Buying your first homestead is a big step but it’ll pay off if you get it right. You can start living a more eco-friendly and self-sufficient lifestyle that comes with a lot of rewards. But buying a house with land is different from buying a normal house. And there are a lot of extra things to consider. Once you’ve signed that paperwork and moved in there’s no going back. Therefore, it’s vital that you choose the right property. People that are new to homesteading often struggle to find the perfect property. This is because they don’t know what they’re looking for. If you’re in the market for your own homestead, these are the mistakes that you need to avoid.
3 Huge Mistakes People Make When Buying Their First Homestead
Underestimating The Costs
Setting yourself a realistic budget is essential. Otherwise, you’ll move into a house that you can’t afford to pay for. But people often underestimate the cost of running your own homestead because they only consider the costs of a normal house. Even if you remember to factor in things like property taxes and utility bills, you might forget that you’ll need to pay for heating oil and land maintenance.
The home renovation costs are another big one that people underestimate. They’re usually higher in a homestead. Older houses often have problems with insulation which need fixing, unless you want to be paying out huge sums every month for heating oil. Before you agree to buy the property, get a surveyor to look at the place. Let him give you a good idea of exactly how much work it’s going to need and how much it will cost to run.
Not Seeking Professional Advice
If you’re not an expert in homesteading and you don’t know exactly what you’re looking for, you’re inevitably going to make mistakes. That’s why you need to trust the advice of professionals and let them guide you. That means finding a good real estate agent who knows the area well. You should also try to seek the advice of experienced homesteaders who can tell you what you should be looking for in a property. And, more importantly, what you need to avoid. Without that expert advice, you’re essentially going in blind. Without even realizing it, you could be buying a homestead that is almost impossible to manage.
Not Having A Homestead Plan
A homestead is like a blank canvas, full of possibilities. You can turn part of the land into a nice big garden, raise animals and grow your own food. But you’re never going to manage that without a solid plan for the homestead. You should decide what you want to do with the land and let that guide your choice. If you don’t have a solid plan beforehand, you’ll probably end up moving in and doing bits of work here and there. You won’t be able to build the completely self-sufficient homestead that you imagined.
Buying a homestead is a big risk. If you don’t choose the right property, you’ll struggle to run it properly.
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