Our southern pasture
First off, I think I need to clarify a few things right off the bat…
Originally, I had titled this post, “How We Afford to Homestead on One Income.” But that makes it sound like homesteading has to be an expensive endeavor, and that’s not necessarily true.
As I’ve stated in my Your Custom Homestead eBook, as well as all over my blog, you DO NOT have to move to the country or shell out the big bucks in order to ‘homestead.’
It can totally be done where you are RIGHT NOW- an apartment, in the suburbs, or on a couple acres of land.
However.
If you’ve read my About page, then you know our personal homestead/farm consists of 67 acres, cattle, horses, various smaller animals, multiple outbuildings, tractors, a one-ton truck, and several trailers.
Land and animals are expensive. Ideally, we would all be able to make our homesteads pay for themselves right away, but it doesn’t always work like that.
I’ve had several readers send me emails expressing a slight bit of skepticism as to how we, a young couple, have been able to afford our lifestyle. I think some folks wonder if we are independently wealthy or if we inheirited our land.
So for those of you who are wondering what our secret is, I’m going to spill the beans today.
You see, we really do live on just my husband’s income. (I quit my last “real” job in 2009 when I become pregnant with Prairie Baby.) While we are blessed that he makes a good salary, it’s far from being three figures…
We aren’t trust fund babies…
We don’t have rich relatives and haven’t inheirited a single cent from anyone…
We don’t play the lottery…
And we’ve never borrowed money from our parents…
The big secret is…
…
Actually not really a secret at all. There are lots of different little factors that enable us to do what we do.
How WE Afford to Maintain a Mini-Farm on One Income
1. We stay out of debt.
We were very fortunate to come across Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover book right after we were engaged. We entered our marriage with ZERO debt and a plan to keep it that way. We committed right from the beginning of our relationship to be different than the average American and do everything we could to live beneath our means.
For our first year and a half of marriage, we rented a single-wide trailer out in the middle of nowhere with dirt-cheap rent. This enabled us to squirrel away a healthy chunk of savings. We knew that we would take out a loan for our first home, but set our price range far, far below what the bank was willing to loan us.
So yes, we do have a mortgage payment on our homestead– but it’s less than what some folks pay for rent in the neighboring town– and it’s the only bit of debt we have. Plus, we’ve been able to refinance and get an awesome interest rate, so our plan is to pay off the loan in 15 years instead of 30.
2. We buy things used.
This goes along with the whole idea of staying debt-free. We are strict about only paying cash for our vehicles, tractors, or trailers.
Borrowing the neighbor’s equipment to hay our pasture. We’ve since purchase an old tractor of our own.
Although that might sound glamorous at first, it means we have a lot of older equipment. Functional? Yes. Shiny and fancy? No. We do end up spending time tinkering on the stuff that breaks down or needs maintenance.
I’ll be honest, sometimes I feel a little dorky driving my old sedan… But then I remember that I don’t have a monthly payment on it, and that makes it all worthwhile.
The concept of buying things second-hand goes beyond just vehicles– I am a yard sale fanatic and purchase a large number of our clothes, household items, and kitchen stuff that way. People are shocked when I tell them that most of my home decor are repurposed yard sale finds. If you are creative, yard sale stuff doesn’t have to be tacky.
3. We are Obsessive DIY-ers.
I was fortunate to marry a very handy man. Not only is my hubby a Master Electrician by trade, he can weld, mechanic, woodwork, fence, and he’s knowledgable with general construction stuff. These skills have proven invaluable in allowing us to build and maintain our homestead on a budget.
When at all possible, we don’t hire others to do work that we are capable of… Even if it means some long, sweaty days.
Of course, there is no shame in hiring a professional when the task requires it (when our sewer line backed up last weekend, I wanted to kiss the repairman that unplugged it…), but we’ve saved a lot of cash by doing all of our own fencing, painting, landscaping, and remodeling.
One of our less-than-glamorous DIY projects… We’ve since re-roofed and re-painted the whole thing.
But, there has still been a lot of skills we’ve had to learn along the way…
Since starting our homesteading journey, we’ve learned how to raise and kid goats, milk dairy animals, butcher a steer, garden, pressure can, make cheese, bake bread, and a whole lot more…
Neither one of us was raised on a farm, and we had no prior experience with any of those skills. So if we can learn all that stuff, so can you!
