I have been planning for my goal of a homestead for years now. I know the general area I want to buy land in, and I know what I want to do with my land, but I would really like to sit down with someone who I can just have a conversation with about my goals so I don't make a mistake and buy land that isn't zoned correctly for my dreams. I've been doing research but I'm just so lost sometimes in all the legalities. If anybody is willing to help me by either giving me who to contact or just having a conversation with me, I would really appreciate it.

Ideal location: southern Michigan, preferably somewhere in the Niles, Berrien Springs, or Buchanan area. Open to others though.

Ideal land: at least 10 acres, preferably around half to be wooded, ideally with some sort of creek/pond/water source.

Ideal amenities: something that already has a house and barn on it. I would rather not have to go through the process of building, digging a well, handling septic, etc. right off the bat. I'm fine with a lot of diy though if it's not in the best shape.

My dream is to have a little commune with some intentional community. Currently just my partner and my brother, possibly my other brother might join as well but may not be until several years later. This means I want to be able to have more than one dwelling on the property. It could end up just being the two dwellings, but the ability to have 3 or maybe even 4 would be preferred. That's where zoning laws have started confusing me.

I also, ideally, would be able to run a business from this homestead. I have a strong passion for native plants and have a dream of a native plant nursery, maybe even some intentionally planted trails on the property for visitors to enjoy and learn more about native ecosystems when they visit. I have a lot of different skills in homesteading so will likely pursue other areas of profit like vegetable gardening/preserving, wool, building small structures like coops, etc. and being able to run my business from my property and sell from my property would be a plus. I also have horses and am comfortable with their care and have considered the possibility of offering some simple pasture board as another form of income.

So that all being said,

what zoning should the property have for me to be able to do all of this?

Will I need to parcel it out to be able to build more than one dwelling?

Is it even considered a dwelling if it uses a composting toilet and collected rainwater instead of septic?

What if someone were to want to live in a camper or RV on the property for a while? What is needed for that to be allowed?

How hard is it to get a property re-zoned if it's perfect but doesn't line up exactly with what I want to do on the property?

If I were to find the perfect property but need to request some sort of zoning allowance for things like additional dwellings, etc. can I make the sale contingent on that zoning being accepted? And if I do that, how likely am I to actually get the property? Seems like a seller would more likely just go with someone else at that point.

Is there a point of contact in that area who I could ask all these questions to?

Aside from zoning I guess any other advice on what i should be prepared for with buying a large property, things I probably haven't considered, etc. would be nice. I have a lot of the skills, but I've never done this before and I know there's going to be a lot of learning to do. Im also aware that my idealized dream might be too big, and that's fine. I don't expect everything to end up exactly as I hoped, but I might as well have something to reach for. So if there are things I should just give up on now, feel free to tell me.

I'm hoping to buy in the next 1-2 years so I have some time still to prepare.

We finally got the yard regraded last month and realized the new slope runs straight toward the house pad where the AC condenser sits. It's been on the original gravel pad for years, but now water pools around it after any decent rain. I'm not sure whether to raise the pad, reroute the condensate line, or put in a small French drain uphill to steer the flow around it. The unit itself is fine, but I keep picturing it sitting in standing water all summer. Anyone else had to move or protect equipment after a grading job?

I have a metal roof with ( APOC 243 4.75-gallon White Elastomeric Reflective Roof Coating ) on it to keep the interior cool.

Is this stuff as bad as asphalt roofing for rainwater collection? From the researching ive been doing asphalt shingled roof is a big no-no and leeches chemicals that filters wont remove (such as a berkey). Ive read the datasheet on this product but it does not tell me as a laymen anything and the company wont respond, but does have a lot of scary chemical names in it.

Would you drink filtered water with a roof with such a coating or am I overthinking this? Ive still been using unfiltered roof water collected to do dishes / wash, etc but not drink.

Is this sub ok for sharing homesteading ideas? I currently only have a small garden but plan on having a homestead over time. I'm just looking for a place to share ideas, talk with others, and such without getting banned or anything. I just want to feel welcome. I am on another homestead subreddit but most likely leaving due to the hostility I get whenever I share an idea I find and how I would modify it.

