How to Start a Homestead from Scratch (Beginner Roadmap)

Ready to start a homestead? This beginner roadmap walks you through land, planning, priorities, and first-year goals.

Have you been feeling that tug? That tug to slow down, to be more intentional, to produce something with your own hands. That tug to learn a new skill, to know where your food comes from, to be more self-reliant.

There are so many reasons that more and more people are looking to what we call “homesteading”. But this concept is nothing new. For a long time, it was the only way of living. And now in our modern era of cheaper, faster, and more convenient, many of us have come to realize that we’ve sacrificed a lot along the way.

But you don’t need to jump all in to homesteading at once. There is a vast array of skill sets to learn – and maybe that’s why people are so drawn to it. I know its tempting to dive right in, but building slowly over time will ensure you don’t overwhelm yourself or get burnt out.

This beginner roadmap will cover the big topics like land, planning, priorities and first-year goals. Whether you’re looking to be more self-sufficient or you’re just looking for a simpler, more natural way of living – this post will walk you through how to get there.

What Is Homesteading (And What It Isn’t)

The modern homesteading movement is focused on small-scale food production, a return to traditional skills and practices, and an interest in self-sufficiency. It is not only for those with large plots of land, nor does it require a certain amount of production or self-reliance to qualify.

And I would argue, there is almost more value in learning the various skills than it is about mastering them. In other words, the modern homesteading movement is more about what you learn along the way rather than arriving at some achievement of mastery.

So, if you feel like you don’t know enough, don’t have the skills, or don’t own land, don’t worry! If you have an interest in these things, there’s a place for you.

Types of Homesteads

You don’t have to have a lot of land to homestead. It sure helps, but really – you can homestead anywhere.

Urban Homesteading – As unconventional as it sounds, there are people who live in apartments and have their own little homestead. Whether it’s cooking from scratch, making sourdough bread, experimenting with canning or fermenting, sewing, or growing a little balcony garden – there are many homestead activities that you can do even if you live in a high rise.

Suburban Homesteading – If you live in a suburban neighborhood, sure you won’t be able to raise livestock. However, chances are you can raise a few laying hens, maybe even some rabbits, and have a productive garden. Not to mention, there are so many skills to learn that only require a little kitchen space (think candle making, soap making, ferments, yogurt or cheesemaking, and my all time favorite – sourdough!).

Rural Homesteading – Alright, if you live rurally, then you have it made for homesteading. But on the other hand, it can kind of complicate things. After all, the possibilities are practically endless! From beekeeping to woodworking, raising large livestock down to hatching your own eggs. There are a vast array of homesteading skills and projects to choose from. And that leads me to my next point: setting realistic expectations.

How to Set Realistic Expectations for Beginner Homesteaders

Don’t expect immediate results. The first thing to realize is that, although homesteading is really nothing new and maybe for our grandparents or great-grandparents this was the only way of life, for us it’s all new! Don’t expect to perfect these skills immediately. It might take a few failures before you get it right.

There are lots of obstacles. It is definitely not all flowy dresses, a garden bounty in a handmade basket and a beautiful sunset. Sometimes, the pests destroy your garden, your bread falls flat, or there’s a leak in your chicken coop. It doesn’t always turn out how you’d like, but that’s okay – don’t be discouraged because it happens to everyone (even if they don’t post about it).

Try one new thing at a time. I think this is the most important thing for beginners to remember. Don’t try all the things, all at once. You’ll risk overwhelm and burnout. Start with one new skill or project, stick with it until it becomes easy, then move on to the next thing.

Clarify Your Homesteading Goals

Once you’ve decided you want to try homesteading, the next most important step is clarifying your goals. Below we’ll go over a few questions to ask yourself.

Why do you want to homestead?

Are you looking to homestead as a way to save money, increase your food security, or just as a simple lifestyle choice? It’s okay and totally normal if you have more than one reason for homesteading – most of us do!

Putting your finger on exactly why you want to homestead will motivate you and help guide you in making decisions.

How much self-sufficiency do you actually want?

