Creating the Low-Budget Homestead

If you've ever thought about pursuing a self-sufficient lifestyle on your own rural homestead or survival retreat but feared you didn't have the money or skills to do it, you simply must read this book. It is a goldmine of practical steps and instructions to take you from dreaming about an off-grid, independent lifestyle to living one! There are hundreds of things to think about before planning and starting your new life, and this book will save you valuable time and money by steering you down productive paths and making you carefully consider others. Just some of the areas it covers include: 4 rules for defining your goals for your homestead or retreat creative ways to find inexpensive rural property to buy the essential tools, vehicles, and skills you will need to succeed 10 rules for a self-sufficient garden designing the off-grid home so it's warm in winter and cool in summer questions you must ask before investing in farm animals, livestock, or even pets 9 rules for getting along with your country neighbors tips for working smart, being realistic, and avoiding burnout A person who's reliant on others for the necessities of life will always be subject to the people, companies, and agencies who feed, house, and protect him. With determination, creativity, and the knowledge in this book, you can break this cycle of dependence and become a successful low-budget homesteader!

We will tell you how to define and set goals and how to locate land (we purchased our 20 acres with owner financing, no money down, and no interest on a five-year contract). We'll show you a different way of looking at life that's going to be absolutely essential if you're going to be a successful low-budget homesteader. We'll give you some advice on self-sufficient, sustainable gardening and on how to keep vehicle costs low. There are chapters on inexpensive, off-grid entertainment, how to schedule time for the greatest productivity, and how to avoid burnout. We'll also give some tips for low-cost housing and things to think about when designing an efficient offgrid home. We'll address some questions like what skills you'll need and how to acquire them, how to set up a simple off-grid power system, and the advantages and disadvantages of pets and livestock. These are just samples of the practical ideas you'll find inside the covers of this book. And in every instance, we'll look at them from the low-budget angle.

Steven Gregersen lives with his wife on a 20 acre (almost!) self-sufficient, off-grid homestead in the mountains of northwestern Montana. His early years were spent in Kansas where he worked summers on his grandparent's farm. He enrolled in the auto-mechanic's course at the local vocational school while still attending High School. Upon graduating he served three years in the USMC. After that he pursued a career as an auto mechanic, eventually owning his own auto repair business.

Steven has been a life-long student. He grew up hunting and fishing and, as an adult, added trapping, ammunition reloading, gardening, animal husbandry, carpentry, electrical, plumbing, photography and other skills. He earned his college degree in his late 30s and served as a pastor and Christian camp director. His primary source of income at this time is writing. He's had articles published in Fur-Fish-Game magazine, Traditional Bowhunter magazine, Primitive Archer magazine, Backwoodsman magazine, Back Home magazine, Backwoods Home magazine, and several others. He currently has two books in print and is working on a third.

His writing is not based on research but on his experiences in life. He's a "hands on" type of guy. When there's a new skill to be learned he's never content to just read or watch a Youtube video. He has to do it himself. When he writes of homesteading, shooting, reloading, hunting or any other topic you can bet that he's done it himself and is sharing that experience with you.