How to Homestead With Absolutely No Money

Are you wanting to start a homestead with absolutely no money in your pocket? Are you afraid you won’t be able to keep it up or that you won’t be able to get what you need? Being afraid to start anything with no money is always scary, especially a huge endeavor like homesteading. But do not fret! It is completely possible to homestead with absolutely no money.

You do not need two incomes to homestead. Your homestead may not be as pretty as you want it to be, and you may not have all new things, but you can make it work. All the new stuff can come later, and it will eventually, trust me.

In the meantime, there are three factors you should take into consideration when you are trying to homestead with absolutely no money. Do you wanna know what they are?

How to Homestead With Absolutely No Money

The three factors to take into consideration in order to make your homestead work are to use up what you have, be happy with what you have, and keep your focus. That’s it. Simple right?

If you follow the three things I am telling you below, you will see how easy it can be to not only get started but how to continue homesteading successfully.

Use Up What You Have

Homesteaders never let things go to waste. They use whatever they have. Pallets become fencing, cut trees become fence posts, and fencing gets moved and reused as needed. It isn’t unusual for a homesteader to tear down a building on their land and reuse almost everything from it somewhere else, all the way down to the nails and screws that held it together.

Second-hand materials are gold to a homesteader. The hay from the chicken roosts gets added to the compost pile. Manure from animals is used as fertilizer for their gardens.

These second-hand materials and resources can come from other places other than their own homesteads too. Homesteaders love Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace. They scour thrift shops and small yard sales.

They also barter as often as they can. I once cleaned a women’s house out after an estate sale in exchange for all the animal supplies that were left on the property. I spent 2 days cleaning and made 3 trips to the landfill, but I ended up with feed bowls, harnesses, reins, electric fencing, building materials and more. It was a win-win situation for me and the homeowners family.

The point is to be resourceful with everything you have. Find a new use for everything. Be creative. The Accidental Hippies have a great post called 9 Ways to Get Building Materials Cheap or Free that gives some great ideas to get you started.

Be Happy With What You Have

It can be discouraging when you want to buy all new things but can’t. Keeping up with the Jones is common in a neighborhood these days, but don’t envy what someone else has. They may just be a little farther in the game than you are.  Chances are there was a time that they had no money too.

Instead, be happy with what you have. Having a warm chicken coop with a homemade feeder and water dish and milk cartons for nesting boxes is just as good as that expensive store-bought chicken coop from Rural King. The difference is, you spent nothing on it and it still serves its purpose.

When I tore down a huge carport-type building that my dad had, I reused every inch of wood and the metal roofing that was on the top to build my chicken coop. For the total cost of absolutely zero my chickens live in a coop that is 16 x 16 ft and I promise you I have very happy chickens.

Learning to be happy with what you have and appreciating the value will help you successfully homestead with absolutely no money. Homesteading.com has an article entitled Repurposed Materials/Transform and Recycle Common Household Items that show great examples of everyday items that are re-purposed for other useful things on the homestead.

Keep Your Focus

The last factor you need to take into consideration is to keep your focus. Don’t lose sight of why you are homesteading in the first place. Remember that you started homesteading because you probably want a more self-reliant life, one where you can count on yourself to survive and stay healthy.

You probably did not set a goal to have the prettiest, newest, and most modern homestead in the town did you? I, actually, would rather have a 100-year-old home on lots of property with everything looking a hundred years old. Modern isn’t my thing anyway, but if it is yours, then you are going to have to compromise a little bit.

Keep your focus on why you are homesteading and don’t let the money become an issue. As I said prior, the money will come eventually. Until then focus on how to use what you have, reuse whatever you can, and go for resourcefulness not price. Thrifty is my favorite word now.

I wanted a new garden shed to house all my tools and pots that I use in the garden. I couldn’t afford to buy another shed. However, when my ducks were kidnapped by the owls here I took down the fencing from their pen and made the duck house and bunny shelter into my potting area. You see, I was focused on having a potting “area” not a brand new shed.

Keep your focus and remember your vision.

Getting started on a homestead is hard and challenging enough without having to worry about money. But if you can learn to use up what you have, be happy with what you have, and you can keep your focus, you can homestead with absolutely no money.

Be frugal, learn to watch for resources that are available free online and at yard sales. Don’t be afraid to barter or trade your materials and resources with others that may have what you need.

The money will come later, trust me. Stay true to what your goals are, and let your creativity run wild. You will learn how to become more and more resourceful as you gain experience.

Are you ready to start your homestead? Are you more confident about starting it without having the money you thought you needed? Let me know your thoughts in the comment box below.