Need help on how to get started!
 

My wife and I have been wanting to start the homesteading life for a while now and are itching to get out of our apartment in the city. The unfortunate thing is we don't have credit (never liked it always paid for things in cash) and I am the only income for the family so we don't have alot saved up.
Any advice from people out there that have been in our shows before? Is it possible to snag land from people somewhere for cheap and build my own house or do I have to just start building credit and wait a couple years?? Not sure of what to do but like I said my wife and I are ready to move so wed hate to have to wait for our credit to build.

The homesteading life that you seek requires that you get a substantial amount of food and other products for living from your land. Land that is cheap usually has a reason why it is cheap; in most cases, it will not produce very much food and/or other life sustaining products. There are many reasons: too hilly, too rocky, too swampy, too dry, too shaded, too forested, too much clay, too much sand, and so forth. Sometimes land that seems good will be just worn out--in need of very expensive rehabilitation in the form of long range cover cropping or expensive fertilizers.

If you do not have, in the least, some knowlege or the ability to judge soils and land during your search, then all your due diligence will be of no use--you might as well be buying a "pig in a poke"--and you may end up totally frustrated and in more debt than you had wanted to make your dream of the homesteading life come true.

But, all that said, it's time you do some "tire kicking" and some "wearing out the carpets" in order to get some street smarts--or should I say some barn smarts? You can start by looking at "cheap" properties(if you can find any--most sellers will overprice a property in order to negotiate) but keep your eyes wide open, and don't jump at the first thing you see.

Buy yourself a good quality two-handled post hole digger--take it with you when you visit a property. Dig several deep holes in several locations so you can learn just what soil you are buying. Learn to sense its quality. See how much black topsoil is there, how much sand or clay content it has, how wet it is all the way down, how rocky it is. With a homestead, your soil will be your bank account--don't start out in the red........learn as much as you can about soils while you are getting prepared. And be sure to fill the holes back in before you leave.....

One of the best sites I have found for getting some basic knowlege about soils and making use of them is this: http://mediasite.online.ncsu.edu/onl...52dcd1ced71521

Watch the full course--if you get bored, then you aren't ready to take on a homestead piece of land....

The next vital thing you should look for is water You should be able to have a source of water that is more or less guaranteed. My opinion is getting stronger by the season--in today's climate situation, if you can't or don't have the ability to irrigate--you may lose a whole year's crop. That's not sustainability, to me.....

Third, after the realtor leaves you alone, you should take a sightseeing drive for a two mile radius around the property to see if there any showstoppers--5,000 cow CAFE or milking operations, government military waste dumps, any kind of dumps, race tracks, really bad run down neighborhoods, you get the picture.... also take a look at your adjacent neighborhood situations....

And somewhat important, depending on your own situation: taxes, schools, roads, nearby Walmarts, community, hospital, courthouse, and, uhhh....snow.... :)

I think those are the basics. Save your money while you look around--get knowlege while you "look", and best of luck.

geo

You'll probably need credit for a loan on any piece of land anyway. Especially since banks aren't keen on mortgages for raw land. Yet any sort of land is going to get expensive if there's a house on it, so buying raw land and building your own is probably the best idea. Tiny houses often fall into gray areas as temporary structures so there aren't many codes for them. On the chance that you do settle on one, you'll probably have the choice of those on a trailer or on a foundation. Those on trailers are nice for traveling wherever your land is, but building a foundational one on site will probably be cheaper. You can go with alternative designs such as cordwood or strawbale construction, but they really aren't suited for cold weather. is probably the most basic foundation-based tiny house that isn't too cramped either.


Things can be figured out the long way, but online research will save you a lot of time and trouble. It's also much easier since you're starting from scratch.


Before visiting any land:

Decide which region you like(Northeast, southeast, midwest, etc...)

Since you haven't decided a state, I'd recommend checking out http://freedominthe50states.org/ It doesn't have much to do with farming, but the issues addressed will affect your lifestyle.

Most of homesteading relates to growing things. For checking growing zones accurately see http://davesgarden.com/guides/freeze-frost-dates/

Find a real estate site you prefer. The most extensive one for land I've seen is http://www.landwatch.com/

Check out the area on the map to make sure it's suitable, topographically at least. The local GIS map will do for this, or http://www.acme.com/planimeter/

And research your chosen city and county laws on their website.


I could list more resources for homesteading, but those should help you get started in terms of land research.

As usual on this forum, you're getting great and thorough information.

I might add it would be important for you to check out the building codes in any area you are interested in. That will help you decide what you can and cannot do from a "financial" aspect as well.

Also, check with the county's health system to find out if the land you're interested in "perks", i.e. is suitable for a septic/disposal system.

Also, visit some of the local neighbors and ask about their "water" system, i.e. the depth of any well they might have dug. Ask about what type of "predators" they encounter in that area as well.

