make do..stretch out an awning and have more room..
3. Build a pole barn for those critters..

then I'd have a lovely warm weather season, building my home..even if I had to stay in that trailer longer..so what? Each day we're getting older anyway..may as well be doing what you love to do.

After the home was built, I'd turn the old trailer into something functional..like a really weird chicken coop..or a greenhouse..who knows??..or hand it off to another person..

I'd build a storm shelter. You could live in an underground storm shelter if necessary. After you get the house built you could use that as storage for vegetables, etc., or you could use it as the basement for your new home.

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Moms don't look at things like normal people.
-----DD

We have lived in our converted school bus while we worked on our house. My daughter lives in a 33' camper she bought for $3000. But I have also spent extended periods of time in a very large canvas tent that did go through a tornado and did not come down. Also had straight winds of 70 to 80 miles an hour another time. I always did know how to tack down a tent. We found our cooking tent in the lake. What I like about the tent is it can be set up with my regular furniture and am only limited by how many tents I can buy for cheap at auctions, garage sales or internet sites. Canvas is sturdier and can be waterproofed really well. A large tarp spread over the top well tacked down with ropes and poles and lots of the big spike stakes makes for cooler and not having to walk out in the rain to go from room to room. My daughter used that same tent for her computer room all sumer the first year she was here living in the bus, which she did for 3 years until she got her camper. I would not part with any of my animals as they are the purpose of living in the country in the first place. One can also negotiate prices or barter for a trailer for a period of time or rent and then not be stuck with a big expense no longer necessary after the house is built. Just sharing my experiences and hope there is something you can use in this.

Having lived in a mobile home the first 12 years of my married life, and having worked part time repairingg them, a trailer would be next to last on my list. (last would be living in my car) A mobile home is like a car... it starts going down hill from the day you get it. The biggest problem is the floor(actully the "base"), almost any other part can be improved or replaced, but you will always be restricted in what you can do by it.

You will need water, septic, and electricity anyway. Design your homestead,
build a 30 x 40 or larger pole barn. Frame off the minimum area you need to live in pour a concrete floor and insulate it. Put in a basic bathroom with a shower. If money gets tight you can usually get stoves, washers dryers etc off craigs list for free or very inexpensively. Once you have a minimum place to live, you can spend your labor and money on improving YOUR land, not the neigbors. Everything you spend will go towards something PERMANENT, not somthing you are going to have to sell cheap or pay to have hauled away. If things go well, you can build your house and have a great barn with water and a plumbing. If things go not so well, you have a place to live that you can enlarge if needed

Move to your land! That is the best way to get things done. We moved into our house when it was just a shell and spent the summer and fall things sealing it up for winter. You won't regret being there.

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I also vote for your land.

I agree with many posters here that buying a camper or trailer should be the last option if you're hardy folks. It is surprisingly easy to rent them nowadays from individuals who bought them while prosperous and not having luck selling them. Even if you had to haul a pop-up for 200 miles back to your place, it would be cheaper than buying. Most are just happy to re-coup some of the money.

Just be sure to get a contract for the time you're renting it!

The money you save on buying, put into whatever kind of barn you were going to build for your animals and then live there yourself while you build the house. You can add a tornado room in it and use it as the bathroom for very cheap, comparatively speaking, and still have it to use in emergencies when away from the house later.

And you can even live in the barn with the animals in one side part of the time if you don't mind that. In the middle ages, most early castles were really 2 rooms..one for animals and one for family. The animals helped keep the whole place warm too.

Let us know what you do and I wish you the very best!

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Christy
Growing Human
http://growinghuman.blogspot.com

When wearing narrow lenses of hate and ignorance, is it any wonder one finds it difficult to see clearly? - Me

Have you thought about an older motor home? We have one bought, 77 Dodge, for $2500.00 pretty nice, complete with propane stove/oven, furnace, fridge, water heater, also has shower, toilet, ac, and has a table and couch and sleeps 6.

There are a lot of these around that folks gave up driving when fuel got so high, many of them can be had for very little money. One of these and a generator until you get power on the place would let you live pretty compactly and comfortably while you work on your house.

