I’ve seen several people post online to various social media groups about starting an exclusive community to live off-grid and survive alone with like-minded survivalists. This might seem like a logical step beyond the basic prepping done by most Preppers/Survivalists. However, every time I see these posts, I think of how it’s not as simple as one imagines.

No matter how small the population or property is, there’s a lot that goes into creating a community. This article describes the basic requirements which must be addressed to give such a community a chance at being successful. These start with, but are not limited to: money, location, people, governance, and the presence of external institutions.

Finance

How are you going to bankroll this project? At minimum, you should account for the cost in: land, building materials, equipment, upkeep, taxes, and emergencies.

Cost in Land

Does the person wanting to create this community already own the land? If not, who is buying the land?

Is the community buying it? If so, have you set up an LLC to serve as the legal “owner?”

Are you or anyone else in the community taking out loans to finance this endeavor? If so, what’s being used as collateral. Hopefully, it’s not the property!

Building Materials & Equipment

Building materials don’t grow on trees.

Actually, some materials do grow on trees. But you shouldn’t expect the property to provide enough raw resources to accommodate everyone in your community. That means you’ll need money to pay for the things the property cannot provide naturally. If that situation occurs, you’ll need money to buy building materials for: new constructions, off-grid utilities, and repairs to both.

Upkeep

I previously mentioned repairs, but there are other things that may add to the community’s monthly expenses. Living off grid is the goal, but it’s wise to have a water connection to a nearby city as backup. Or, at least until the community is able to accurately forecast its ability to collect water compared to the usage, and store a surplus.

Same thing with electricity. Paying for an electrical connection to the power grid will help the community get started on its off-grid or survivalist journey. This connection can be turned off after the needs of the community have been addressed, but I think it’s a good idea to keep it active in case of emergency.

What about paying to maintain the well-being of residents through health insurance? Having a fully stocked medical post with a community doctor or nurse is a good idea, but that’s merely a band-aid and isn’t enough. Major medical complications are an inevitable challenge the community will face, sooner or later.

Emergencies

The community needs to squirrel away a lot of money to cover unexpected incidents or emergencies. Most (pretty much all) property or home insurance companies will not cover the type of structures off-gridders and survivalists tend to live in. When the unexpected happens, the community must bear the responsibility of repair and rebuilding costs.

How will the community handle the massive expenses related to specialized emergency healthcare? I previously mentioned health insurance as a type of maintenance into the health of residents. If the village doesn’t have group coverage, those medical expenses will have to come out of the community coffers. Even if the community has insurance, it typically doesn’t cover everything and oftentimes pays too little for certain specialized care or treatments.

Taxes

Everyone has to pay property taxes. Those taxes will continue to increase over the years, especially as your community develops the land.

The only exception to paying taxes is if you plan to create your own island nation somewhere. Unless you own a private army/navy, you’ll fall victim to pirates, drug-lords, and opportunistic nations. You’ll also be on your own if a disaster strikes… like a hurricane or World War 3.

Anyways, if nation-building is the plan… good luck with that.

Income

How will the community generate the funds to pay for all this stuff, and have a surplus for emergencies? You can’t feasibly rely on a deep savings account to support the community for the rest of your natural lives, and the lives of your children (if they choose to stay in the community). You need to make money to support this lifestyle, even if you’re just paying taxes and the occasional tool or materials.

Trading outside the community will be difficult. You need to produce something people are willing to buy… with money. Most large organizations aren’t interested in dealing with small closed communities. If you manage to find an interested buyer (company), the product the community produces must adhere to strict expectations of that organization. The community must also commit to producing more of the product to meet growing demand.

Which means, you’ll revert back to on-grid living. How ironic 😕

A possible solution to address this dilemma is to allow some or all community members to work part-time and pay “rent” into a central community bank account. There are several complications with this too:

• You need to find a job willing to hire you part-time, when most companies want full-time workers.
• How are you getting to work? Is there a car pool? Are you working remotely? You need money to maintain and fuel a vehicle, and provide reliable access to electricity & internet (working from home).
• You must balance the external work with the everyday expectations to maintain the community.
• You must address the challenge of resentment caused by perceived inequities when contributing to the community. Physical labor within the village and outside can wear on residents if it’s perceived as working two jobs.
• The community needs an administrator who serves as secretary, accountant, and procurement officer. That person needs to be very trustworthy and must also do physical work around the community to prevent the aforementioned resentment of perceived labor inequities.

As you can see, there isn’t an easy answer for addressing the income needs of maintaining a community of off-gridders.

