Frequently Asked Questions

Q.     What is an Independent Estate?

A.      An Equity Forward, custom designed, off-grid, family estate. They may be located in urban, suburban, or rural locations. The estate is secured in a trust for the generational and perpetual benefit of the family it supports. Designed to be regenerative, ultra efficient, automated, intuitive, and beautiful. Intended to be a sacred, intentional, safe, and secure place for the resident family to find fulfillment and self-actualization. A home that meets human needs independently and reclaims the lawful right for humans to be stewards of their own land and shining pillars in their community.

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Q.     What is Equity Forwarding?

A.      Typically, traditional homes are purchased with a mortgage that the residents pay toward monthly for up to thirty years. These payments are often the residents' largest expense. Equity is earned as the value of the house increases and the amount owed on the mortgage decreases. Our program will allow for equity to exist upfront and outright and eliminates a mortgage payment. This means the home is entirely their own and has immediate value for them. Eliminating a monthly mortgage payment greatly empowers the residents financially. More importantly, their options for aspirational pursuits and their capacity to follow them increases.

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Q.     What is Regenerative?

A.      Things that are regenerative restore and enhance. An Independent Estate gives back to the land and the environment. It also supports the health of the residents. The design of the home, landscaping, and trust are built with generational regeneration in mind, and are not driven by profit for the developer.

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Q.     What kinds of materials are Independent Estates

         made from?

A.      Natural, abundant, healthy, affordable, durable, and local. Walls and even ceilings can be made from compressed earth blocks (CEB for short). Flooring can be rammed earth, stone, CEB, or tile. Doors, windows, and hardware may be reclaimed, constructed with local recycled materials, or possibly material from the existing property if abundant. New materials are used when necessary and chosen by their accessibility, durability, and serviceability.

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Q.     What is CEB and rammed earth? What are their benefits and downsides?

A.     CEB or compressed earth block is made by taking a mixture of clay, sand, and a stabilizer such as lime or Portland cement, and hydraulically or mechanically compressing it into a ready-to-use block. The bricks are used just like any other masonry product to create walls and ceilings. Rammed earth is made by taking a mixture of clay, sand, and a stabilizer and tamping it into a form to create walls or floors.

        Both of these building materials are fireproof, mold-proof, pest-proof, water resistant, and tornado/hurricane resistant. Both are very affordable, and typically can be made using the dirt on site, or the unwanted materials from local quarries or concrete producers. They are very strong, even earthquake-safe when reinforced with rebar or wire mesh. Done right, these materials will last hundreds or even thousands of years.

        These materials are not only strong, but they naturally and passively regulate both temperature and humidity levels in the home. Because they are so solid and dense, they are also effective soundproofing materials, making outside noises much quieter, and inside noises much quieter from room to room and to neighbors.

        Downsides include a slower build time than wooden framing, involving more people to build quickly. It also requires more labor due to the heaviness of the material. However, a wood frame house requires many layers of different materials, all requiring different specialists. A CEB or Rammed Earth wall is one material all the way through. It has no need for insulation, siding, or wallboard, and can be left bare if desired, preserving a natural, earthy look. The skills necessary are personally accessible and well worth the effort.

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Q.     Are the homes ugly?

A.      No! You will design your own. The look of the home is entirely up to you. You may be thinking that something made with dirt must look like a mud hut or some other kind of third-world shelter. These materials can be used in nearly any way you have seen traditional cement or brick. The lines can be geometric and precise, or they may look organic and sculpted—it is all up to you. The color and texture are also customizable through plaster work, lime wash paint, and mineral pigmentation. Finishing work, lighting, and decoration will look more boutique, chic, and elegant than an average house because the hardware necessary is unique in protecting the structural integrity of the home and serve to future-proof inevitable changes in decor. Features of the home may often be custom or rescued from retired elegant old homes, buildings and churches.

        We encourage Independent Estate program participants to think about beautiful timeless architectural designs that will inspire them and their posterity for many generations.