4. We Barter
Whenever we can, we like to barter for goods and services. This can really help to take the strain off of the budget. This year I traded some of our home raised grass-fed beef for a big box of cucumbers from my friend. We’ve also been blessed to trade some of hubby’s electrician skills for hay, and I swapped some goats for a Jersey bull calf this spring.
Of course, bartering greatly depends on your location and needs, but look for opportunities whenever possible.
Read Part Two HERE.
This post is a part of Frugal Days Sustainable Ways, Simple Lives Thursday, Monday Mania, The Better Mom, New Nostalgia, Fat Tuesday
About Jill Winger
Great post! You are so right, staying (or getting) debt free is the best thing anyone could do to protect their future & their family, life just becomes so much cheaper then!
Hi:) Loved your story..We also read and followed Dave Ramesy book,its such a great tool.We only have one income too, husband is self employed and I am a stay at home mommy.My kids are homeschooled and we r so very blessed to have such a great church family-we have a home schooling group/pool that we get together with everyday..kids love it!We had $30,000 in debt and we applied Dave Ramesys book and was able to pay off that $30,000 in 3 yrs..we sacrificed alot,we hardlyever ate out,if we did it was on the dollar menu
We shopped at thrift stores,which I still love to do.We then was able to save $6,000 fpr a down payment on our first car as a family.We payed that off in 2 yrs..next step was buying land so we save another $6,000 in a yr and was able to put that money down on 4 acres..its our only loan we have..We bought a second hand trailor fixed it up this yr an made it homey husband is a handyman too 
He is a carpentar so we were blessed to not have to pay labor and also to have alot of church friends help.We had bought it for $ 4,000 which we had saved and in a month we made it like a home-new windows doors,walls-everything lol..In the end we still had no debt,and its our home!:) We are currently wanting to start a small farm,we want to buy animals for to live to cut costs..we only eat organics-but it can be pricey and hard to find a variety of stuff-any suggestions on some small animals to start with,really any info would be appreciated:)
Wow Ashley– you guys rock!
As far as small animals, chickens are always a good starter farm animal. You can eat them and of course, the eggs are very useful. The feed can be a bit expensive, so if you can free range them or supplement with kitchen scraps, that helps.
I recommend goats if you are interested in home dairying. Much cheaper than cattle, and they eat a lot less. Plus, you can use them for meat if you desire.
Jill,
You go girl! to be debt free:::OMG, how I dream of not having to pay on credit cards every pay day! some day:: were down to a couple of them::: I swear though:: I’m pretty sure the Devil came up w/ the concept of credit cards:::they are evil:: and I’m the first to admit:: I loved having them! but the older I get :::: the tougher it is to pay the suckers off!!! Love the pictures:: our little homestead is nothing compared to that! yours is so dang pretty!!!! thanks for the post: very educational.
Sandy
Yes, credit cards are definitely a trap. So easy to get caught up with them…
And those photos were taken last summer, before our drought… Unfortunately, it’s not so green or tall this year.
Thank you so much for sharing. Your post makes the homestead life seem much more attainable. With the economy the way it is great deals seem to be presenting themselves all the time. We are working on our skill sets while keeping an eye out for property. Love the pics. My husband would drool over your tractor!
Yes, definitely keep working on those skill sets! They are incredibly useful, regardless of where you live. And now is a good time to purchase land in many areas of the country… Hope that perfect parcel presents itself to you soon!
I love this post! It has given me a lot of ideas about how to reach that homesteading dream. We are a one-income, two person family, however with plenty of student loan debt on both our heads, we still live in a tiny, cheap apartment and try to live below our means. I’m forwarding this to my husband so we can start thinking of more ways to save and plan!
Also, I have been bartering my services as a designer a lot lately – I see both my chiropractor and personal trainer with no money exchanging hands. Feels good.
You can do it Lillian! That’s awesome about your bartering– every little bit counts!
Great post Jill! Great job all around on your homestead and life!
I so wish more people would do what you’ve done. My wife and I lived off one income during the early years of our marriage. We both worked, but the second income went to savings and paying off debt. We got rid of all our debt except the mortgage but like you, we only bought half the house the bankers and realtors thought we could afford. It has made all the difference in our lives. I applaud your choices and lifestyle.
Cesum,
Thanks so much for your kind words! They mean a lot!
Love this post! Part 2! Part 2!
My husband and I live in the sticks and plan on eventually doing something like this. We live on 5 acres but are looking to buy 164 acres down the street. We have hesitated since he works full time and I have little ones. But you make it seem so possible!