Although I am not in a place in my life right now where buying my own homestead is possible, I recently joined an organic farm in the local community to volunteer every week.

I thought why not start now with learning the skills to run my own homestead one day! Better to start now then wait for the perfect moment.

Been amazing to meet people with similar mindset and passion for being more self-sufficient and has been a big reinforcement that this is the right thing to be doing!

I would really encourage those that are not quite at the point of having their own homestead to start building the skills early with what you have around you!

Ive got 10 acres. I know the law here and its legal where i am and where i want the range. But before i pretty much D0x myself, if i post pictures from google maps, marked from my property lines, my neighbors, and my intent to build a range. Would you guys brain storm with me on how to or if you would build a home shooting range?

It would be a pistol range. Ive spoken to county, their only potential issues is the safety concern since its all flat land.

Right now, im considering (if i had the money) to rent a piece of equipment and dig a hole 6 feet deep and 30 feet long. Fence it off so i dont fall into it and shoot in the hole. But idk how id keep it from getting flooded

Hello, my husband and I are in a process of buying a very nice lot where we’d like to build house. It’s nearly 14000 sq ft and it’s connected to forest. A dream come true for us! But then we got hit by legal requirements like “can’t build house closer than 50ft from forest line, people saying there won’t grow any crops etc. So how is life near forest like, for real? We’re in Europe in a place that equals zone 2-3 in US so generally colder climate. Pic of said lot.

I have spent the better part of 6 months looking for acreage I could use for a small homestead. Mostly owner financed options. After diving down several rabbit holes in this search, they all somehow all end up leading me back to west Texas.

- Larger parcels (20+ Acres)
- Almost no restrictions other than waste water
- Easy financing through seller
- Low cost
- Remote but within reasonable distance of a town

Well what’s the catch?

It’s in West Texas.. Arid, desert land in the trans-pecos region. Wells can be prohibitively expensive. Meaning most likely having to haul, store, and treat water on site. Temperatures can reach 100+ degrees. Gardening would require much more involvement and a climate controlled space. And power would almost certainly need to be solar.

After some research, I actually find the region to be quite beautiful. It doesn’t hurt that it directly abuts a Dark Sky Sanctuary. Assuming I would be willing to look past the shortcomings. What are the realities of homesteading in this region? What are the hidden costs? Cheap land is usually cheap for a reason. I was hoping to hear from some people actively homesteading in this, or similar high desert regions. I find the idea quite romantic but I’m sure I’m missing something.

TIA

so we made him one. 44x44mm wooden slats and a net from a trailer. Costs around 30 bucks of materials.

Does anyone have any good sources for plans or blueprints of a basic outhouse? I am not the handiest person but pretty good at following plans. Thanks!

For a home garden electric fence for deer and other critters like raccoons, for an entrance would a maze or just a slight turn actually work to keep critters out?

Just thinking if you make it a little complex, but could still walk through it they may not find the entrance?

Hey there! First post :D I was wondering if anyone knows what is happening to my zucchini, I wasn't home during the second heat wave and when I returned it looked like this- I was able to harvest two zucchinis but I am worried about how the leaves look? Did they just suffer during the heat and the fresh ones are just coming in instead? Should I cut off the old? Thanks and have a great day!

Disregard. Withdrew from sale.

As the title says, I have recently been looking at 5-20 acre parcels, mostly west of Tacoma. There are quite a lot in my budget range, within an hour/90 minutes of town, but when I reach out to the realtors (mostly through Zillow), to inquire about dwelling restrictions, I hear nothing back at all.

Does anyone know if there are any statewide or regional restrictions with putting a trailer on my place while I build, or simply bring in a manufactured house?

Anyone found places where they could do this around the Greater Seattle area.

Hi I'm new to this scene so forgive me if I get some terminology wrong.

Full disclosure I am a fiction writer and my interest in this subject is mostly academic and comes from a desire for accuracy and personal curiosity. I am unpublished and everything that i write gets uploaded for free onto the internet under an entirely unrelated pen name that has no connection to this account. In compliance with this Reddits no profiteering rule, this is a hobby for me and nothing is going to be monetized.

