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Yes, the trades are far better than the path most young people are taking today- Plumbers can easily make over $100K a year in populous areas, and decent money just about anywhere..and the work is not hard. Ditto HVAC, and much else- and in such trades it is easy to get into them on your own and be self-employed- so those are the good points. But from a Libertarian perspective, virtually all of the trades are regulated and require licenses, and they metrics in palce to make sure that you pay massa (Uncle) his cut(taxes).
For the liberty-minded, I think things like lawn care or handyman services, etc. are the way to go. Keep it informal- cash, or checks made out to you personally, no ‘business’. Keep prices low and do good work, people will thronmg to hire you and even suffer inconvenience to pay cash (“It’s too much trouble to cash checks, I just do this part time” or something). You can make good money and avoid the system in most areas. I did that in NYC/Long Island…it was great, and it allowed me the free time I could never have had if I were working at a formal trade. Small one-man micro-businesses, just working as yourself (i.e. no DBA or business name, etc.).
Lots of specialty repair services too- such as small engine repair; boat/jet-ski/snow-mobile/lawnmower repair. If you live in a densely populated area where there are lots of people with good incomes you’d be amazed at what you can find people throwing out that can need minor repair, or no repair at all, and can be sold for a hefty profit. Get a rollback truck, not for towing (as that has become very competitive and regulated, and hard to compete with the shady characters/practices of the state-sanctioned guys) but for equipment moving. There are lots of things if you think outside the box.
If you can swing it, purchasing a min-ex and skid steer isn’t a bad investment. Especially prior to 2021. Prices went up at least 30% on small machines from Late summer of 2020 to spring of 2021. But there’s bargains to be had on older gray iron mini’s. There’s big demand for skilled labor and equipment operators. People dig (no pun intended) 10-15% cash discounts. I offer them to people all the time.
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