Once you've narrowed your land search down, take a "walk" over the property(s) with a keen eye open for how the "run-off" water flows and where it may actually accumulate. Also, keep an eye open for what vegetation (wild plants & trees) there are growing on and around that property. Some trees have SHORT "roots" and this will tell you how far below ground your hard pan is.

If you can purchase the land outright...no loan or mortgage...even if you need to save to do so. Entering into homesteading with a mortgage can really hamper what you can do to survive there! (If your land has some real nice trees and you don't mind letting them go, check around for a local lumber yard because the owner will probably pay you to let him remove those trees. This is actually how I was able to pay for getting my little homestead cleared, a well dug and a disposal system dug. These things are extremely difficult to do yourself; so it is best to let professionals do them if at all possible.)

You are out for a nice adventure and I hope you and your family are able to get started. Best wishes to you...

Over the next couple of years prepare yourself.

Get a credit card, at least one. You can get 0% interest on some cards, see if you qualify. If you don’t and must pay interest, only put as much on the card as you can pay off each month. So, you use it for groceries and gas. I would get two cards, you use one and your wife uses the other.

Take horticultural classes at your local community college. You will learn how to test the soil layers (what geo was writing about) and a lot about starting plants and so on.

Grow a few plants in containers if you don’t have a yard. Mexico Midget tomatoes create a jungle from a good sized pot and you can overwinter them inside.

Go to your bank and talk to someone in the mortgage department. Ask what you need to do to get your credit to the point you can get a house mortgage.

Your wife should get a job. Part time is fine. All of the money she earns should be put into a savings account and used as a down payment when you find a place. If she cannot work outside the home for some reason, than she should think of another way to earn money for savings. There may be some failing along the way, but it is all learning.

Areas with "cheap" land often don't have many job opportunities. You may want to look into starting a small business that can be moved out to a rural area, or getting a job that you can do via internet.

Most people buy rural land that is still within commuting distance to jobs. That usually takes saved money or credit. It doesn't happen overnight. The days of doing it like we did here 40 years ago - buying good land on a contract, throwing an old trailer on it and putting in well, septic, power and eventually a house as the years go by and the money was saved - are mostly a thing of the past because of codes and permits.

First, get out of the apartment to a small place with a little land to see IF it is really what you want and to start learning a few things. Start a small garden, get a few chickens or rabbits. Buy a canner or dehydrator. Learn to can and put up some food. You can get a few tools. This will give you time to look around for a place of your own. All this could be close to where you work now or where you want to be in the end. If you can't find a place to rent, find a garden plot or just go to the farmers market, learn to can and put up some food, learn other things that can help when you do find a place. Read and watch U-tube videos to get a better idea of what you would like to do. Make a plan. What assets do you have? Trade them into homesteading assets? Do you know anyone that has a plot of land? Can you help out somewhere to learn any skills? Wife wants this? There is always some way to get started, may be a slow process to own a place of your own, but someday, IF you want it bad enough....James

You're ready to move now, but you have no credit and little savings. You know, I'm sure, that to buy a property you need one or the other?

Is it possible to move from your city apartment into a rental house in a less urban area? There are plenty of folks here who homestead on smaller properties and rentals...that would at least get you moving in the right direction while you build credit or save a more substantial amount.

This is a cautionary tale for others. Having good credit is not a sin, it is vital in the world today.

Don't do debt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Save money pay cash.
how we save $24,000 in 18 months pt1: http://youtu.be/Pk4f7Z7XGq0
This couple did it with average Joe jobs. You can too. Don't go into debt. Don't play the Fico game. There is two parts to their video. They did it and now have their own payed for house and land.

Even Seller Financing does require a down payment. jwal10 posted a good course to take. If you want to establish credit? Apply for at least 2 credit cards and a gas card. You can get prepaid credit cards, which are the best to start with. This requires you put an amount in an account, which your credit card accesses. That said, as long as the credit cards report to all (3) credit bureaus, you are good. Rule of thumb, no more than 35% use of any credit limit, gives you the best credit rating. You just use the credit cards to pay for food, fuel, and items you already purchase (never extra junk). I would get on this very quickly, if your goal is to secure any type of financing (that includes Seller Financing). I can tell you, it is rare for a Seller to offer financing without viewing a credit report! In any case, you will need to save as much $ as you can. There are all kinds of ways to do this.

That all said, your other option is not to rely on credit. However, that will then require you save a lot more $ to put down on a property.

I met some folks recently, who posted an ad on Craigslist. They are living their dream right now on a Lease Purchase. The property they got? It is breathtaking and has a view of the Olympics. The issue? They are paying easily twice what it is worth, roughly.