New Members

How do new members buy a stake into the community if current residents have already invested time, money, and sweat into the settlement? It’s not fair to expect established members to bankroll the entry of newcomers after the foundations of the settlement are established. New members need to make an equivalent investment in the form of money or resources.

The exception would be if the community needs someone with a specialized skill, like an on-site doctor.

Location

Where do you plan to set up this settlement?

What’s the climate?

It doesn’t make sense to create a community in a desert unless you fancy yourself a “Fremen” (Dune, by Frank Herbert).

Temperate climates are ideal for people planning to live an agrarian lifestyle. The weather in those zones should allow the community to grow a surplus of food for storage and trade.

How far from civilization?

How far away is this proposed community from the nearest city? Living off-grid is fine and dandy, but don’t forsake established infrastructure if there’s an emergency.

From a chemical or fallout perspective, consider how far up/down-wind the proposed settlement is from a major city.

Which nation is it located?

I’d never commit to establish or join an off-grid community within or near an unstable country. The kind of country that has a history of going to war with its neighbors (or itself) every other decade; or that’s partially ruled by criminal organizations.

People

How are the settlers being screened and selected? Things to consider are: skills, age, gender, and criminal history.

Skills

It doesn’t make sense to accept people if they don’t have the skills to survive off-grid. Has the candidate worked or volunteered on a farm? Is the candidate a survivalist? If the candidate doesn’t have survival skills, does he/she have specialized skills which make them useful to the community (medical or combat training)?

Age

There needs to be a broad spectrum of ages in a community. I’ve noticed that at least half the people in various “off-grid” or “Survivalist” or “Prepper” groups are (or appear to be) over the age of 50. On average, this demographic tends to rely on at least one medication for everyday survival to treat chronic conditions[1].

If a chemical, biological, or nuclear attack were to occur, this demographic would be more susceptible to immediate death from exposure to chemicals, or may not be able to fight off a targeted infection, or will be more prone to develop cancer or tumors from radiation. Heck, older generations are more susceptible to developing cancers from something as innocuous as solar radiation. Most people in the community will be working outside, so…

For the sake of the community, please have people of all ages.

Sex

The community should aim to have an even split between males and females. Socialization is necessary for maintaining the psychological health of residents, and single people will likely want to pair up. Having an almost even split between the sexes will help with morale when it comes to the variety of people to socialize with (and date). This should help despite the inevitability of homosexual residents (which is not a problem).

Criminal Background

Is there a basic background check involved prior to entering the community? People want to know their neighbors don’t have prior criminal offenses. If I had a wife and kid, I wouldn’t want to join a commune that has a resident with a criminal record.

Exceptions to what types of crimes are permissible on the records of prospective members will have to be agreed upon and clearly stated at the founding of the community. Here’s how I’d evaluate potential new members with prior convictions:

• Absolutely nobody charged with violent crimes (assault, murder, rape, domestic violence, etc.). It’s an issue of safety.
• I probably won’t allow someone with charges related to theft or fraud. How can you really trust this person? And if something goes missing, who do you think the community will blame?
• I’m undecided about prostitution. Resorting to something as culturally unsavory as prostitution means the person is willing to do anything to survive. I probably would not allow them to enter if there’s a drug charge connected to prostitution, because that indicates an unsavory behavior pattern which may include theft.
• I’m okay with bullshit charges like gambling, public intoxication, and drug possession; but there cannot be a history of the above-listed charges. My reasoning is that, at some point in life, most people will: gamble[2], drink alcohol in excess, or try illegal drugs. And if you haven’t, then maybe you haven’t lived that life to the fullest.

Health Screening?

Since we’re talking about excluding people with a criminal history, what about screening someone based on health? I’ve repeatedly mentioned in my articles that people with poor health could become liabilities during a survival situation.

It would be in the community’s best interest to exclude anyone who cannot pass a physical or has infectious diseases. But, at the same time, you must remember to take care of members who’ve already bought into the community if they become disabled.

Institutions & Government

Ownership

In the eyes of the government, who is the real owner of the property the community is built on? An unplanned transfer of ownership could jeopardize the future of the community if the new owner doesn’t believe in the off-grid or survivalist philosophy.

What happens to the community if the “owner” dies before the fall of civilization? Unless there’s a will or transfer on death deed, the land will rightfully be owned by the heir(s). They can do whatever they want with the property. They can:

• Evict any squatters (you).
• Sell the property from under you.
• Build structures that may hinder the prosperity of the community.

Most, if not all, these problems can be avoided if an LLC is created to purchase the property and serve as the legal owner.

