...wanna be homesteader - part two

Hello everybody...

We are back again to take a look at the idea of buying land with a house already in place instead of buying vacant land. 

My hubby and I have bought a house in the past and a lot of the same principles will apply if you are buying in the country. 

However, some things are going to be different. Here are a few of the things that you should be keeping in mind. There will be lots of others based on your own individual wish list.

- distance to nearest fire hall, school, church, shopping 
(Actually, that also applies when you are buying land )
- Does the house already have a well, what is it's condition and the water should be tested
- Does the house have a septic system in place and what is it's condition and does the tank need to be drained
- For goodness sake, have a home inspection done, especially if it is an older house. If you are a newbie to buying a house you may miss all sorts of things. Remember the old saying " Let the buyer beware ". This cannot be more true.
- Is the property zoned for what you want to do there? Maybe you want to raise dogs - well, where I live you need a certain amount of acreage or you have a limit of 4 dogs. That sort of thing.
- Are there any outbuildings on the property and what is their condition
- Are you connected to hydro or not
- Do you want to be connected to hydro 
- If the property is already off the grid, what is the condition of the panels, the inverter, the charge controller and the batteries - ESPECIALLY the batteries - have they been looked after and what is their life expectancy

There will of course be a number of other things you may wish to consider. If you are looking at a small farm, it may well have a veggie garden and orchard in place. If that is the case, you may be very lucky indeed. If not, is there a suitable place to put one. If you buy a house in the country that is COMPLETELY surrounded by trees, there is going to be a lot of backbreaking work done to clear an area for a garden. Also, if you are planning to garden organically, is the garden clean or has it been sprayed with pesticides for years on end

If you are planning to supplement your heating with wood, does the property have any hardwood on it that you can cut. Softwood is fine for kindling but it is a generally accepted practice that you should burn hardwood for the cleanest burn and less chance of build up in your chimney. We burn mostly oak and maple with a bit of elm and poplar in the shoulder seasons. And while we are speaking of wood, are you prepared to cut and split the wood yourself or will you be buying it already done? The cost savings if you do it yourself is considerable, close to 50% less at least.

Now, lets turn back to the house itself. You will of course have your wish list and perhaps this house has a lot of what you want. There are a few other things to consider, especially if you are going to be off the grid. It is very unlikely that you will have any of the following - air conditioning, a dishwasher, clothes dryer, hair dryer .. you can see where I am going here. Appliances that love heat or have compressors are not going to be your friends. If you are on the grid, go wild and have anything you want but remember that it will be reflected on your hydro bill. Where I live, hydro is quite expensive. Be prepared for that.

That is about all that I can think of for the moment. When we resume this discussion, we will go through the process that we went through from the day the sale closed up until we moved into the house. Hopefully it may be of some help to anyone dreaming of a self-sufficient lifestyle in the country. It is something that anyone can achieve with some work. And you will love it... :)

Thanks so much for stopping by. Have a great day. Cheers.