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Q.     What about radon exposure?​

A.      Radon is a radioactive chemical element, one of the Noble Gases. It is colorless, odorless, and tasteless, and therefore not detectable by humans without special equipment. It comes from the decay of uranium, radium, and thorium inside the earth's crust. Build up within homes can happen in any kind of home anywhere in the world, but is more common in certain areas. Radon exposure happens on a fairly regular basis, and is considered to be the bulk of an average person's radiation exposure. There is not much evidence that these particles cause any serious threat when in a low dosage. Dangers arise when large buildups are trapped within man-made structures and inhaled. Radon exposure is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers in the United States of America. Fortunately, the solution is easy: good ventilation.

         Fear about radon exposure in a home made from earth comes from the idea that radon comes out of the earth. Fortunately, on average, clay is known to discharge very little radiation. Sand is known to irradiate similarly to clay, but less than that of concrete, a very common building material. The secret is not to use contaminated source materials in the first place. Including a good mitigation system as part of the home's design will ensure all will be well.

         An important consideration should be noted at this point. Conventional home construction includes many materials that are known to cause cancer and reproductive harm. An earthen building does not contain these materials. Earthen buildings are known for improved indoor air quality because of the great reduction in the off-gassing of the many hazardous chemicals and materials used in conventional construction today.

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Q.     What is passive design?

A.      Any time something can be accomplished by utilizing natural environmental conditions instead of electricity or fuel it is passive. A great example is heating a space with the sun by strategically placing windows instead of using electricity or gas-powered furnaces.

         Passive design reduces cost, increases efficiency, and naturally automates what you are trying to accomplish. This principle can be applied in many different ways in your home and on your property. When taken all together, the energy needs of residents can be radically minimized.

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Q.     How is an Independent Estate similar and different

         from a farm or traditional homestead?

A.      Farms and homesteads often require a lot of care to operate and maintain. Most people have chosen not to homestead because they do not wish to trade their day job and lifestyle for the tedious and arduous chores of self-reliance. The goal of an Independent Estate is to automate as many of the home's functions as possible to maximize the time and energy the occupants can dedicate to their family, passions, goals, and serving their communities.

         It is however still a lifestyle change. Part of the change is finding the enjoyment in providing for ones own needs instead of being wholly dependent on the skills and abilities of others. Beyond this, it is primarily a difference in pacing. Imagine mindful, balanced, and intentional living—neither a hustle, nor a grind. Home can be a heaven on earth when we are in this state of mind.

         Where an Independent Estate differs starts with location. Typically when one thinks of an off-grid house, we picture a remote or even isolated shack. There is no good reason a home has to be in the middle of nowhere to be off-grid. We strive to bless participants more holistically by giving them the best of both worlds: Community and self-sufficiency. True self-reliance is more plausible with this mindset, which eliminates isolation.

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Q.     What is off grid? How are Independent Estates off grid?

A.      Off grid is when your home is not connected to city utilities. Below are some of the examples of how this is possible:

         In Missouri it is very easy to collect all the water you need from rain water alone and store it in a cistern. Believe it or not, many desert homes live on rain water alone—it is no problem here.

         Electricity can be generated in many ways and will be different for each home depending on the environmental conditions of the property and the size of the household. Likely the electrical need for your Independent Estate will be much lower than you would expect because of the high efficiency of the home. A natural gas alternative can actually be produced on sight for many households and is one thing program participants learn while in the program. There are many ways to gather energy, and several should be used.

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Q.      What is an Incubator Home?

A.       The Independence Initiative plans on building model homes. These model homes will be fully functional and used as the initial living place for program participants. While in an Incubator Home the program participants will learn all they need, to design, build, live in, and operate their own Independent Estate. During their time in an Incubator home participants will pay a monthly installment toward an escrow account, intended for the purchase of land, in lieu of paying rent or mortgage.

         Time in the incubator therefore not only teaches the participants, it also redirects their efforts towards lasting generational wealth; both financially and psychologically.