When it comes to finding a homesite for your custom build, the process can vary widely. Assessing, buying, and preparing raw land, for instance, comes with far more to consider than buying a lot in a planned neighborhood. You shouldn’t necessarily avoid land that may be a bit more challenging. So, we’ve assembled some tips from our experts to make you more aware of what you’re looking at when choosing your perfect location to build your stick built home and to help you manage through the selection of the lot.
Involving your builder makes things go much smoother, especially if they’re able to handle lot preparation as part of the design and construction process. Three of our general managers at Schumacher Homes share their experience on how to find the ideal homesite.
This is a service we provide to help our homeowners. Talk with your New Home Consultant if unsure of your property. We build where you want to live whether rural or in a development. As America’s largest custom homebuilder, we have seen it all and are here to help you every day as we do for our other homeowners.
Rock, general manager of our Greensboro/Winston Salem, North Carolina design studio, offers some practical advice to homeowners looking for the perfect location, especially when evaluating raw land.
This will help you understand how deep you’ll need to drill. With that information, a contractor can help you estimate how much a well system would cost, and if the homesite can support it.
It may not sound like a big detail, but knowing this can help you avoid potentially large tap fees.
This could restrict the buildable area. Also, navigating flood insurance is complicated and expensive. It’s best to know those realities up front so you’re not unpleasantly surprised later.
If surrounding sites all have older homes and you’re looking at the last lot without one, ask why. There could be an issue that’s not readily apparent, such as a setback requirement or topography issue that limits build options.
Speaking of topography, raw land often comes with uneven elevations. Your builder must prepare the land to prevent erosion and control sediment during construction, yet still allow adequate drainage and access to the homesite.
By finding out if there’s an easement on the homesite, you avoid potential legal entanglements later, such as someone claiming ownership or rights to the property years after you’ve bought it.
Paul, general manager of our Lafayette, Louisiana design studio, explains why all of the above tips are important. “Lot preparation and utilities costs are separate from the price of the home itself. Builders should itemize this number, in addition to any house base price or customized options,” he says.
“However, not all builders include or perform the work to complete build site preparation as we do, so homeowners need to ensure they ask those questions to have an apples-to-apples price quote for the full project,” Paul says.
Paul loves helping homeowners use circumstances to their advantage. By knowing what’s unique about the local area, you can work with your builder not only to find the ideal homesite, but also find ways to drive down costs and speed up your timeline.
Building codes vary, and they can impact your home’s cost in different ways. For instance, in Paul’s region, the minimum requirements of lot prep should be included in your budget. “Typically, this cost can account for 10% to 20% of the total building expense,” he says.
The other side, of course, is that building on developed homesites can mean faster construction and lower budget. “We are currently building some houses on lots in subdivisions that have all of the amenities listed above,” Paul says. “This helped us stay in the homeowner’s budget.”
Not just for you, but also for the builder. Is there a shared road? Will crews need to build a temporary service road so they can haul materials and equipment to the homesite? The less welcoming the existing roads and terrain, the longer and more expensive the build will be.
Greg, of our Ravenna, Ohio design studio, has helped many homeowners find the right homesite—and more importantly, avoid the wrong ones. In his experience, these tips can help you assess how viable a lot is for your custom home.
Topography tells you a lot. Is the homesite too steep for yards or driveway access? Is there good drainage away from the planned building site? Likewise, look for streams that would affect the location of the house, driveway, or septic field.
Is there standing water? What about vegetation typically found in wet areas, like cattails or rushes. That could indicate an undesirable site, or one that will require extra preparations to build on.
Study all the local regulations, and ask yourself how they’ll impact your build. For example, what’s the required setback? Will your house fit on the lot after accounting for it?
Access to utilities varies the further you get from civilization. Electric lines may reach, but sewer may not. Likewise, cable may reach, but you might be limited on package options or internet speeds. If a certain utility doesn’t reach you, will you be happy with the alternative? For instance, propane can be a substitute for gas.
If public sewer access isn’t available, you’ll need to run a percolation test to make sure the soil’s water absorption rate can support a septic field. “If not we strongly recommend making the purchase agreement for the land contingent on getting septic approval,” Greg says.
That includes accounting for the worst-case scenario so you can balance risk. You may find out that your lot is close enough to tap local sewer and water lines. However, close can still be far away depending on tap fees.
Certain homesites come with certain limitations. Deed restrictions may limit the size of your house, or the building of accessory units such as a garage or secondary dwelling.
The homesite may have an existing pin survey that defines the property’s legal boundaries. If not, you’ll need to pay for one. Don’t take a seller’s or neighbor’s word on the property lines, either. Legally speaking, the pin survey ultimately defines the property lines, and you’ll need to know those before you commit to buying land and planning your build.
Schumacher Homes, based in Canton, Ohio, is America’s largest custom homebuilder, with operations in 32 markets in 14 states across the country. The National Housing Quality award winning company has built over 19,000 homes, customized to fit each family’s lifestyle, since its founding by Paul Schumacher in 1992. Schumacher Homes takes each customer’s inspiration and gives it a home. Each Schumacher Homes location includes a one-stop shopping design studio and showcase homes displaying the latest in architectural and product trends. Stop in today, be inspired and receive your no obligation price quote.