You will need credit as noted above. With that many states have first time home buyers programs (my daughter/son in-law were just approved) that give very low interest loans with no down payment and the seller pays closing. I would start by talking to a real estate broker from the area you want to buy in and ask what programs are available. If the agent doesn't have a clue, move on to another agent. Good luck

Id say, Since you don't know how to garden
Don't know how to can or preserve produce from a garden
Don't have the tools to put in a sustaining garden, OR to can/preserve it
Don't know how to take care of farm animals, or milk a goat/cow
That you
R E N T. Outa courisity, How old are you both?

Find a place for rent. There you wont have to have much of a down payment. you can learn all of the things above over time with the help of U TUBEs. After a c ouple of years, if you havnt learned all of the above, or realize that doing so isn't what you want to do, STAY IN TOWN.

Thank you all very much for all of this info, special thanks to geo in me for the info about the soil! So everyone know I am 20 and my wife is 18 we have been married for a year. I have previous experience in gardening, raising livestock and I currently work in the field of carpentry and my wife has experience with livestock and gardening.
I really like the idea of building a small cabin on land like Sumatra said and then building a full size house a few years down the road once the money is saved up. Has anyone done this? If so I'd love to see pictures of the cabin or tiny house!

geo in me Thank you once again. That link is full of some superb info!

You're welcome---and welcome to the forums.

geo

Entirely possible. Buy land where it's affordable, then build what you can afford.

I knew someone who did it with an old mobile home. When they are old enough people just give them away to get rid of them.

It depends on the seller's objectives. We've all heard of people buying real estate at zero down and no qualifying. While those situations are extremely rare, they almost always occur with 'for sale by owner' situations where the seller is willing to carry paper. If the seller is motivated enough anything is possible.

We stayed in a 40 year old camp trailer until we got the cabin far enough along to live in it. it's now our weekend place until I retire in a few years and then we'll build the main house and the cabin will be my studio/brew house.

We put in a well last summer and working on getting an orchard planted this spring.

My land happened to be my grandparents place that I purchased in 2001. Their old cabin had set empty for several years and and was not fixable.

Good! So at least both of you have dipped your toe into the waters before.

Someone suggested earlier in the thread that your wife go to work (unless there is some sort of barrier preventing it). I agree with that statement wholeheartedly...you are both are very young NOW is the time to start building good financial habits that will not only help you meet your goal of getting out of the city, but will also serve you well for the rest of your life. We are now in our mid-50s and mentally kick ourselves every day that we did not learn our lesson much earlier!

Your focus right now should be, IMO, on the prize down the road, but NEVER let that pinpoint vision of the future obscure what's in between...the journey...for that is where you grow into the person that will grab onto that prize and appreciate it.

You should definitely get a credit card and start working on building a good credit score. Just go your bank and apply for a student card. The spending limits are low on them (mine is $300) so you'll be able to build up your credit quickly without spending much money.

The ideal amount to spend each month is between 10%-30% of your spending limit (so for me that's $30-$90). Pay the card off completely each month and you'll never have to worry about interest rates, balance transfers, etc.

I did all of this one year before we bought our house and had an excellent credit score when we applied for a loan. One loan specialist told my husband that I "had it figured out" in regards to building credit.


Spend time "window shopping" on the real estate sites to get ideas about what the both of you like/don't like in a property. Every now and then and take a drive out past some of the places you really like to get a feel for the area and look for anything that might be an issue.


Make a list of the plants you'd like to grow, animals you'd like to raise, and other important projects. Research breeds and varieties, supplies, etc. and modify your list as you learn. Prioritize items so they can get done in the proper order (i.e. have the pasture fenced before you buy the milk cow).


Ask lots of questions so you can hit the ground running.

At your age, I would take care of your immediate needs. Go to school. College is different than high school. I put off going to college because I hated HS, but college was great. Start at a good community college. This is where you should think of moving, to an area with a good CC. Once you have an Associates Degree you/your wife can think about going to a 4 year college. You can take horticulture classes and use them as your science portion of the degree. Take a couple of bookkeeping or accounting classes also. You have to get the degree, not just take classes because when you transfer to a 4 year college they will make you take those classes over again- the degree protects you from that. This is what is called investing in yourself.

It is very easy for a college student to get a credit card. Right now you should be focusing on each other and living day to day. Save money, but you will need it for daily living, like fixing the car and paying tuition. Life can change so quickly. Buying land and/or a house is probably not a good idea at this time in your life. Your age alone is going to make it hard for you to get any type of loan. Your dreams can also change enough that what you want now could be different from what you will want in ten years, even if you still want to live in the country and live sustainably. Invest in yourselves right now. As written above, rent a place where you can have a garden in your yard and garden like you really mean it. Learn to can. You can start with jelly and jam. When a baby comes along your life will dramatically change.