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New Home Opportunity....to be or not to be

BovaJP

BovaJP

Senior Moderators
Staff Member
Feb 15, 2013
1,261
1,332
oh man, that is the question....

A house and its land is now for sale across my inlaws (nope, my inlaws are SOLID good lol), and it would be a great opportunity to buy it and tear down the current house and build brand new. Its on a lot that just .97 acres (almost 1 acre), with the back facing up to some woods....so privacy is awesome. The house that is there now is broken down and not worth anything in my opinion.
OH man, this opportunity should would be great for us to have a house of our dreams (well pretty much lol). but we can build it for the long haul and to last well into our senior years (if we end up settling here after retirement, that is).

I'm looking into everything that you need to think of and everyone you have to pay LOL. Its a large undertaking, but definitely possible.

So hubs and i really need to look into what the future may/may not be.
FYI....our current house, we have upgraded everything in, and have made it livable with what we got. Have a lot of equity in it so we would get it back to put into the new house, so that is a plus.

Looked into costs of tearing down the house and ranges between 8-12,000. And who knows what all licenses we need to do that LOL.

That is another thing.... would imagine taxes would increase for that property given a bigger home on it. What is there now is 924 sq ft. And we would probably build something between 1500-2000 sq ft,

I'm pretty sure we can build a modest ranch home with enough room and a man cave somewhere for around $200k in our area (Midwest USA).

Lots to consider....but this puts us close to our aging parents, which is a concern for us.

Dang, decisions decisions.....

Oh if anyone knows info on what it takes to build, etc any tips, tricks. I'm just starting out and there is a lot to it, it get it. But i'm a list Queen.....i can handle it.
 
woodswise

woodswise

TID Board Of Directors
Apr 29, 2012
4,334
1,340
oh man, that is the question....

A house and its land is now for sale across my inlaws (nope, my inlaws are SOLID good lol), and it would be a great opportunity to buy it and tear down the current house and build brand new. Its on a lot that just .97 acres (almost 1 acre), with the back facing up to some woods....so privacy is awesome. The house that is there now is broken down and not worth anything in my opinion.
OH man, this opportunity should would be great for us to have a house of our dreams (well pretty much lol). but we can build it for the long haul and to last well into our senior years (if we end up settling here after retirement, that is).

I'm looking into everything that you need to think of and everyone you have to pay LOL. Its a large undertaking, but definitely possible.

So hubs and i really need to look into what the future may/may not be.
FYI....our current house, we have upgraded everything in, and have made it livable with what we got. Have a lot of equity in it so we would get it back to put into the new house, so that is a plus.

Looked into costs of tearing down the house and ranges between 8-12,000. And who knows what all licenses we need to do that LOL.

That is another thing.... would imagine taxes would increase for that property given a bigger home on it. What is there now is 924 sq ft. And we would probably build something between 1500-2000 sq ft,

I'm pretty sure we can build a modest ranch home with enough room and a man cave somewhere for around $200k in our area (Midwest USA).

Lots to consider....but this puts us close to our aging parents, which is a concern for us.

Dang, decisions decisions.....

Oh if anyone knows info on what it takes to build, etc any tips, tricks. I'm just starting out and there is a lot to it, it get it. But i'm a list Queen.....i can handle it.

My aunt put in a mobile home right next to my granddad and spent the next 15 years fighting with my step grandmother and putting my granddad in the middle. Luckily he was good at diffusing both of them. If she had been the next block over it would have been a lot better for everyone and she could have looked in on them without much extra effort.

Ask your local zoning official what you need to do to take down a house. Around here you can tear something down without any permits and without anyone's permission so long as you aren't doing it in the middle of the street, and even then you can get away without permits so long as you are reasonable about how you obstruct the street.

If there is any hazard (lead paint, mold, asbestos, underground storage tanks) you may have to jump through extra hoops to tear it down or clean them up. But if no one knows and you don't do anything to put yourself or anyone else at serious risk of harm, you might get the work done without having to jump through the really expensive extra hoops. Probably best to tear it down and dispose of it properly and not to burn it (just in case you were thinking of setting it on fire which some of my neighbors did with a terrible old house down the road from me).

