Homesteading can quickly become a full-time hobby. Raising livestock, caring for a garden and maintaining land is time and energy-intensive. Running a homestead while working full time can be challenging, especially if you have a long commute.
A full-time job limits how much time you can invest in growing your homestead, even if you have incredible time management and are pulling it off. You’ll have about five hours left for homesteading each weekday if you’re working 40 hours a week and losing an hour a day to commute time.
Many homesteaders love working the land so much that they dream of turning it into a full-time business. They have turned to farming, animal husbandry, teaching, hospitality and content creation to fund their homestead.
You can replace your full-time income and invest more time in your property with careful planning and hard work. It’s not easy, but it is doable. Follow these eight steps to brainstorm and create a plan that makes full-time homesteading possible for you.
1. Think Like a Business Owner
There’s a massive difference between the mindset of a renter and a homeowner. For example, renters know they’re not responsible for plumbing problems — they work with their landlord to resolve any issues during their lease. On the other hand, homeowners take full responsibility for their property.
You’ll need to make a similar mindset shift if you decide to turn your homestead into a business. Hobbies require less responsibility, similar to renting. You can put in effort when you feel like it and back off when you don’t. Turning your homestead into a business will require you to see things differently because your investments will suddenly matter much more.
Business owners can decide what opportunities to take and which ones to leave behind. The success of your operation depends on your vision, effort and commitment. You don’t have to do everything yourself, but you’ll need to understand and coordinate everything that needs to be done.
Even a homesteading business requires paperwork. In fact, being an owner means you’ll split your time between creating a product or service and completing required tasks — like marketing, paying taxes and communicating with customers. You must take ownership and act like a leader for your homesteading business to succeed.
2. Organize Your Finances
A homestead business can help you live the lifestyle you want while creating financial security. However, starting an enterprise isn’t always the answer if you’re struggling financially. Take some time to organize your personal finances before jumping into a new venture.
The average American has $90,460 in debt from credit cards, mortgages and student loans. If you’re part of this statistic, your first step should be to pay off as much as you can. The longer you’re in debt, the more you’ll spend on interest fees and monthly payments. You need a solid plan for reducing your bills reliably and quickly.
Most businesses take an initial financial investment and may not show returns for several years. People still paying off personal loans should save for a while instead of putting money into a new venture. Of course, a highly profitable company can help you pay off loans more quickly.
You must work out the hard numbers before turning your homestead into a business. You need to ensure you can make enough profit to cover the cost of goods and support your family. Developing an operation takes time, so it’s a good idea to have an emergency fund just in case.
3. Do the Research
Next, spend some time answering questions about your business. You need to assess what you already have and still need to get before you begin. What items are essential, and what things can wait until you have more financial stability? Your goal should be making a profit as soon as possible.
New businesses fail for several reasons. Some of the most common include lack of experience, bad location and poor financial management. Design your company so you have a cushion to gain experience along the way. You should also assess your site and whether people can find you.
You can take your goods to a farmers market or set up a roadside stand on a high-traffic road if your property is out of the way. Some homesteaders have booths in larger shops or rent small buildings so they can bring their items to customers. Other homesteaders turn their property into a hospitality venue people want to visit.
Is your business plan riding on the land you own? Make sure you understand its resources and regulations before you begin. Some places are covered in poisonous plants that can hurt livestock. Properties that have poor soil or face away from the sun will be difficult to farm. You should also consider access to water, Wi-Fi and any building regulations.
4. Find a Market
It’s also important to consider whether there’s a market in your area for what you want to sell. Are people in your county interested in raw honey? Where are they, and how can you connect with them? It’s OK to start small, but you need access to a large customer base if you’re going to grow.
Take some time to identify your ideal customer. Decide on their gender, age, interests and habits. What pain points will your goods or services solve for them? For example, your ideal customer may be a 30-year-old man interested in raising animals and wants chicks, piglets and seeds.
Thinking through your customer base will help you market your goods more effectively. It will also help you find and connect with the people interested in your products. Businesses can appeal to several types of clientele at once. However, it’s most effective to narrow down your ideal customers to just one to three kinds when starting.
Discover what your ideal customers are looking for by spending time around them. Check out Facebook groups, YouTube channels and local events where your audience spends time. Read comments, ask questions and get to know them personally. You’ll be better equipped to meet their needs and make a profit.
5. Check the Legality
There are many legal requirements for starting a business and owning property. Running a homestead means staying on top of regulations and ensuring every part of your operation is permitted. This protects you from loss and heightens your trustworthiness.