Religion

I’d be concerned if the community endorsed any religion. History has shown us that pretty much every major religion has persecuted or committed violence against nonbelievers. I wrote an article a couple years ago about how such communities can quickly turn into nightmares (you can read it here).

It’s best to not have an established religious presence in an off-grid or survivalist community. However, religion and spirituality tends to be an important part of the lives of some people, which means the issue of religion may be unavoidable. A multifaith building could be set aside so residents can practice their faith SILENTLY and PRIVATELY. It shouldn’t matter if they are Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Satanist, or a follower of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

All should be welcome.

Internal Government

All communities need some form of government, no matter how small they are[3]. Even if there is no established government bureaucracy, establishing rules of governance will help ensure members fully understand the rules of the community and what contributions are expected of residents on a daily basis.

There needs to be understood penalties for shirking work or other delinquencies, which may include expulsion from the community. Any health-related exceptions to members’ work contributions should be clearly defined as well.

There must be established methods to enforce these internal laws of the community, in addition to the regional laws. If a larger governmental entity exists outside the community, then crime and punishment should be handled by the nearest city or county government. However, clear plans need to be in place for how crime will be addressed if that government collapses and the community is truly on its own.

Similarly, there should be plans for how the settlement will defend itself without government assistance.

City/County/National Governments

One final thing to consider is how overbearing governments tend to be. National governments like everyone to conform to the same social norms, and seldom tolerate entities which complicate or challenge what’s been established as acceptable.

Never underestimate the nosiness of government employees[4]. Don’t think for an instant that you’ll be able to keep your little utopian paradise a secret. Your community will be discovered, and once that happens, the government will scrutinize everything your community stands for and has built.

At first, they’ll look at your community and see a lot of lost opportunities from bribes/permits, and try to recoup that lost income. Then, they will look at how the land is being used, and if that fits within their expectations.

It probably won’t meet the expectations of the government, so they’ll start making your life miserable when they find something they don’t agree with. They will seek out reasons to harass your people and impose fines for noncompliance with any regulation they can dream of.

They will find something to pin against you.

Heaven forbid your community fights back against the harassment by legal means. Governments love to squash things which get in the way of their goals or stand in opposition to their authority. For example, the US government has a history of escalating situations by conducting illegal raids or “inspections” to vilify those they dislike with anything criminal they can find or manufacture.

Think about what happened to the “antisocial” entities at Ruby Ridge, Waco, and YFZ Ranch. Now think of how a local government will see a bunch of survivalists living in the wilderness. Do you recall hearing any of these words in the media when the government targets a group of people: extremists, radicals, militants, militias?

Your community could easily fit any of these examples.

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Buying a large acreage and creating a small community of “like-minded” survivalists may sound like a great idea, but it’s more complicated than you realize. You must account for the ever-present financial and material costs, and then deal with all the inevitable human problems the community will experience.

You’re probably better off prepping with your immediate family and extended relatives.

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[1] Ageism? Before you call me ageist, please consider that I’m in my mid 30s and already need to take a low-dose pill to control high blood pressure. I can easily get off this pill if I lose 30 pounds… but I like food too much.

[2] Gambling: Before you claim to never gamble, remember that gambling isn’t limited to the casinos. If you drive through an intersection when the light turns yellow, that’s gambling your car will make it through before the light turns red. You gamble with your health and life every time you have unprotected sex, even with a supposedly committed and exclusive partner.

[3] Could your settlement become a town?

How large does the settlement have to be before it becomes a town or village in its own right? In some states there’s a minimum population requirement, like about 200 inhabitants.

What are the benefits of that change in status (if any)?

Pros

• They can make their own laws to supplement state laws, but cannot supersede or negate existing state laws.
• The town can access funds and state programs and services.

Cons

• Your community of like-minded people may never exceed 100 residents.
• The cost of incorporating requires a lot of paperwork and administrative fees, which are nonrefundable. So, it’s a gamble.
• The town will have to pay taxes and fees to the county and state.
• You have to start acting like the very towns and cities you left. It’d be funny if your community becomes the very thing it was founded to shun and avoid.

[4] Government Nosiness/Trespassing: I have photo/video evidence of local government employees trespassing on my property for no legitimate reason past midnight and tampering with things he had no business messing with. The official had no warrant, nor was any attempt made to knock on the door of my home.

There’s no legitimate reason for a government official or employee to “visit” any property well after normal business hours, except in response to a burglary, fire, or medical emergency.

The official was sneaking around in the middle of the night and must have forgotten which state he’s in. Claiming to be a government official and waving a badge anyone can buy online, doesn’t make you immune to legal prosecution or bullets if there’s a legitimate threat to the owner’s safety.