As for building a new home, hire someone who has a good set of plans (or get some drawn up) and is an experienced builder. It would be better to wait for the right person, than to rush into it with someone who isn't going to do the job you want for the price you agree on. I would want to see examples of this person's work. Kit homes are a good option, but again, you need the right person to put them together. If you're looking to save money, I would spend as much money as it takes to get a building with good bones (foundation, framing, roof) and cut corners on things like finishing touches, because you can always replace the cheap details later, when you have more money. You won't be able to cheaply repair or replce the fundamental elements if you cut corners there.

There are people who can appraise the structure you plan to build, so you can get an idea whether you will be spending money to build a home that is worth the money you are spending on it.

Banks will write you a construction loan if the plans are good and the appraisal comes out right, with the requirement of finishing construction within a year, and refinancing to a conventional loan after completion. The problem with these is a year is a short time frame to get it done if you want to do any of the work or act as general contractor yourself, and hiring all the work and a general contractor can push the cost upward and reduce the odds of building something worth more than you spend on it.

I think it would be a better strategy to save your money for a couple of years, and start construction, taking it as far as you can, before getting the construction loan. In this situation, you should probably get your Bank's pre-approval for your plans and the project, even if you need to hire your own appraiser, before beginning construction. That way you are more likely to qualify for the construction loan when you eventually run out of your own money and need the bank's help. To follow this approach, I would want to have $30,000 to $50,000 of my own money before beginning construction.

There are a lot of factors to consider here. You may want to join an online forum about how to act as general contractor for your own house project. You may want to simply look for another, better house in the area and get that fixed up a little at a time.

The lot across from your in-laws might be one to buy now, and save for later, tearing down that old wreck, in the meantime. Also, you might want to wait and see if prices come down in the next year or two, then make a rock bottom offer for the property (the value of the bare lot, less what it will cost to demolish the old house and clean up the property).

Good luck. I am willing to talk this over with you further, if you like.
 
FlyingDragon

FlyingDragon

VIP Member
Nov 4, 2010
4,049
2,403
2000sf is the size of @Lizard King garage.....

You will save 30% if u do an owner build if u have patience and there is no rush to complete. A builder will simply sub out all the work and add in a margin for themselves. If u or hubby have friends or family in the trades you can simply hire them on your own and pocket the savings or use it for better upgrades.....
 
Lizard King

Lizard King

Administrator
Staff Member
Sep 9, 2010
14,534
7,974
I just put an 800 sqft extension on my house, I love the way the builder spaced out the payments after each milestone completion this way he wasn't getting paid for work that wasn't completed. I actually still owe him the last payment, around $20K, but my new shudders aren't up and my garage door needs to be retuned, lol,
Yes, you can save 30% by getting your own guys, but that's what you pay a contractor for, organized chaos of coordinating all the sub-contractors at the right time.
 
tommyguns2

tommyguns2

Senior Moderators
Staff Member
Dec 25, 2010
6,313
5,000
Some people love to manage all the details... I do not (nor am I particularly good at it). The number of details is mind-numbing. What type brick do you want, what color, what size? What type grout do you want? what color? And there are a million different fixtures, LOL. I'm glad some people are into all that, because I'm not.

If you're building a place for the long haul, make sure your master bedroom and your laundry room are on the first floor. As you get older, steps become a bigger deal, and if the important stuff is on the ground floor, you'll never have to leave unless you want to.

Unless the ground has issues, I'd do a basement. You'll be happy to send the grandkids down there, and the mancave can go down there.

For me, having the in-laws across the street would not be an issue (in fact, my FIL lives with us), but for some that's a real issue. Just make sure you're honest with yourself on that.
 