Don't know that I would want to take it on a cross country trip put it works great for hunting and fishing, and weekend camping trips.

There's an excellent article on the countryside magazine website, about a couple who did something similar, minus children so they used a tent. It's very inspiring.

http://www.countrysidemag.com/issues...e-Johnson.html

ps, sometimes it's kind of a fun adventure to live in a camper for the summer. DH and I did it (before children) when we moved but didn't have jobs yet. Parked it in the horse pen. We'd wake up to the camper rocking while the horses scratched their rear ends on the back! LOL. Then we'd open the door and they'd stick their heads inside in anticipation for their breakfast.

Sounds like you are in for an exciting experience in temporary living for awhile. If it were me, I'd hold off for a bit until hubby secured the job. But in the meantime, I would surely do some re-engineering of my house plans, so I could build in phases and be able to move in, one section, or phase, at a time. Apparently you have secured the building permit, so probably, if you stay under the radar a bit, the 'authorities' won't care about your temporary arrangements unless the neighbors complain or it looks like you are neglecting either your animals or your children. I certainly wouldn't put up a mailbox, and I would really push to get under 'legal' roof by the time school starts in the fall.....

For me, I would go the 'stepvan' route for really temporary quarters. Why? A camper parked on your property would be a tip-off that you are trying to live there without an occupancy permit--don't know if that would be a problem, but it would be around here. Yes, it would be primitive, but as you make the changeover, you could use the truck for towing, or hauling materials. Or fishing, camping, or hunting. Or materials storage. Might make it more salable that way when you're finished using it.

You haven't put anything in concrete yet, so you could make some 'field changes' to accomodate your storm shelter/basement mechanicals room/food storage. You could also start with a garage first, since you don't have to wallboard, wire it, etc, right away--but it would make a nice dry, and clean place to sleep, shower, and fix your meals--even with OSB dividers and such. And, a canvas leanto, or leantos would fit on three sides for more space. Some plywood on the ground and some astroturf carpeting would fix you right up. And, you'll eventually have to buy the appliances to put in the house anyway, so why not get them first and set them up in your garage area and do double duty.

For the animals, maybe some treated four by fours and some canvas, or maybe one of those porta shelters from the big box stores or TSC for a hundred bucks or so, and your chicken tractor seems like it's on it's way.

All in all, I think it's doable, and in a few years, you'll look back and laugh together at what you went through. Best of luck to you and yours.

I have actually done the work for rent thing in the past. Guy had a very run down house that had broken windows, failed septic, bad well, and a foundation that looked liked it was ready to cave in. There was also alot of junk everywhere that I had to clean up. It took a couple weeks worth of work to get the place good enough to live in. Also the guy was a cheapskate so I spent a lot of time scrounging for materials for free. I wouldn't do it again. The amount of time spent on it compared to what I could have rented a place in cash for wasn't worth not spending the money on rent. Towards the end of my stay at the place there was a lot of disagreement on how much work I should be doing on the house every month. Not to mention the guy kept wanting me to buy things for the house and not knock it off how much time I had to spend on the house. Chances are the place got in bad repair because the guy didn't have any money to fix it up in the first place. I would be very leary of him saying he would reimburse you for materials. My experience with this is it can go from good to bad very quickly.

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I think you have been given lots of good advice here. If it were me, I would consider either a pole barn, they are liveable, or a storage house such as what Lowes or someone sells ( I am sure its less expensive to build it yourself) and as everyone else has suggested a storm shelter as a first priority.

Good luck to you and I hope everything works out!

will you be able to afford a house without him working..?after he goes to work,will he still have time to build the house........? lots to consider depends on lots of factors...how old are the kids? how many bills? lots,,,,,i hope the best for you and it will be alright.....lots of great advice already given......

Put a sign up and an ad in the paper that will explain your situation and ask for help in building a house frame ....in a day....offer a prize for a lottery that all helpers will be included in for a drawing. Check with local authoritites for legality. Some states it would be ok. After the house frame is up, you can finish it with tarps and camp out in your house until you have time to put the siding up.