How is your hunting? Been lately? I still haven’t gone. I don’t think I will until the girls are a little older!
Are you going to Allume?? I would love to meet you!
Wow, 164 acres would be awesome!
No hunting lately.
We didn’t get drawn for our antelope tags this year– I was so bummed! Hubby might try to go out for deer or elk, but I won’t since I’m getting so close to my due date. And yes, it can be a challenge with little ones. I look forward to when ours will have their own licenses and can walk on their own, ha!
No Allume for me this year– I really, really hope to make it eventually in the future, though!
We’re also on one income and just getting ready to move to our 10 acre homestead. We just have one vehicle and are building a pole barn ::blush:: . My husband works full time “off the farm” and travels every week with his job so some DIY projects are not feasible for us, but even hiring out the labor for our home is less expensive than building a traditional frame home. We’ve almost always bought used furniture on consignment or caught a really good deal and the majority of my appliances have always been just the basics: no bells and whistles.
Awesome to read another success story! My husband and I also have a similar story! We moved from urban PA to rural TN….what an experience that was! We owner financed 15 acres and build our house with our 4 hands from a patch of dirt. We paid off the land about 10 years ago, we drive old trucks and tractors, we raise about 50% of the food we eat(with 4 kids now!) We are about a year from being totally debt free . We sacrifice all the fancy baubles and shiny things our friends have but in this age of financial turmoil I would not trade my self-sufficient little farm for anything. I home school my children and they are the poster kids for how much happiness country life can bring. IT IS POSSIBLE!!
Heather,
Now THAT is an inspirational story! Wow, you guys rock!
We also have built our farm in this same manner. We barter all the time and get much of out supplies for building free off of Craig’s list. We have built all of our out buildings from other peoples throwaways All of our animals have come free or close too it. We own a Allis Chalmers Tractor that is from the early era also. We have 7 acres hill of paradise and we are buying it from a friend who no longer had the funds to continue paying for it from the bank. We paid off the loan and pay him. We have no payments on cars and everything we own outright. We have been trying to get our children to understand this is possible but they believe that credit cards and high bills are the thing. Yes it is possible
Yes, it’s totally possible!
We have an old (1960s) Allis Chalmers, too. (The tractor in the photo was being borrowed from our neighbor). I love it- it’s a great piece of equipment!
We Raise Nigerian dairy goats, chicken, ducks and New Zealand rabbits and have recently set up a Tilalia pond for sustaining ourselves. We also have a few donkeys, one standard and one mini to protect everyone along with our Pyrenees dogs.We raise blueberries, grapes, peaches pears and plums all organically. In with the fish we raise strawberries and greens hydroponically too. My husband and I are both full time students and he has his own business building wiring harnesses for a small company. I will be graduating in Dec. with a masters in Teaching and will teach online and my husband will be doing the same in an other year and a half. We are very much into protecting the environment and have background in it. We are working towards a better sustainability for our future.
Yay for being debt free…we’re working towards that goal right now. All we have left are student loans, and I can’t tell you how wonderful it was to pay off the last credit card. I’ve never had a car payment because we buy everything used as well. Hubby is a great hobby mechanic, so having older cars (some older than we are) isn’t a problem…in fact he prefers it that way because they are less complicated to work on. The thought of making car payments just floors me whenever I hear friend talking about what a “good deal” they got on their brand new vehicles, and how “low” their payments are. Another thing that I think is important is knowing the difference between wants and needs. I’m not saying that we can’t give into our wants sometimes, if we have the resources, but if we really don’t need it it truly isn’t worth going into debt for. I also love thrift stores and consignment stores. Baby’s crib and swing both came from consignment stores for less than 1/3 of what they would have cost new!
Oh me too– I think I’ve bought pretty much every single part of my baby gear second hand… And it’s all good stuff!
When I saw the title of this, I though to myself, “How can you NOT homestead on just one income?” Even though we have just 1-acre of land, are retired, and drawing a good retirement, we still like to Homestead. My favorite part is the putting up of fresh vegetables. We don’t have any meat sources on our property, but that’s OK. We aren’t big meat eaters anyway. Yes, we still have some credit card debt, but it is manageable and we are getting them paid down and off. Just 2 more to go and all we will have left is the mortgage on the house. It is a doable thing. We always pay more than the minimum payments on everything. I can’t wait to be totally debt free! At least the end is in sight! =)
Yes, it is definitely doable!
