Jobs you can do from or on Your Homestead

[Caribou]

What jobs can we do at the homestead or with the homestead as our base?

Buy or build a candle dipping machine. I met a guy that bought a ton of beeswax at a time, from large bee operations. He would sell hand dipped candles. technically they were machine dipped. Beeswax candles go for a higher price. They are a favourite with churches as they don't smoke. The lack of soot is a big seller especially in a church or other place that uses lots of candles. Beeswax candles would be a great pepper item. Slumgum fire starter and beeswax lip balm are just two other items to market.

 

[Weedygarden]

There are many people who film You Tube videos of the work they do on their homesteads. After an initial startup, once you have 1,000 subscribers, a YouTube channel can be monetized. Of course, this takes time, but getting paid to show what you are already doing is not a difficult thing.

 

[Caribou]

There are many people who film You Tube videos of the work they do on their homesteads. After an initial startup, once you have 1,000 subscribers, a YouTube channel can be monetized. Of course, this takes time, but getting paid to show what you are already doing is not a difficult thing.

Excellent! Don't forget places light Brighteon and Rumble. They are crying for content and many viewers are trying to get away from uTube.

 

[Weedygarden]

Excellent! Don't forget places light Brighteon and Rumble. They are crying for content and many viewers are trying to get away from uTube.

I have subscribed to Rumble, but not Brighteon. I guess I am too used to watching YouTube, but I know that they are ultra liberal and controlling over content.

 

[Caribou]

I have subscribed to Rumble, but not Brighteon. I guess I am too used to watching YouTube, but I know that they are ultra liberal and controlling over content.

That is why I like Brighteon and Rumble. They are conservative but if you want to post liberal stuff, go ahead. They got started because they objected to all the deleting, shadow banning, de-platforming, and other unconstitutional and criminal actions.

 

[Buffalo]

I have subscribed to Rumble, but not Brighteon. I guess I am too used to watching YouTube, but I know that they are ultra liberal and controlling over content.

That is why I like Brighteon and Rumble. They are conservative but if you want to post liberal stuff, go ahead. They got started because they objected to all the deleting, shadow banning, de-platforming, and other unconstitutional and criminal actions.

I've been looking into documenting our journey to homesteading full time via YouTube, Rumble, Brighton or Patreon. The all have their pros and cons. The biggest things are access to an audience and a revenue stream. YouTube definitely wears the biggest hat when it comes to reach, with millions of potential viewers on their platform., granted you have to play within their rules. Most YTers that want to post content that doesn't toe the line with YTs guidelines, have to post it to a secondary platform such as Rumble or Patreon. The issue you run into with both Rumble and Patreon are that their reach is just not as substantial as YouTubes, and that means that the revenue streams from the other platforms is just not as great.

Unfortunately, YouTube has also become the platform for anyone with a cell phone and a google account can post videos, good, bad or indifferent. Honestly, there are entirely too many "homesteader" channels on YouTube and almost every single one follows the same format of videos, using the same ideas and the same talking points. That is the biggest reason I have been hesitant to post anything, I'd rather our journey not get lost in a sea of videos.

 

[Buffalo]

But from a standpoint of what can be done via homestead to create an income stream, our plans are to take a multifaceted approach to earning a living. We have already started to start tomatoes, peppers, brocolli and cabbage plants, grow them to a decent transplant size and then sell them via a Saturday morning farmers market. I own a collision repair shop currently, and I plan to use my skills welding, working steel, repairing vehicles, etc. My wife is finishing her bachelors degree in early childhood education, she is planning on opening a preschool in the little town close to our homestead. In the meantime, she has been studying and practicing homeopathic medicine, sewing and baking.

When we move to the homestead full-time. We are wanting to have multiple small revenue streams, so that if one fails, not all of are eggs are in that basket.

 

[LadyLocust]

What jobs can we do at the homestead or with the homestead as our base?

Buy or build a candle dipping machine. I met a guy that bought a ton of beeswax at a time, from large bee operations. He would sell hand dipped candles. technically they were machine dipped. Beeswax candles go for a higher price. They are a favourite with churches as they don't smoke. The lack of soot is a big seller especially in a church or other place that uses lots of candles. Beeswax candles would be a great pepper item. Slumgum fire starter and beeswax lip balm are just two other items to market.

Not to poopoo your idea, but I make beeswax candles. They don't sell very well - not none, but not enough that I would invest much into it solely as a resale item.

I just want to warn folks since the wax is not cheap and it is time consuming. I happen to use these and make them every year and enjoy the methodic process of dipping them by hand.
I do think there are small pocket markets for certain things though. Mending/sewing, general repair work, garden excess, critters, processing services. I've found services sell better than products. Many folks want things but don't want to do it themselves. If you can figure out the local needs, ex. snow removal not just from sidewalks & driveways, but also rooftops? Winter is often a little slower not having a garden to tend.
Just throwing out ideas.