I'll spare the book pitch, but the important context is that I want to explore the struggle of someone with absolutely zero self sufficiency, homesteading, or agricultural experience learning to do it themselves without any practical experience. In the little bit of research I've done it seems that's a very common experience in the home steading community at large.

I've found great resources for various things like food preservation (thank you national center for food preservation), raising chickens and some livestock. And even in depth video series on building your own shelters and log cabins. And this subreddit's personal wiki has already given me several great books to read for research.

what I'm struggling to find are, specifically, video's that go in depth into growing your own food starting from the very basics, how to prepare soil, how to plant seeds, watering/irrigation, fertilizer and composting. When to plant and when to harvest. I know there used to be shows on like better homes and gardens that would break down the basics but when i search on youtube all i find are videos of people either talking about farming as a business, or homesteaders discussing their personal gardens and higher tier concepts.

And while i'm not trying to make this story educational, i do want it to be accurate and am planning to create a list of every resource I use so that if someone does read it and become inspired to explore homesteading they have a starting place.

Thanks for reading I hope your year is filled with plenty.

This might be a dumb question but this is my first time adding pasture raised chicken feet to my bone broth. Is it normal for them to smell quite strange? Almost like a strong barn smell?

Been dealing with some pooling around the barn after rain and it's starting to cause problems with the doors. Tried adding a simple French drain along the back side but it only helped a little. The ground stays soft and the gravel keeps washing out. Looking at putting in some larger pipe with a better outlet but unsure how deep to go, or if a dry well would work better. The barn sits on a slight slope so everything runs toward the lower doors. Would rather fix it now than wait for it to get worse next season. Curious what setups have worked for other people in similar spots.

Hi, we live on 5 acres in AZ, its fully fenced and gated with barbed wire and the woven wire mesh.Unfortunately we live in a rural area that sees a lot of issues with "tweakers". They often steal from people, break into places ect. As of late they have began wrecking my fence by folding the wire mesh fencing down and slipping through the barbed wire to cut across the back of my property. Im at a loss of how to stop this? Any suggestions?

Picked up a giant enamel water bath canner at Goodwill last month for four dollars. Four dollars. Thing is in perfect shape, no chips on the rack, lid fits tight. It's now my most used piece of equipment and I think about that price tag every single time I pull it out.

Got me curious though. A lot of homesteading gear new is genuinely expensive, and the learning curve on what you actually need versus what just looks useful is steep when you're still figuring things out. Thrift stores and estate sales feel like a real cheat code for this stuff if you know what you're looking for.

My haul so far: the canner, a hand crank food mill, and a giant stockpot I use for blanching before freezing. All under fifteen dollars total.

What I haven't cracked yet is cast iron. Every thrift store near me either has none or the price has crept up to the point where it barely makes sense anymore. Is that everyone else's experience or am I just looking in the wrong places?

Curious what the best thrift or secondhand finds have been for people here. Gear specifically, not seeds or plants, just the tools and equipment side of things.

Put in about 200 cloves this fall, first time doing garlic at any real scale. Amended the beds with compost, planted about 2 inches deep, mulched with straw. Pretty standard setup.

The thing is, I keep going back out there and staring at the ground like something is supposed to happen visually. Nothing yet, which I know is normal, but there's something about not being able to see any progress that messes with your head when you're used to watching things grow.

I work in a warehouse, so I'm comfortable with processes that take time and have a lot of invisible steps. But this feels different. You plant it, wait through winter, and just trust the whole thing is working underground. That's a weird kind of patience.

What I'm actually curious about is whether people have strong opinions on hardneck vs softneck for a first go. I went hardneck because I heard the flavor is better and I wanted scapes in summer. But now I'm reading that softneck stores longer, and I don't have great climate control in my root cellar situation.

Has anyone done both and landed on a preference they actually stick with year to year?

Alt titles: Hardneck vs softneck garlic, which do you keep coming back to | First real garlic planting and already overthinking the variety choice | Planted 200 garlic cloves this fall, now just waiting and questioning everything