Love that you are working on whittling away that debt. Keep up the great work!
Wonderful post! I’m looking forward to part two.
My husband and I are currently trying to get out of debt. My husband is a general contractor and so I definitely know the blessing of being married to a man who can do everything. I call my hubby Superman. And he is. 
The things we’ve been able to do on our farm is greatly because of his skill. Truly a blessing. When we bought our home we had to TOTALLY remodel the inside, and there is no way we could have afforded to pay someone to do it. It took three months of blood, sweat, and tears, but it was worth it and now we have a beautiful home. (Well, we need to do work on the outside, but that can wait. Isn’t it what’s on the inside that matters? 
And what’s amazing is that the Lord gave my hubby so much work in that three months that we were able to pay for the whole remodel out of pocket! Wow…we were stunned and sooo thankful!
Aren’t those handy hubbys the best?! And how cool that you were able to remodel your whole house like that and do it all out of pocket! I love it!
Wow, I’m glad I’m not the only one who lives on a farm with a family and one income. My hubby is a carpenter so doesn’t make a lot, but by the grace of God, we have the cheapest rent around for our 10 acres of mostly bush. We have debt from some poor choices when we first got married, but our vehicle was given to us so we have no debt on that. We are trying to get out of debt so we can save for a farm of our own (with more pasture), but with our small income we’re not making much headway. But we love farming! We used our savings to buy a milk cow to add to our chickens and 2 horses. There are so many things we need to run this farm better but because it’s a rental and the lack of spare cash we’re not putting money into infrastructure, just time, using whatever free materials we can find. Thanks for the encouragement!
Sounds like you have an awesome start Rebekah! And kudos to you for working on eliminating that debt. It’s a tough road, but SO worth it in the end.
I just had to tell you how much I LOVE this post! My husband and I have a small 2.5 acre mini-farm with cows, chickens, goats, a rabbit, dogs, cat…and we are also on one income. Many times my family and friends can’t believe we live the way we do! We love it and we love working for ourselves…getting our own meat and building/remodeling our own land and home. Your list says it all! And that is exactly why it works for us homesteaders! When the economy collapsed and I lost my job it became clear to us that the way we wanted to live might become harder…but going back to our roots and the “old” way of living has been more rewarding and everyday we learn something new! Thank you!
It is so fulfilling, isn’t it? Like you said– definitely harder, but the rewards are incredible!
What kind of chickens and goats do u guys raise? How many do we nee to buy to
Start off with?
Love this…makes me hopeful. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for this post, Jill! It is so inspiring to read all of the comments as see that what I dream of really *is* possible! I am single now, but I own my home and 1/3+ acre. Since purchasing my home, I’ve learned basic household electric, to patch drywall, to lay flagstone, make adjustments/repairs to my sprinklers, I’m in the process of building a manifold for my newly installed well (to water the garden!), and have become very proficient in the use of a caulking gun!
I didn’t set out to learn any of this, but rather don’t want to pay someone to do it for me! It’s encouraging to know that this mindset/skills really will carry over to when I’m blessed with marriage and hopefully get to stay home to care for our home and children.
Thanks for putting this post out there. It’s great to get some tips in order to manage a budget and live realistically. I’m off to crunch our numbers and see how we can do better.
Just wanted to thank you for your inspiration. I read your post last week, told my husband about it and he got me the Dave Ramsey book on the Kindle five minutes later. I read the book, and we are already committed to this and have started the process. I am excited and anxious about it, and hopeful too. I hope in a few years we can be where you are at. Thanks again-and bless you!!!
Heather
Jill, I’m so glad to see you doing this article. My oldest daughter would love nothing more than to have her own farm (and we’d love that for her, too!). She is committed to living debt free and loves thrift store shopping. I’ll be sharing this post with her as I know it will encourage her not to give up and that her dream is certainly possible if the Lord wills. Thanks for sharing!
~ Amy
Yes– it’s definitely possible! And I think your daughter has a splendid start– especially considering all the experiences her mama has shared with her.
Fantastic and inspiring as always, Jill! Yours is one of the blogs I turn to when when the goals of having a “complete” homestead of our own seems unattainable. We’re debt free and slowly building up savings for the land purchase. It’s a slow pace, but every day we’re closer! We already grow a lot of veggies, and will hopefully have some chickens before June. Thanks for all you’re sharing, keep it up!
It’s all about the baby steps, huh?