 

[Amish Heart]

Good idea to figure out the local needs. We have local amish needs, then there's the tourist needs. Amish always need drivers, and I don't like to be one. But I'm a sucker for driving family and neighbors with kids. I'll drive them anytime. Neighbor paid for mine and husband's steak dinner in a sneaky way tonight, and babysat little granddaughter to boot. We went to the pharmacy in the bigger town and picked up her kid's prescriptions before dinner. Tourists around here like baked goods...bread and pies. Also a few families do "dinners" for tourists. Usually an amish/menno time meal, and charge by the plate. They do these in their homes. Another cousin of mine who is english did farm to table dinners in a renovated barn. They made a business out of that and their pottery work. Hard to make money at the moment on cows. Thrift stores and produce do well around here. A farm neighbor of ours put up a huge greenhouse, and she sells plants and produce. Hanging baskets of flowers always sell.

 

[HippoTwilight]

Are we talking about making money off stuff you already do around the homestead? Or what can you do while physically staying on your property? If COVID has been good for anything, it fast-tracked the ability to work remotely. I could pick up and move anywhere with broadband internet and only need to provide a change of address to my employer. Between Starlink and T-Mobile’s 5g rural explosion, my location is barely limited.

 

[SheepDog]

I am going to charge those city folks $150 a day to do my work for me. I'm calling it home-steading classes 101.
There will be specialist classes in gardening, chickens, cattle rearing and pig farming. I can get more if I charge room and board.

 

[Caribou]

Are we talking about making money off stuff you already do around the homestead? Or what can you do while physically staying on your property? If COVID has been good for anything, it fast-tracked the ability to work remotely. I could pick up and move anywhere with broadband internet and only need to provide a change of address to my employer. Between Starlink and T-Mobile’s 5g rural explosion, my location is barely limited.

I'm talking about ways to bring in cash. Stuff you can do on the homestead like selling eggs, or stuff you can do from your homestead like over road trucking or selling Amway.

 

[sonya123]

I make the most profit at our market selling bread. Flour is still relatively cheap .
Produce sells well too. Our meat sells well but we make little profit because of the expense to raise the animals and the butchering cost
But you would need to see what your local farmers market sells. If there are 15 people selling the same bread, probably not a good idea to sell bread.
I wished we had more eggs to sell this year but need to get new chicks

 

[1371]

I am going to charge those city folks $150 a day to do my work for me. I'm calling it home-steading classes 101.
There will be specialist classes in gardening, chickens, cattle rearing and pig farming. I can get more if I charge room and board.

I think that’s a great idea! Could add how to raise chickens in the urban area type stuff.
Edit, take a step farther and could sell “starter kits”. Not sure if insurance would be needed having people on your property or a signed waiver.
Put up flyers at the grocery store, people see it after paying expensive food prices!
If it was well put together I bet it would take off!
Seeing as I’m pretty much one of those city folks, I’d pay 100$ for a day class on chickens and all the ins and outs. Then if you could sell the coups and chickens or work with someone to sell the package? Anyhow awesome idea sheepdog

 

[Biggkidd]

There are many people who film You Tube videos of the work they do on their homesteads. After an initial startup, once you have 1,000 subscribers, a YouTube channel can be monetized. Of course, this takes time, but getting paid to show what you are already doing is not a difficult thing.

If you've never tried this then you have no idea how much time this adds to any project. In reality you need at least one if not three more people to make it "work"!

Not knocking the idea just telling my VERY limited experience. I've made several videos that were never loaded or fully loaded. There's just me here and it's hard enough to do the job and that's without trying to film it as well. I need a homestead partner.

 

[Weedygarden]

I need a homestead partner.

I'm sure this would make a big difference for many projects.

 

[FarmOR]

EBay reselling?
Grass fed meat? A neighbor of mine sells lamb $10/lb. Cut and wrapped.
Eggs. (Already mentioned)
backyard chicken tractors? (Think city folk needs)
Magic cannabis jam? (big seller at flea markets here)
Firewood. Posts. Poles? (Small margins)
3D archery? Frisbee golf?
Spooky House?
Natural pet foods?

Just some brain stormin...

 

[Amish Heart]

Amish rolled butter sells real well to tourists here. And sauerkraut.
You don't have to be amish to make rolled butter. No one knows the difference.
In our area, everyone loves garage sales. The big ones are farm sales with auctioneers. But the whole town shows up and lunch is served. I knew a guy who would buy from other yard sales away from here, then resell. Second hand anything goes well here.
Plant starts. No one likes to start tomatoes and the likes by seed. Sweet potato slips. Everyone buys them. Tractor, riding lawn mower, and baler repair.

