Looking for any Vermont homsteaders to help me convince my husband that Vermont is the place to live. We are currently urban homesteading, and want to make the jump to country homsteading, so any information on homesteading in Vermont would be very helpful. Thank you for your help in this matter.

Judy

-- judy (judy@az.freei.net), May 14, 2000

Answers

Judy, where are you now, and why is Vermont your place of choice? (Before I start trying to answer your questions!) I'm in NH and working on leaving, in large part because of high land costs and high property taxes, both of which I think Vermont shares, but if you have some compelling reason for going there, then more power to you!

-- Kathleen Sanderson (stonycft@worldpath.net), May 14, 2000.

We are currently in Arizona, and i really dislike the heat and being in the desert. I grew up in New England and cant wait to get back there, miss the change in seasons and the snow. My grandparents had a homestead in VT and it was always a place of happy memories, and good times. Want my children to grow up knowing that. As for the property tax issue, it cant be any worse the AZ, and the crime is so much worse here than in VT.

Judy

-- Judy (judy@az.freei.net), May 14, 2000.

Judy , I too love VT , just can't afford it .Not allot of jobs either .Too many tourists! We went to upstate N.Y. , its allot cheaper , has jobs and is almost as pretty. E-mail me for more info if you would like .

-- Patty Gamble (fodfarms@slic.com), May 14, 2000.

Judy,

My husband and I are both native Vermonters and are now thinking about relocating out west because of the way Vt has changed. I think there are many unspoiled areas of Vt that I'm sure would be viable homesteading sites, mostly in northern Vt., but I'm not sure what the job situation is like up there....

We live in the very southern end, near a couple ski areas unfortunately. It's the town where we were both born and raised, which makes it hard to move away! Yet we really have been so disheartend these last many years because of the HUGE increase in taxes, too many rich flatlanders moving up here and wanting to close the gate behind them , so to speak ,also. It's getting so, in our part of the state anyway, that the 'city folk' outnumber the 'country folk' 5 to 1 !!! State and local offices seem to be run by the implants and it shows in the way things have changed and the whole political slant of the state. I know I'm sounding very harsh here, please forgive me, I know change happens everywhere. I think we just weren't ready for it to come this soon to our little state!

I have a feeling if you were on this Countryside forum, that you're not the kind of 'implants' [geesh! nice word hah?] that drive the old Vermonters nuts. We have two neighbors that moved up from the city, one from CT, and the other from NJ, and we adore them. I guess there are good and bad folk everywhere you go. Something I need to remember when I'm writing messages like this!

But I would try up north. Southern, and even mid Vt. are pretty touristy and expensive. NH is beautifull too, I don't know much about taxes and things like that over there but it might be worth checking out.

Good luck! Nancy

-- Nancy (weebeesix@netzero.net), January 18, 2001.