Some homesteaders want complete self-sufficiency – they dream of an off-grid homestead with a setup capable of providing all of their grocery needs year-round.

While that sounds fantastic, there are many who are more moderate. Homesteading is more of a part-time gig. Sure, they love to raise their own food, but they don’t mind sourcing some things from the grocery store.

Keep in mind that the answer to this question will depend heavily on the next set of considerations.

Input Assessment

How much do you have to put into this homesteading thing? This question is three fold:

Time. How much time you actually have to put into it is a huge factor when it comes to expectations and goals for your homestead. Not that you can’t homestead if you don’t have that much time – a lot of homesteading activities don’t actually require all that much time. It’s just something to consider.

Budget. How much money you want to invest in your homestead is another major factor. You can surely homestead on a tight budget and it can save you money in the long run, but it does require some initial start up costs, and certain activities do cost more depending on your set up.

Energy. This one is a big one and often overlooked, especially for those who jump all in all at once. There is a significant amount of energy involved in running a homestead, so just be sure to consider how much you have to commit to your homestead projects.

Finding and Choosing Land (or Using What You Have)

One of the first questions you might be asking yourself is, “Don’t I need land to homestead?”

The short answer to that is yes – at for the bigger projects. But there are ways to tackle the land component if you’re not in a position to buy land right now.

If you are in a position to buy land right now, that’s great too! We’ll point you to where you can find out more about buying land below as well.

Homesteading Where You Are

For most people getting started with homesteading, starting where you are makes the most sense. Even if your current living situation doesn’t seem like the best place to homestead, there are a lot of opportunities for you to try out the lifestyle before fully committing by buying a homestead property.

As we explained above, there are a variety of homestead activities and projects you can start with whether you live in an urban, suburban or rural setting. Just make sure, if you’re renting, any projects stay within your lease agreement of course.

Key Factors When Buying Land

If you are considering buying land for homesteading, we’ve got a post all about that right here: Buying Vacant Land – 7 Things You Should Know Before Purchasing. Buying land is a huge commitment, so you’ll want to do all your research before going through with it. This post will walk you through all the major components of land development that you need to know before you buy.

In addition to the things we discuss in this post, there are a few more important factors when looking specifically at land for homesteading. These include:

• Terrain and soil quality
• Climate and growing zone
• Distance to work, schools, and supplies

Common Land-Buying Mistakes Beginners Make

There are some common mistakes that you’ll want to be aware of when purchasing land. Fortunately, most of these mistakes are totally avoidable as long as you do your research and don’t jump in too quickly. These mistakes include:

• Discovering hidden costs after purchase or underestimating the cost of development
• Realizing the land is not able to be developed in one way or another (no utilities available, no legal access, etc.)
• Downplaying just how remote the property is. After purchase, many people that may have wanted rural property to begin with discover they actually don’t want to live that far away from conveniences.
• Finding out the area is not for them. It seems really common these days for people to move far away, even across the country, to find land for homesteading. While this quest can turn out great for some, others come to find out they actually don’t love the area that they thought would be ideal for homesteading.

Planning Your Homestead Before You Build

One of the most important pieces of advice that we’ve heard for homesteaders looking to build from scratch is to plan before you build. And we can speak to that personally as well. In fact, we have a blog post about it titled The Single Most Important Thing When It Comes To Property Development. You can go check out that post for a more detailed approach, but here are the big takeaways.

Create a Simple Homestead Plan or Layout

A great way to plan your future homestead is to draw it out. Just a simple sketch of your land and planned improvements will help you make good decisions along the way.

Prioritize Infrastructure

As you’re planning to build out your homestead, be sure to prioritize the key pieces that you will need to be successful.

Sure, these things may not be the most fun or attractive parts of your homestead build, but they will lay the foundation for all your future projects:

• Water
• Shelter
• Fencing
• Storage

Budgeting for Startup vs. Long-Term Homesteading Investments

When you are planning your homestead, you will also need to budget. Consider which homestead projects require low initial cost and fast return, versus high initial cost and delayed return. Budgeting will help you prioritize which homestead projects are right for you to get started.

