I need help.

joebill · #21 03/25/13, 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lanewilliam21

That is a good question...I don't exactly know how much more I would need. I think that if I worked even a minimum wage job full-time, we would have enough money to get what we need and a little bit of the things we would want. I've put some spreadsheets together and played with the numbers and think that we'd be o.k like that, but it's hard to say. My wife is in the National Guard and will be eligible to retire in 3 years as well. However, since she is in the guard, her retirement check won't start coming in until she's 60 (we are in our 40s now). So, I'm not too concerned about our final retirement (60 yrs on)...I'm just wanting to figure out a way to be able to make it work between now and then. I guess we're pretty lucky in that we have fairly cheap medical coverage, so most of our expenses will be with our home, taxes and probably some college costs for our 2 kids. My wife and I are pretty simple...we enjoy gardening, the outdoors, animals and just relaxing in the country. So, it doesn't take a lot of $ to entertain us. Although, I know that raising any kind of animal comes with a cost...so, we'd start small with a garden and some chickens and go from there...

That kind of money can be had just about anywhere, WITHOUT the minimum wage job. Especailly on your own place where nobody is telling you that your saw is too loud or your rooster is bothering them.

The average handyman who IS handy, shows up on time, doesn't spit his skoal juice in the potted plants and charges reasonable prices can do double minimum wage easily. And work for whom he wants.

That's only the tip of the iceberg. If you are any kind of an artisan, you can now market a product worldwide from your computer with not much prep.

You can, in your area, trap and sell furs, mentor or tutor students, sharpen saws, buy and sell rare books, tie fishing flies and make lures, a thousand things that pay money. BETTER money than minimum wage.

That's all NON-farm income. With the surge in sprouting grains for fodder, I believe one can also more easily earn FARM income, not only from feeding and selling stock of one kind or another, but I believe that soon we will see folks sprouting and selling fodder itself. Sure, anybody can do it, but anybody can change their oil, too, but jiffy-lube is alive and well.

Before I expressed an opinion, I wanted to make sure you didn't need and "extra" $100K per year, because that's what some folks consider " a bit extra". With modest goals I have found you can make a living almost anywhere "As long as these two hands are fit to use". After that point, well, I guess I'll be finding out in a few years if my joints get much worse.

All the best, and if you need specific advice on rural small business, we have made a life of it and are more than willing to help. PM if needed....Joe

2horses · #22 03/26/13, 12:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lanewilliam21

That is exactly what I was wanting to do and we even started looking into it...but, the money for the 20% down payment is tied up in IRAs and we'd have to take a steep penalty to pull it out to pay for it...which I decided was not the smartest thing to do at this point. As much as I love the place, I didn't want to make a bad financial decision that I would regret later.

Check your 401K - many of them allow you to take a loan against your account, and use it for real estate purchases, etc. There is no penalty or fee like you would incur with a withdrawal, and the interest you pay on the loan goes back into your account as well as your payments. The only downside to that is your account total (that interest gets paid on) goes down by however much you make the loan for. But if you're considering moving your money out short term anyway, that may not be as much of a concern.

Maura · #23 03/26/13, 12:32 PM

I am in Kingston, with is between Lapeer and Caro. 7thswan is in Mayville, just north of Lapeer. The 24 corridor is built up and you will have a better chance finding work south of Lapeer, but depending on what you do, you might be able to go anywhere. South of Lapeer has changed, Metamora is now a bedroom community and the housing has gone way up. In the thumb area you can still find foreclosures and bank sales and tax sales. Check out the Marlette area. Prices are lower than Lapeer, but you are still very close.