Chickens are easily a gateway animal to homesteading. Most people starting farms begin with chickens, because they produce meat and eggs and are relatively easy to keep and breed.
Their expense is minimal compared to many other forms of livestock. And they provide numerous opportunities for profit.
Jake and Becky from White House on the Hill (YouTube and website) are well into their sixth year of hatching eggs and raising assorted fowl. They have over 50 birds in their main flock and over 25 in their bantam flock.
Their farm comprises 30 different breeds. In order to build his farm, Jake often uses Ebay to purchase and sell eggs. Below, he gives us four great reasons why he chooses to purchase eggs this way.
Read more: Curious about hatching eggs with an incubator? Here’s how to get started!
Rarity
Jake is known for raising rare breeds of chickens, ducks and birds. As with any animal, rare and pure bred fowl bring exponentially more profit.
For buyers looking for these rare birds, Ebay is a great platform to buy eggs from anywhere in the world to start your desired flock. 
Availability
Given the access to so many breeders, you can generally find eggs at all times during the year. Most birds don’t lay eggs for 12 months.
However, looking on Ebay opens up the resources exponentially. You can always find eggs from great farms.
Price
Eggs are more affordable to buy and ship than purchasing chicks. The market determines the prices.
If buyers clamor for a certain breed, it will cost more. But if you can find a chicken keeper who produces lots of eggs for what you want, it will most likely be less expensive than purchasing locally.
Read more: Hatch chicks from your own flock’s eggs!
Trust
After purchasing eggs from all over the world, Jake trusts the sellers on Ebay. He has a few stories where he did not receive the eggs in the time allotted. Ebay, however, protected his purchase.
“Ebay does refund your money if you do not receive the eggs within six months of the sale,” explains Jake. That gives him confidence to bid on the site.
Jake has great tips on how to feel safe about your purchase. “Start by reading the reviews,” Jake recommends. “Ratings of 5 stars are great. Avoid new sellers with 1-2 stars or with little or no ratings.”
There are many great sellers on Ebay who have been in the business for a long time. You will know that from the amount of reviews.
“Look up the farm name,” he adds. Many sellers will have a farm name you can google and check out their website. This step always instills confidence for Jake when he can see their personal site.
Finally, he suggests, “Look at the pictures (they use for advertising) to make sure they are not stolen.” This step ensures it is not a scammer. A quick way to do this is to Google the breed you are shopping for to make sure it is not an image that pops up quickly in an image search.
Once your sale is complete and your eggs arrive, Jake recommends you:
- Open the package and unwrap each egg inspecting for any damage.
- Let the eggs “rest” for 12-24 hours. The pointy side should be down or on its side, depending on how it will lay in the incubator.
- If everything looks correct, begin the incubation process.
White House on the Hill on YouTube is an excellent resource for watching Jake’s process of researching, buying, preparing, incubating and raising birds from eggs. Also check out his site, where he also sells eggs if you are looking for any breeds he has started raising.
