Napoleon, I swear, there are still places like that right now.

If you don't like the outlook for wherever you are, look for a mining community or former mining community. A small house on a good-sized piece of land will be dirt cheap. There will already be useful trees, like fruit and nut trees. There will already be a healthy vegetable garden dug. Usually there will be farms nearby, often within walking distance.

Everyone around you will know how to can vegetables and fruit for the winter. They will be able to teach you to fish and hunt. They'll have good mechanical skills.

Miners (coal miners, gypsum miners, copper miners -- any kind of miner) go through extended periods of layoffs when commodity prices drop. They are all resourceful, thrifty, and self-sufficient. The communities are tightly knit too.