Do you buy? Do you build? Do you rent? These are the questions that face the individual, couple, or family looking for a new home. Each has perks and downfalls. It also depends on the market, where you live, and what’s available. Buying a home that has been around for a while might have a certain appeal to some. There is charm in older homes that can’t be recreated in newer ones. But often, older homes come with maintenance issues and renovation needs to be done to give the whole of the property a facelift.
Renting is generally just a waste of money…so that leads building. If the market is good and materials come at a good price, it’s a brilliant way to go. You can customize your home all you want, it will be new, and you won’t have to deal with foundation issues or other issues that come with older homes. Are you sold on building over other options? If so, here’s what you need to do to make that a reality:
Find Land
A home will do you no good if you have no land to place it on. The first step in the homebuilding process is finding a chunk of land that you like that will be able to accommodate all you want in your home. You’ll want to consider where it is in relation to the places you’ll spend most of your time. If you don’t want to commute, find land closer to town. Also think about the size of your yard and how close your neighbors are going to be.
Secure a Permit
Once you’ve chosen land and know what subdivision you’re going to live in and if you’re going to live in one, you can get your plans approved and get your building permit. You have to take your plot plan and subdivision plans to city hall to obtain your permit, but it shouldn’t be too much trouble.
Find Labor
Once you’ve secured land and your permit, the next step is to break ground, but before you can do that, you’re going to want to determine whether or not you want to find a general contractor. A general contractor makes things easy on you because they do all the planning and hiring out of subcontractors and laborers. You communicate with them about what you want and the rest is pretty easy.
Solidify Finances
In reality, finances are going the be the first thing you think about when considering building a home, but until you find a house plan that like and a lot, you can’t get an estimate on building costs. Once you figure out those details, you can then go to the bank and figure out your loan and mortgage and how all the finances are going to work.
