Multiple income streams BEFORE you get to the homestead?

shanzone2001 · #21 08/26/11, 05:21 PM

My question would be what can you make? Can you provide a service such as childcare, housekeeping or party planning? Portable petting zoo? Haha
Sounds crazy, but I would love to be a party planner or have a petting zoo at my home so I added those...just in case they worked for you!
Good luck!

Mrs. Mucket · #22 08/26/11, 06:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kranac

Or become a backyard banker.

Peer-to-peer lending is a great way to loan out as little as 25$ from 5%-35% interest. on terms 1,3,or 5 years.

www.prosper.com (I prefer)
www.lendingclub.com

(This is from OP Betho): You know I was just reading a little about this yesterday. That may be worthwhile, even just to help a small bit of money grow into more money for when it comes time that we'll need it. The only place I knew that was like that was Kiva, and I don't think they pay interest to the investors (or at least I couldn't see anything on their website). Thanks for the URLs!

PulpFaction · #23 08/26/11, 07:33 PM

You know, you're in a PERFECT area to capitalize on the granola crunching yuppies.

And I totally see how living on the farm would be cheaper for you. For me, it worked the opposite. I double my rent by moving back to town, but a I went from spending $30 a day in gas plus losing 2.5 hours on a daily commute to walking to work two blocks away. THAT adds up! I also put myself right smack dab in the middle of my target market clientele, which also is good. I never would have been able to connect with this market from the cabin.

Make it a point to do what you can to tap into that urban market while you're there, now. Develop a reputation, brand yourself and your farm, and collect a contact list so that once you move you can still get in touch with people that will be eager to buy whatever it is you're selling from the new local agrarian upstart.

I feel like after spending a couple of years in town here, we will be in a much better position to make a go of a rural lifestyle where we won't have to commute. It is a comforting thought.

(Now, I'm going to go look into that medical transcriptionist thing.)

**Roadking** · #24 08/26/11, 08:41 PM

Restoring cars works well for me and mine. Have a waiting list.
Wife did plant propagation as a profession. Still a handy income producer when needed.
We are near a "weekend" area...lots of vacationers who only use their homes on occassions; seems that deck washing (presure washing) and home maintenance folks are holding on pretty well.
Best of luck to you and yours.
Matt

TheMartianChick · #25 08/26/11, 10:37 PM

Hubby and I do a few things on the side that will provide us with an income once we move to a farm. Hubby repairs cars for friends and relatives. He comes from a large family and so does my mom. This provides a nice bit of side money. We will also retain our rental properties to provide an income.

I write agricultural, lifestyle and human interest articles for magazines and websites. I also write fiction and am working on a screenplay. While I currently counsel small busines owners for a living, I've also acquired a few private clients that I should be able to retain once we make the big move. I do voiceovers for commercials and voice acting for some "acted" audiobooks. A new opportunity came my way last week which will allow me to earn more money once I create some marketing materials for my client. We don't believe in having only one income stream. It is too easy for it to be pulled out from under you.

In the past, I have telecommuted/consulted with a chicken hatchery, given adult piano lessons and served on a municipal board for pay. Many years ago when I was unemployed, I even did taxes during the tax season. (The laws have changed regarding this now.)There are lots of ways to earn money if you have good computer skills and a strong network of people.

Clearly, I don't work on all of these things every day. Sometimes, I work on almost all of them and other days (like today) I only work on one or two projects. I like that I can work at various times of day and am not constrained to a 9-5 schedule.

ps- Avoid opportunities that require you to outlay large sums of cash. Multi-level marketing and the like usually only work out well for those who got in at the top. Think of your skillset and what you can do that others cannot do for themselves.

kranac · #26 08/27/11, 12:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mrs. Mucket

(This is from OP Betho): You know I was just reading a little about this yesterday. That may be worthwhile, even just to help a small bit of money grow into more money for when it comes time that we'll need it. The only place I knew that was like that was Kiva, and I don't think they pay interest to the investors (or at least I couldn't see anything on their website). Thanks for the URLs!

It works very well to say the least for both borrow and lender. =) It takes time to build up slowly but it grows fast.