How did you get to your homestead?

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I started saving and investing for property and timberland before I was a teenager. Bought my first house at 19. I worked up from a ranch hand to a welder/fabricator, mechanic and eventually retired as a VP for an oil company at 57.
During these years I bought hundreds of acres of ranch, farm, timberland and mining properties. Since the kids had no interest in what we're doing we've sold most of this land. So now only have a few hundred acres left. That's enough for us at this time in our life. Our property in an inholding, meaning our property is completely inside the national forest.
 
Sold a payed for house, moved to montana and developed a piece of mountain, Had it pretty well set up with garden, water and shelter both above and below ground.
Burned out in a forest fire, now set up for our declining years just outside a town with a a fairly defendable home, garden, water and chickens.
We just keep doing what it takes to be self reliant no matter the other happenings in life.
 
Worked, saved invested well bought one then two inherited two and bought another, should have bought an adjoining half section when it came up but got beat by waiting for one more drop in the price. 360 acres for 1000 an acre in this area is about 750 below common price and climbing.

Anyone know how to build one of those self kicking boots?
 
We were in a subdivision that was kinda remote when we bought in, then the city grew up around us. A couple of hurricanes hit that year and we saw power outages, people fighting in the gas line, and stupidness all around us after less than 48 hours. We decided we had to get out of there. One house sale, 5-acre purchase, 1 year of apartment living while we built, and here we are, 15 years later!
 
Inherited . This land in middle Tn has been in my family since the 1700's . The big farm split up several times with each generation . Myself and other relatives own parts of it . I've worked 60 hours a week for the past 30 plus years . Me and my Wife have budgeted close and We get to build a new house next year debt free .
 
For years I worked wherever the money took me and slept on whatever cot I could find. My footprint was very small and my savings account grew large. When I decided to pound a stake in the ground I found an empty former commercial property a ways outside of any community and a ways away from regular human activity. There's enough activity and signs of life to make sure local people know someone is here, but not enough for them to know who, what, or why. I think of it more of a FOB than a homestead but it serves me well and gives me a large secure and defensible space.
 
Damn . I guess i'm lucky . I've lived in the country my whole life . Never been to the city and don't care to . Maybe I don't have a lot $ but I have a lot .

WORK , PAY TAXES , DIE
 
We may or may not be at our final homestead. Several factors remain to be exposed. But we've been here for 30 years, built our house and moved here. Made a lot of improvements to the property to make it a homestead. From that standpoint it's provide a lot of what we need as we age. But local government is doing the US government thing with spending and I expect property taxes to take a drastic jump is years to come. And it's not as remote as I want to be. It's a great location a long as I'm working. But retirement is probably a couple years away and that will make a move to a remote location much more favorable.
We'll see how things go over the next couple years, but keep on keeping on for now
 
Here's the news everyone has been waiting for...
How to Start Your Homestead for Free!
(and you thought it might cost money?!)
I guess this is sort of click bait, because they sure don't tell you HOW it's free!
I actually wonder if "articles" like this are AI produced with its hodgepodge of photos.
 
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Wife started a new job in 2018. We were ready to put an offer on a couple acre mid century modern place .
She talked to a new coworker about what we were looking for, “ it sounds like our place, I will ask my husband”. She put a paper with a number on my wife’s desk. Wife said yes sight unseen.
I researched and it was 250k less than they payed in 2006 so I said yes.
had to fix a lot of what I call ‘Art-isms” Art was a hack.
 

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