Comments

Episode-519- Making the Move to the Country — 13 Comments

  1. The first 25% of this podcast so hits home for me coming from Northeastern PA to Northern NJ. I completely understand why you left. Such a parallel. When I left the only jobs were in construction and home building, and in the winter everyone plowed snow for the extra money because they were laid off. I know the Pottsville, PA area and where you lived as well…

    Today I dream of the urban lifestyle while living the rural life. A little over year ago, I was laid off and took a position telecommuting with my existing company. I feel fortunate that my particular skill-set in my business is in demand in this economy. However, the business travel keeps me close to Newark Airport today, unfortunately.

    More plans have to be made, and put into action before I can make the move…

    Really great show today and completely identified with it.

  2. @Jack we share more than a name brother! I am also failure with that hell hole in Newark. That airport is such a pit, I always wished I had my gun with me just to be shuttled to my car in that death maze of parking that dump has.

    Last time I was in Newark I saw a billboard that actually said, “Stop the Killing”. People always think I am joking when I say that, sadly I am not!

    http://blog.nj.com/ledgerupdates/2007/08/newarks_stop_the_killings_mess.html

    Just so you know Allentown has a decent airport and I found the 2 hour drive to Philly when necessary worth it to live in Northampton. Beautiful little community.

  3. Hi Jack,

    New listener for past week or so via Financial Sense. I’ve been digging thru some of your old school posts and trying to cherry pick some ideas that fit where I am now and set some goals for where I’d like to go.

    I’m a quasi-Ramsey fan myself (minus some of his investment advise) and are now only paying mortgage debt. And have been preparing for ‘unforeseen’ emergencies financially for a while (car repairs, new cars, appliances, yada yada). Needless to say, you are making me think more about ‘stuff’.

    I currently live in a townhouse/condo community in south central PA and would like to eventually buy a place with about 2 acres. Up to now, it’s been more about ‘the American dream.’ Now it’s shifting toward preparing for an unforeseeable tomorrow.

    Setting aside the housing needs/preferences, what are some things I should look for when purchasing a property (sun/shade, soil type, water source, natural vegetation, proximity to community…)? All things being equal, how would you rank them?

  4. Jack, I have been listening now for awhile! I haven’t commented on show a in a long time but this show just touched a spot in my heart. From a child I have always felt that it was not fair to the earth to cover it with so much concrete. I have always felt free when we take long rides away from the city. When I had brain surgery that is what helped me heal. I am working and looking forward to our move to country. Which we hope will be soon. I am working on our debt free celebration right now!!!

  5. Thanks! great show. I too have lived in small towns, and for overall quality of life, great!
    Just did not make 6 figures, but it did not matter.
    Fishing, helping neighbors out with tree clearing and the like was a wonderful experience for me, including “No tell um creek” “shruming” for morel mushrooms and the like, and the proper processing , cooking and eating things like Elk and Black Bear, home made sourdough, fresh homemade yogurt with Huckle berry jam and the like. oh yeah and Rainbow trout with fresh garden veggies, Idaho tatters and the like.

    Keep on keeping on!

  6. We moved out to the country 3 years ago, just finished building our dream on a couple acres, and I got laid off from my travel and work from home job. I was out of work for 6 months.
    I finally found a job, just not one close to home, but closer to extended family with an extra room.
    So now I’m working on one state, staying with relatives and driving home to be with the family every other weekend or so. Sucks, but perhaps it will turn into a telecommuting situation. That’s the best I can hope for right now.
    I still think it is important for my family to be there in the country even though I miss them terribly. I can sacrifice now, and enjoy the country breezes later. Until then, it’s commuting through the worst traffic in the world for a while for me!

  7. Thank you for THE question: how are you going to make it happen? I have held two visions in my head for a long time. First, a National Geographic photo of an extended family picnic in Iowa and knowing, longing to step into that photo as I had done with my husband’s family before moving to Washington DC. Second, is reading [30+ yrs ago] an autobiography of a single, 55+ woman who moved into her dream in rural PA on a small acreage not far from community.

    Well, I’ll be 64 in a couple months. Working to have a tiny house completed [on an 18-ft utility trailer] soon. Yes, I’m doing the construction; finishing the inside now. Next: where and how to make it happen?

  8. Jack, you said that the reason that we go to college and do that dangerous job is for the money and we should be focusing on that work that give us the most meaning. I would disagree with your. We should do the work that gives us the most freedom.

    It is in our human nature to be free. I have been told by my parents and peer that if you go to college or do that job you will get the freedom to buy things I want and have freedoms. We just need to change “buy” to “do”.

    Most of what your show is about what I can do to make my life better. This is just another great example that gets me doing and thinking about that paradigm shift and look at the “do” and not the “buy”.

  9. @David interesting but I would simply counter with if you pick the path that gives you the most meaning in your life, freedom is the result.

    If left to ourselves, if we all had food and shelter and safety people would DO what gives them the most meaning in their lives. Freedom and living a life with purpose are twins.

    Nothing will lead to slavery faster than a feeling that what you do doesn’t really matter. The size of the pay check may create freedom to buy shit but with out purpose you will be miserable.

    Today my income is about 25% of what it was at its’ height. I was recently offered an insane salary to “go back”, NO FRICKEN WAY. I now realize I have no price that could ever make me go back. A “job” at this point would be akin to hell. Even if TSP ever flopped I would pick cans out of the ditch, grow tomatoes and sell them at a farmers market, etc. before I ever let anyone tell me when to show up again.

    We only sacrifice freedom and meaning due to conditioning. Once you break free you can’t go back.

  10. Hi Jack,

    Up here in Canada you could buy some rural land at a reasonable price, but things are changing rapidly. Raw bush was selling for $500 an acre, pasture for $1000, and tiled land for $2000 an acre. When you buy a plot you usually pay $10,000 to $20,000 for the first acre of rural land as the “building lot” and then the rest at these prices.

    Recently the prices have shot up and tiled land has been selling for $6000 an acre. I suspect that prices are being driven up by a new interest in farm land by both agri-business and the few people who are aware of what might be coming in terms of price inflation for food.

    I would have to agree that now is the time to get that piece of land because I can’t see demand decreasing over the next couple of decades as we transition to a new economy based on the “first order wealth” your previous guest spoke of.

    Keep up the good work, people need this information. We left the city for a six acres slice of paradise about eight years ago and although I shared many of your philosophies, at the time I did not realize that others felt the same way and that there was a name for it. My friends and family just told me I was “old fashioned”. Now I take that as a complement and spread the philosophy when I can.

    Frank

  11. My wife and I found an awesome compromise. She didn’t want to move out of our metropolis but I did. We ended up buying a foreclosed place that is inside of the city outerbelt, but is located within a pocket of one of the several townships. The taxes are as high as city taxes, but the township government is proud and there’s no indication that the city wants to annex the neighborhood. I have water independence with a well, a half acre to play with, a fireplace, and relative solitude compared to my old neighborhood, and we both have a 10 minute drive to work.