You’ll need to register your business with your state government. Every state has a slightly different set of requirements, so check yours online. Homesteads located near a city may be subject to its rules as well as county, state and federal regulations. The fewer restrictions you have, the more you can do with your property.
Some industries are regulated and may require you to pursue special certification before you can legally sell products. For example, you may need an inspection license before selling meat or raw dairy. Check local regulations before you get too deep into any particular plan. Sometimes, you can reduce restrictions by keeping livestock under a certain number.
You may also want to consider getting insurance or speaking with a lawyer to ensure legal protection. You could lose everything in a lawsuit if someone gets hurt on your property. Be proactive about saving and paying taxes throughout the year. Hire an accountant if you can afford it to save time and ensure everything is done correctly.
6. Put in the Work
Once you’ve finished researching markets, organizing your finances and meeting legal requirements, it’s time to put your plan into action. It’s easy and exciting to dream about running a homestead business. However, turning your dreams into reality requires consistently showing up and doing the work.
Homesteading requires sacrifice and substituting short-term gratification for long-term progress. For example, you’ll have to get up and feed your livestock every day, regardless of how you feel or the weather. Going on vacation will be extremely challenging since you’re caring for animals around the clock.
You’ll be filling many different roles to keep your homestead business going after it first takes off. You’re the CEO, business strategist, accountant, marketing expert, craftsperson, event planner and homesteader. Putting hours of hard work into your enterprise at the beginning will help it thrive so you can hire help later.
Owning your own business gives perspective to the relationship between freedom and responsibility. The more responsibility you take on, the more freedom you have to make your own decisions. Running a homestead is hard work, but it allows you to live life on your own terms.
7. Improve Visibility
You can start to form a marketing plan once your business gets off the ground. You may already have connections with customers at a farmers market or through a local co-op. Expanding your visibility is key to reaching more customers and growing your company.
Many homesteaders set up a website so they come up in local Google searches. An online presence makes it easy for people to learn about you, start a conversation and order products. You could also start with a social media account like a Facebook page if a website sounds too challenging.
You can use social media to run ads, engage with new people and update customers on where and when you’ll sell your products. These accounts also make it easy to network with local business people and find ideal clients. They’re free and can significantly increase your reach.
You can also take out ads in the local paper or start an email subscription from your website. The ways to market your business are endless. Think about your ideal customers and begin with a marketing presence that’s easy for them to find. You can expand your visibility over time to reach more people.
8. Diversify Your Income
Protect yourself from risk by having several separate streams of income. For example, some homesteaders raise livestock, sell garden vegetables and teach classes on how to preserve food. There are many ways to make money off your homestead, so get creative and start working on several of them.
Not every project needs to make you hundreds of dollars. You could pay your bills with one income stream and use another to invest in your property. A third could be put away for emergencies, and a fourth dedicated to farm equipment. The goal is to spread out your income so you never rely on a single source.
Here’s a short list of some of the ways you can make money off a homestead:
- Raise and sell food: berries, vegetables, meat, eggs, honey, herbs
- Sell products you’ve made: soap, lotion, candles, tea, baked goods
- Raise and sell animals: baby chicks, chickens, ducks, pigs, cows
- Use affiliate marketing: YouTube channel, blog posts
- Teach homestead skills: online classes, in-person events, books
Successful entrepreneurs are always on the lookout for new opportunities. Try to choose projects that can be realistically completed at the same time. For example, you can grow flowers, make herbal soaps and raise pigs simultaneously. Start with ventures that will pay the bills and then branch out.
Make Income Off Your Homestead
Many people start homesteading while they work a full-time job. Dedication and creativity allow them to slowly turn their property into a business that can replace their income and let them homestead exclusively. Use these steps to generate income off your homestead so you can live the life of your dreams.
Start by thinking like a business owner. Take personal responsibility for achieving your goals and outline the steps you need to take to make them happen. Pay off any personal debt so you’re financially prepared to invest in a new business. You should also prepare an emergency fund to carry you through the first several months.
Answer as many questions as possible before you begin and identify your target market. Who will be interested in your products, and how will you reach them? You also need to check regulations and meet your business’s legal requirements. Once you’ve created the framework, commit to the hard work of getting your business off the ground.
Improve your visibility and diversify your income to grow your business. The more ways you have to make money, the more secure your homestead will be. Push yourself to continue expanding and learning throughout this journey. Vision, passion, and dedication can help you turn your homestead into a successful operation.
Author Bio:
Jane is the editor-in-chief of Environment.co. She is passionate about sustainability, gardening and homesteading.
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