 

[Weedygarden]

EBay reselling?
Grass fed meat? A neighbor of mine sells lamb $10/lb. Cut and wrapped.
Eggs. (Already mentioned)
backyard chicken tractors? (Think city folk needs)
Magic cannabis jam? (big seller at flea markets here)
Firewood. Posts. Poles? (Small margins)
3D archery? Frisbee golf?
Spooky House?
Natural pet foods?

Just some brain stormin...

--You can also sell used books on Amazon. Books have become over sold and produced, so many books are not worth the time. However, having the right books to resell can be profitable.
--Crafting such as making things from wood.
--Firewood cutting, selling and stacking
--Fresh produce stand
--Baked goods
--Sewing items
--Pottery making and selling
--snow removal if you live where there is lots of snow
--garden plowing
--Yard work
--seedling starting and selling
--dog boarding
--handyman services
--field work (plowing, planting, harvesting, haying)
--fencing for others

You are limited by your skills, desire to work, and imagination.

 

[Hooch]

As soon as I can I'm putting up a greenhouse to get veggie starts going to sell.
I think it will be a good year to hatch n sell chicks too. I started saving the eggs from my girls.
Wild Mushrooms to sell but I've a ways to wait yet on those..
I'm going to get a elevated dog washing station set up here too. I have a portable hot water heater to utilize with it. I might offer a dog washing gig..maybe. I'll have to look into that as far as insurance goes n I'm not sure really i want folks comming out to my place even if it's just in my driveway.
If the mill gets back going partically in a month or so that idea wont work out anyways..but great ideas on here..

 

[SheepDog]

Be very careful about selling any product. If is is from home or a garden or private herd you are now selling from a farm or ranch and you need licenses, tax number, gear that is required in the processing and preserving of your product. You can lose your land if found out of compliance.

 

[Weedygarden]

As soon as I can I'm putting up a greenhouse to get veggie starts going to sell.
I think it will be a good year to hatch n sell chicks too. I started saving the eggs from my girls.
Wild Mushrooms to sell but I've a ways to wait yet on those..
I'm going to get a elevated dog washing station set up here too. I have a portable hot water heater to utilize with it. I might offer a dog washing gig..maybe. I'll have to look into that as far as insurance goes n I'm not sure really i want folks comming out to my place even if it's just in my driveway.
If the mill gets back going partically in a month or so that idea wont work out anyways..but great ideas on here..

Around here, seedlings go fast, especially tomato and pepper plants. I think it could be a very successful business and it could grow into a bigger business.

During 2020, the pandemic, daughter and I did a lot of gardening. She wanted Shishito pepper plants. They were quite popular and anyone who grew the starts quickly sold out. In the process of driving all over the place to look for seedlings, I came across quite a few people who were growing and selling seedlings as a side business at home, or maybe as a way to pay the bills after being laid off due to the pandemic situation.

One woman looked as though she had been growing seedlings for years, from her back yard. She had 3 greenhouses. The way she started some seeds, but not all, was to put all of the seeds from one package into one pot, and then separate them when they were a certain size. Most of her plants were sold in red Solo type cups. It was obvious that she had been very successful at this. This woman was not originally from America. She was, if I remember right, from Kyrgyzstan. Some of her seedlings were plants that I was completely unfamiliar with, and my guess was that she had seeds from her home country.

 

[mu51c10rd]

I've been looking into documenting our journey to homesteading full time via YouTube, Rumble, Brighton or Patreon. The all have their pros and cons. The biggest things are access to an audience and a revenue stream. YouTube definitely wears the biggest hat when it comes to reach, with millions of potential viewers on their platform., granted you have to play within their rules. Most YTers that want to post content that doesn't toe the line with YTs guidelines, have to post it to a secondary platform such as Rumble or Patreon. The issue you run into with both Rumble and Patreon are that their reach is just not as substantial as YouTubes, and that means that the revenue streams from the other platforms is just not as great.

Unfortunately, YouTube has also become the platform for anyone with a cell phone and a google account can post videos, good, bad or indifferent. Honestly, there are entirely too many "homesteader" channels on YouTube and almost every single one follows the same format of videos, using the same ideas and the same talking points. That is the biggest reason I have been hesitant to post anything, I'd rather our journey not get lost in a sea of videos.

I've taken the route of Youtube...you are correct, there are hundreds of homesteading videos. We chose to record it as we have no idea what we are doing so at least people get to see our mistakes and learn from those too. In our neck of the woods (pun sortof intended), buying and building on undeveloped property is not common unless you are a homebuilder putting in a subdivision.

 

[Magpie]

I've sold crafts from home. The youtube thing is interesting but doesn't interest me as it's almost like inviting strangers into your home! - it actually takes time to do also, if you are doing it properly, all the editing etc. The same with podcasts. I did think of having a website or blog, but during the growing season I'd be too busy to maintain it. I'd rather just write a book!
If you have a skill like accountancy or writing, there are more remote jobs out there these days.

