Location Consideration

Thank you so much for your book.  I ordered it from Amazon last week and read it over the weekend.  I really appreciate you sharing your experiences and your perspective on what may happen here.
I have a question about the ‘in town’ vs ‘retreat property’ argument as it relates to my specific situation.
We live in an area that for the most part I would consider ideal in hard economic times.  Small, close-knit community about 90 miles from a major metropolitan area.  Our community has several dairies and ranches.  Close to our community (20-40 minute drives) you can find truck farmers who raise a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, with many having roadside stands.  Many people are already living a pretty self-sufficient lifestyle . . gardening, canning, hunting, etc.  Almost everyone has guns, many carry or keep them in their cars.  And we are well connected to a doctor, lawyer, judge, several police officers/state troopers, etc.
There are two main concerns however.  The biggest one, is that we are a very small community RIGHT on a major interstate that is 90 miles from Xcity, TX.  If people do leave the cities in search for better lives or more resources, most will be headed our way .
This is a huge concern for us, because we live right in town, conveniently located very close to the schools that are right off the interstate.  If there is any trouble it will easily find us.  On top of that, most of the ‘in town’ area is older homes . . some historic and restored, but most run down.  There are alot of people on welfare in the area, alot of Obama supporters, a few suspected drug houses, and in general just not very ‘safe’ feeling if things go bad.
 The plan was to buy the property soon so that we could travel (RV), camp, and someday build a cabin on the property.  Since the economy started going bad . . . . we started seeing this option as a ‘retreat’ property and have been looking for something appropriate.  I already was concerned with safety because we are not ‘survivalists’ as you would find on a survivalist forum.  We bought our first gun only about 6 months ago, have NO desire to ‘go it alone’, and really value community.  But after reading your blog (especially the video about farm attacks) and your book (especially the ‘being connected’), I am concerned about moving.
My question is about the level of concern we should have living right ON a major interstate so close to a major city . . . . vs the concern of relocating.
We do have one piece of property in mind that if kind of a ‘middle ground’.  It is 25 acres in a community even smaller than ours, but not anywhere near a major city.  It’s in Y city about an hour and a half from our home (without having to get on any interstates at all).    And even though it FEELS like it is out in the country (which is what we want for recreational property), it is only 1/4  of a mile from the main road through town.  It is near the mountains and has live year-round creek frontage and is beautiful.
Do you have any thoughts that might be helpful?
Thank you so much . . . .
Lynn

Hi Lynn. Your location already sounds pretty good. 90 miles from a mayor metropolitan area is not bad by any means and I wouldn’t be concerned on being on the interstate from a horde of refugee perspective. Putting even more distance would bring more disadvantages than advantages.
The survival fiction says that, “…when SHTF”, hordes of zombies leave the city, endless waves of people taking bites at you, stealing, destroying, like a wave of locusts.  The reality of what is happening in the world though is very different. Is it as cool sounding as the fictional stuff? No, but then again, this is a reality based blog and I offer people real solutions, not make belief.
What happens during times like these is actually the other way around, people move TO the cities because that’s where the chances of finding a job are better. People will sacrifice comfort (live in a smaller place, maybe a condo) and life quality just so as to make enough money to make it to the end of the month. Instead of waves of bankers, lawyers and marketing experts abandoning the burning city remains, you have small town folks moving to where there’s jobs. Like a living organism, the extremities die and the core survives, so you see all these small towns (supposedly ideal for survival, right?) die and become ghost towns because people simply move to the city. This also affects you in other ways. As the government has less resources, they are more likely to sacrifice the small town 100 miles away with population 10.000, so as to ensure the services such as water, gas, power, sewers and policing in the larger metropolitan areas where it directly benefits hundreds of thousands of people instead.
Take a good look at your current location. If you see this being a trend, with more vacant homes, or getting rented by suspicious looking people, then relocating is something you could be considering. Remember what I said about things simply being worse after an economic collapse, and not going down the way you want it? This would be a good example. If you see more run down properties, know its very likely to get worse rather than better.
I wouldn’t worry about the interstate. I’d look for other factors when considering relocating or not. If you see your area degrading, then relocating may be a good idea. Don’t forget the things I always mention: availability of proper medical care within reasonable distance, jobs and other financial opportunities, low crime.
There’s nothing wrong with having some land and going there with the camper until you start building. I see it as a good way of checking for pro and cons and living there without spending too much money until you’re certain of the choice you’re making. Having said that and all things considered, you seem to be in a very good location already with like-minded people. Given that the network of people and relationships you have are so important, and that the interstate isn’t really a significant threat, for the time being your current location is pretty good for the coming years that will be a bit more complicated.


Join the forum discussion on this post

FerFAL