Liberty Lifestyle: Homesteading – the New Land Rush

Living off the land is not a new concept, but it is becoming increasingly popular. In an era when everything is virtually at your fingertips, more people are choosing a homesteading lifestyle, foregoing food deliveries and shopping malls for products they can make and grow with their own hands. There are various reasons for choosing such a way of life, including a healthier diet and cost of living, but there are also those who have lost faith and trust in the government and choose to rely more on themselves.

Homesteading Is Making a Comeback

“There has been concern about a breakdown of systems,” Natalie Bogwalker, owner of Wild Abundance, a hands-on education center that teaches homesteading skills, told The Washington Post. “A good number of people feel skeptical about the longevity of our food systems as they are now. Covid really added to that.”

Who can forget hoarding toilet paper and paying nearly $10 a carton for eggs? The supply chain had been severely interrupted, making it difficult to get certain products. People had to rely on federal and local governments for the availability of just the basics. This reality wakeup call had people reconsidering their lifestyles. What would they do if another pandemic, or something worse, hit?

Some may look at this as just another conspiracy theory, but farms have been decreasing over the years. In 1935, there were 6.8 million farms compared to just 1.88 million in 2024, according to the USDA. The number of acres has also declined from 900 million in 2017 to 876 million in 2024.

Many people have turned to raising their own chickens for eggs, partially because the cost is so unstable. The bird flu has wiped out millions of chickens, making it more expensive and difficult to get the breakfast staple.

“We’ve seen a real uptick in calls recently from people wanting to start their own backyard flocks,” Matthew Aversa, a co-owner of Winding Branch Ranch, a nonprofit sanctuary and farm animal rescue outside San Antonio, TX, told AP. “With the egg shortages at grocery stores, many are excited about the idea of raising chickens and taking steps toward sustainability. We adopt out whole flocks. We’re receiving at least a dozen inquiries per week.”

The Self-Sufficient Lifestyle

Homesteading in the US dates back to policies like the Homestead Act of 1862, which encouraged settlers to move west and build self-sufficient lives on the land. Of course, they didn’t have modern conveniences like we do today, and etching out a life off the land was not as easy as now. Still, as trust in the government flails and people want to return to a more minimalistic and healthier lifestyle, being self-sufficient is gaining in popularity.

Back in the day, homesteading was participated in by the majority of people out of necessity. Then, with modern inventions in the 1900s and 2000s, the practice and way of life collapsed. Now, it’s re-emerging. But homesteading doesn’t necessarily mean you have to live solely off the land and make all your own clothes. Some people like to have their own gardens but depend on modern life for other needs. Others like to be as involved as possible in this day and age by cutting their own lumber, growing food, making soaps, and so on.

“It is indeed hard to define,” Jason G. Strange, author of Shelter From the Machine: Homesteaders in the Age of Capitalism, told The Post. “Homesteading is the extent people are engaging in subsistence production. Any time people are providing goods and services to themselves through their own labor.”

No matter the era, people are most successful when they belong to a community that shares in goods and services. Farmers markets are a good example, where farmers provide produce that others may not grow on their homesteads. Others may have building skills and materials while some neighbors may be adept in making bath soaps and cleaning supplies. When these communities work together, they are able to create an environment where they can provide for themselves and each other, without depending on modern conveniences or the government.

According to a December 2025 Pew Research study, “Just 17% of Americans now say they trust the government in Washington to do what is right ‘just about always’ (2%) or ‘most of the time’ (15%).” This is the lowest in nearly 70 years since the question was first asked, and is lower than it was in 2024 with 22% having trust in the government.

Whether it’s a few raised beds in the backyard or a full return to the land, the renewed interest in homesteading suggests something deeper than a passing trend. For many, the appeal isn’t just fresher eggs or lower grocery bills, but the quiet reassurance that comes from knowing they can provide for themselves if systems falter again. In that sense, homesteading is less about stepping back in time and more about reclaiming a measure of liberty: one garden, one flock, and one skill at a time.