 

[lilmissy]

@FarmOR would love info on the cannabis jam
@LadyLocust those candles will sell like crazy when people cant afford to pay electric bills anymore.

i think we need to also toss out ideas on how to make money once the shtf. Like baking bread for others or even grinding their wheat for them, candles, etc, just a thought

 

[LadyLocust]

@FarmOR would love info on the cannabis jam
@LadyLocust those candles will sell like crazy when people cant afford to pay electric bills anymore.

i think we need to also toss out ideas on how to make money once the shtf. Like baking bread for others or even grinding their wheat for them, candles, etc, just a thought

I know it's been preached on various threads, but that's where skills come into play. I think anyone who is mechanically inclined will be highly valued - not just auto mechanics, but those with that sort of intellect. I've sewn for ages and at one time had a very custom/tailored wardrobe. Now jeans and a T are my go to. The ability to grow or make things of all sorts can be a source of profit if done wisely.

 

[Supervisor42]

I know it's been preached on various threads, but that's where skills come into play. I think anyone who is mechanically inclined will be highly valued - not just auto mechanics, but those with that sort of intellect. I've sewn for ages and at one time had a very custom/tailored wardrobe. Now jeans and a T are my go to. The ability to grow or make things of all sorts can be a source of profit if done wisely.

Sorry, but I ain't workin' no more.

I keep all of my certifications impounded safely in a briefcase, and my tools locked-down.
I have done enough.

 

[Weedygarden]

Sorry, but I ain't workin' no more.

I keep all of my certifications impounded safely in a briefcase, and my tools locked-down.
I have done enough.

Same for me with teaching. Been there, done that, and no more. I've been asked to teach Sunday school for the children. Nope! I was asked to participate in a tutoring program after school one day a week. Nope!

However, there are a few other things that I can and will do. My dog and housesitting business is not hard. I could be much busier. If people had lots of space and lived in just the right place, you could board dogs. There is money in that and people really struggle to find dependable, honest, and people that are good with animals. $60 for 24 hours of dog boarding. You do need a good safe and well fenced area for them, and a place for them to sleep for the night that is comfortable, not freezing or hot.

 

[sonya123]

Be very careful about selling any product. If is is from home or a garden or private herd you are now selling from a farm or ranch and you need licenses, tax number, gear that is required in the processing and preserving of your product. You can lose your land if found out of compliance.

Here is what exactly we have to do to sell things legally in Virginia:
meat has to be USDA inspected and labeled.
for produce you have to get a free growers permit from the AG extension office. Basically it certifies that you are growing what you are selling at your farm
$300 a year liability insurance ( there is one specifically for farmers markets)
$75 a year fee to sell at this particular market
eggs have to be labled with your farm name address and date and refrigerated
milk you can "sell" for donations only, or for "pet use only
bread /cake/cookies: either inspected kitchen or in my case you have to put a label with your name, address, ingredients in the bread, and " not for resale, produced in home kitchen"
you do not need a license or tax number ( but we file a schedule F for our taxes)

The rules totally depend on YOUR State however so check them

 

[Haertig]

I don't want to deal with irate, entitled or nasty customers. Nor do I want to deal with supply chain issues - not being able to get the supplies needed to make something to sell. So sales is totally out of the picture for me. Sales of anything.

I want something that makes money without having to directly depend on someone else (either supplier or purchaser). I want something that can be done from anywhere. I want something that requires brains, not physical strength. I want something that can be done any time, day or night, at my choosing. I want something that I don't have to do every day if I decide I'd rather do something else instead, even at the last second.

For us, and our plan going into retirement (I am retired, the wife is not yet) - that "something" is Day Trading. You only need a computer and an internet connection. You can even do it away from home with a laptop. Prerequisites are (1) Learn what you are doing first. Get training. Take classes. Find a mentor if possible. (2) You need a little money to start with. A couple thousand, just for learning with. Then you'll need a couple more thousand to start "real" trading with. (3) You need to be fairly financially secure already. You've got some money in the bank, emergency funds set aside, food in the kitchen, etc. You could easily live for several months or longer with zero income if you had to. I wouldn't want to go into it if I were living paycheck to paycheck. You can get into it if you only have a little money. But probably not if you are homeless and living on the street. If you could not drop $10,000 without it being a touchy financial problem, you might want to look into some other way of making money (IMHO - others might disagree). (4) Reiterate point (1) - Learn what you are doing first! You will not do well if you think you can fake your way through it. Just the opposite, your money will probably be gone in a heartbeat. The Day Trading solution is not for everybody. But it fits us well. Best part, IMHO, is the freedom of it. Of course, if the big EMP hits and we are living in caves dressed in animal skins again, Day Trading is not going to work out.