New housing boom = another recession?

[Britesea]

No, I haven't either; but this info was concerning beans that are put by for long term storage. I suppose at the worst we could run them through the grain mill and make a kind of flour out of them.

For Christmas, I got both of my older kids some Augason buckets with 30 day's worth of meals for a family of 4 along with a water purifier and a fire starter. They may not appreciate the gift right now, but in an emergency they will be so glad to have it. I was worried, but they were surprisingly affordable to ship via the USPS

 

[sumi]

That is a wonderful gift, Britesea. It's nice to have that cushion for when the SHTF and you just never know what may happen when. I remember when we had that big storm here a few weeks ago and lost power for 24 hours. Not long after that we lost water for about 3 days. Most of us got caught out unprepared.

 

[tortoise]

There will always be another recesssion. continuous growth is not sustainable. The only question is when and how bad. With that said, I don't want to be prepping for things that are extremely unlikely. I want to be debt-free, have skills, and always live somewhere where I can grow a substantial amount of food. That and preps for the likely emergencies in my area. Power out in winter is the biggest one I worry about. Hubby says we'll just leave and go where these i power. Uh. ... and leave livestock to starve? I don't like his plan. I desperately want a wood furnace that doesn't require electricity and a manual well pump.

 

[NH Homesteader]

We were just talking last night about getting a manual well pump, and we're planning on putting in a woodstove at some point. Winyer power outages are my biggest issue and fear also.

 

[Chic Rustler]

There will always be another recesssion. continuous growth is not sustainable. The only question is when and how bad. With that said, I don't want to be prepping for things that are extremely unlikely. I want to be debt-free, have skills, and always live somewhere where I can grow a substantial amount of food. That and preps for the likely emergencies in my area. Power out in winter is the biggest one I worry about. Hubby says we'll just leave and go where these i power. Uh. ... and leave livestock to starve? I don't like his plan. I desperately want a wood furnace that doesn't require electricity and a manual well pump.

Me2

 

[Britesea]

We got the woodstove last year; this summer I want to try to get better fencing around the property so our LGD doesn't have to stay on a chain when she's outside. That way she can give the chickens better coverage as well. After that, we are looking at a dual-power well pump. It's too deep and too narrow for most manual pumps, but we found one that works on solar as well as electric. Since we live in an area with something like 350 days of sunshine a year, it sounds good. Of course, I'm always thinking about what else we could do. My goal is to be able to take care of ourselves on little-to-no electricity for long periods of time. The main worry we have around here is Forest Fires, but there's very little I can do about it. I have the trailer, which I am slowly stocking up with what we would need to make it a second home if we got burned out. The property has been cleared of excess fire fuel to an acceptable level according to the fire department and we have a metal roof, which helps. Eventually I want to reface the exterior walls with fire-resistant material as well.

 

[milkmansdaughter]

@Britesea, yes, we have had beans that had been stored too long, and were no longer usable. Unfortunately, I couldn't tell you how long they had been stored. They were at the house when my dad died, and honestly could possibly have been there as far back as my grandmother's time. But no amount of soaking softened them, and they wouldn't grow. That being said, I have stored beans without a problem for quite a few years. I agree with you also about banks. I did try to start a savings plan years ago for my kids, but unless you put money in on a regular basis, the accounts eventually COST me money, and I closed every one of them. There is no bank that I know of that gives you any kind of incentive now to really put money in to save and "earn interest." I'm another that just focused on being debt free.
@Chic Rustler, are you paying your mortgage every month? or half every two weeks? Paying every two weeks will cut years off your final bill.
And I agree with @tortoise. There's always going to be something.
I don't worry about a recession. I plan for them. I expect them. When money is good, get all the hours you can, get debt free, and buy those things you will need. Don't spend it all on consumables or new tv's, more clothes, eating out, or whatever. (tv's don't work when there's no power anyway...) I don't stock for years and years ahead. But I don't spend money foolishly either. I think you're on the right track keeping track of the times, and not buying into the hype that it's always going to be this way...

 

[sumi]

The banks in South Africa gives fantastic interest in savings, compared to the banks here in Ireland, that gives so little, it's not really worth the bother. I'd rather save with the Credit Union, they are only to happy to give even large loans, where the banks nowadays want everything but a blood sample before they approve you. I am planning to take out a loan in time to buy a property and between the two I can see which will be more willing to help me with that. As long as you save regular amounts with the CU, even small amounts, they will accommodate you.

 

[Hinotori]

We were very careful on how much we would pay for our mortgage when we bought this place.

I keep telling hubby if we fence in some pasture and put in a small barn big enough for a few horses that the value of the place would go up at least 50%. Well over what the cost would be. So if we decide to sell we will do that.

I keep plenty enough stored for any likely emergencies. For me that includes dust masks since I can actually remember St Helens erupting and we have Rainier looming about 30 miles away.

 

[Britesea]

@Hinotori we have several volcanoes around us; in fact, Mt McLaughlin is less than an hour's drive away... so that looms large in our concerns also.