One example of a low cost/fast return is a vegetable garden. Seeds are cheap, soil prep and a small fence is relatively low cost, and you get to harvest in just a few months.

In contrast, take an orchard for example. Fruit trees are high in initial cost and they usually require at least a few years of growth before they are mature enough to produce fruit.

Start Small and Build in Phases

How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

That’s exactly how you should build your homestead, too. Setting small goals and completing them before moving on to something else will help you stay motivated and not get overwhelmed.

Beginner Homesteading Skills to Learn First

Gardening basics

Learning the basics of gardening really comes down to three things: soil, seeds, and seasons. And I should also add a fourth that you’ll inevitably run into: managing pests.

Food preservation fundamentals

Canning, freezing, dehydrating – you’ll want to get familiar with the best ways to preserve your harvest.

Simple DIY and repair skills

These skills can range from mending a sweater to fixing a fence. Whatever you’re starting with on your homestead, you’ll want to polish your DIY skills.

Animal care basics

Even if you don’t have animals yet, you probably will eventually. Learning the basics of animal husbandry will help you feel more confident when you do decide to get your first animals.

Choosing Your First Homestead Projects

The amount of homestead projects to try can be overwhelming. Here we’ll make a few suggestions on the best beginner projects, what to delay until later, and how to avoid burnout.

Best Beginner Projects

Here is a quick rundown of the best projects for beginner homesteaders:

• Small garden
• Composting
• Rainwater collection (where legal)
• Chickens or other small livestock (if allowed where you live)

What to Delay Until Later

When you’re just starting out, it’s probably best to push off a few projects until later. These projects require more time, more investment upfront, are more complex and take longer to produce. They are still great and highly productive, but you may be a bit overwhelmed as a beginner to take these on:

• Orchards
• Large Livestock
• Off-Grid Systems

Avoid Burnout

When you are just getting started with your homestead, it can be very exciting, and very overwhelming, to have so many new ideas and projects floating through your head. Although it can be tempting to go all in, the best way to avoid burnout as a new homesteader is to limit your projects. Mastering one skill or project before moving on to another is the best way to make progress without spreading yourself too thin.

First-Year Homesteading Roadmap

Okay, we’ve got an overview of the basics of homesteading. But what does it look like put into practice? Below a first-year homesteading roadmap specifically geared toward your first garden, as an example.

Months 1–3: Observe, plan, soil prep, learning

Months 4–6: Planting, small systems, first harvests

Months 7–9: Preservation, expansion, troubleshooting

Months 10–12: Review, winter prep, next-year planning

Keep in mind, you can break down any homesteading project into a roadmap like this. It really does help to break it into months and write down your goals for each season.

Common Beginner Homesteading Mistakes to Avoid

If you’re new to homesteading there are a few mistakes you’ll want to avoid, and we’ll explain why below.

Doing too much too fast

We’ve mentioned this several times already in this post, but that is because it is such a common downfall for beginner homesteaders. Don’t fall into this trap – slow and steady wins the race.

Overspending on tools and supplies

When it comes down to it, you don’t need that many tools and supplies to get started. Yes, there are so many things that make homestead life more convenient, but in most cases, a sturdy shovel and pitch fork are enough to get you started.

Ignoring local regulations

This mistake most commonly comes with people trying to sell products from their homestead. While there are plenty of ways to make some income from your homestead, there are some that are more strictly regulated. Make sure to check local regulations before selling products from your homestead.

Comparing your homestead to others online

Although it can be helpful to look to others for inspiration, very commonly we end up comparing ourselves instead. Just know that no one’s homestead is as perfect as it may be portrayed online. Homesteads are messy – there’s almost always something (or several things) out of place, and sometimes the best plans don’t go as planned – and that’s totally okay.

Conclusion: Start Where You Are

When it comes to starting a homestead from scratch, everyone’s path will look different. The most important thing is to start where you are.

Wherever you are, I encourage you to take the first small step – whether that’s starting a small garden, making a plan, or learning one new skill.