JackD

JackD

Senior Moderators
Staff Member
Sep 16, 2010
6,406
1,607
It’s a whole lot easier having a reputable contractor handle everything with the house. They know the laws and the costs for it all. I also think it’s a great time to get a good deal on your future.

I would say 2500 to 3000 sq with a full finished basement is where you need to be!
 
FlyingDragon

FlyingDragon

VIP Member
Nov 4, 2010
4,049
2,403
I just put an 8000 sqft extension on my house, I love the way the builder spaced out the payments after each milestone completion this way he wasn't getting paid for work that wasn't completed. I actually still owe him the last payment, around $20K, but my new shudders aren't up and my garage door needs to be retuned, lol,
Yes, you can save 30% by getting your own guys, but that's what you pay a contractor for, organized chaos of coordinating all the sub-contractors at the right time.


Fixed it 4 u
 
Rider

Rider

TID Board Of Directors
Aug 27, 2010
1,670
1,061
It’s a ton of money. With COVID going on, many people are doing home projects. The cost of materials has risen.

Recently my wife wanted to expand and redo the kitchen, and add a mud room for laundry. We’re talking approximately 500 sqft extension on my house. I got a few quotes. All landed between $120k to $150k. Screw that, I wasn’t expecting it to be that much. Needless to say, that project is on hold for a long time lol.
 
FlyingDragon

FlyingDragon

VIP Member
Nov 4, 2010
4,049
2,403
Thats alot of marble.....


It’s a ton of money. With COVID going on, many people are doing home projects. The cost of materials has risen.

Recently my wife wanted to expand and redo the kitchen, and add a mud room for laundry. We’re talking approximately 500 sqft extension on my house. I got a few quotes. All landed between $120k to $150k. Screw that, I wasn’t expecting it to be that much. Needless to say, that project is on hold for a long time lol.
 
creekrat

creekrat

MuscleHead
Sep 9, 2012
267
142
We're going through something similar and I will be the GC for our house as well as doing most of the work myself. We got a contract on our house that wasn't even listed for sale. Ending up with 150% ROI for a 3 year investment. Since it's just me, the mrs and our youngest (16yo) we're doing a metal building that'll be 2bed/2bath with a 30x30 upstairs bonus/flex/office. Doing a cabin feel for everything.
 
woodswise

woodswise

TID Board Of Directors
Apr 29, 2012
4,334
1,340
We're going through something similar and I will be the GC for our house as well as doing most of the work myself. We got a contract on our house that wasn't even listed for sale. Ending up with 150% ROI for a 3 year investment. Since it's just me, the mrs and our youngest (16yo) we're doing a metal building that'll be 2bed/2bath with a 30x30 upstairs bonus/flex/office. Doing a cabin feel for everything.
I did the GC work and the framing and outside finish work then hired everything else on a 1000 sf addition to my home about 10 years ago. The good news is that my vision was good and we have a beautiful addition, the bad news is that in the end, we probably spent as much as if we hired professionals to do the work and some of the details are not right, because I wasn't as knowledgeable as I thought I was, luckily those are only a few minor details and they will be easily fixed if I ever get around to them.....

I don't recommend anyone do the work themselves if they are not experienced in that area of construction, unless you are content to end up with a house dramatically less than what you had hoped for in the first place. Some gifted and detail oriented individuals, who are good at figuring things out are the exception to this. But most of us are not. I have seen many self built homes over the years that are substandard and only a few that look like professionals built them.
 
creekrat

creekrat

MuscleHead
Sep 9, 2012
267
142
@woodswise , fortunately I do have the experience and know how to manage it. Between my dad, brother and I we have built about 10 homes. To top it off I was an electrician for years and my uncle is a plumber. That being said, I will definitely farm out certain things like the drywall, trim work, cabinets, countertops, etc. I'm doing the pad work and pouring the footings as well as the plumbing and radiant floor heat in the slab. The slab itself I will contract out the pour since we will be doing stained concrete. I'll do the interior framing, electrical, plumbing, tile work, etc and I have no doubt that it'l be exactly how we want it.
 
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