What You Need to Know When Building a Home on Your Lot

Before deciding to build a home on your own land, take our advice on choosing a home builder to help ensure you don’t overlook anything critical.

Building a new home on your own land can be one of the most satisfying experiences of your life, as long as you’re prepared. There are a lot of variables to consider, and you’ll need the help of homebuilding professionals to ensure you don’t overlook the essential details before breaking ground. Keep reading to learn more.

Consult a Homebuilder First

It is critical to consult a builder before buying land. Involving your builder early on in your decision-making can potentially save you time and money in the long run.

Your home builder will help you determine the best placement of the home and whether or not you should build on that particular land. You see, it’s easy to get swept up in the vision of your future home on an attractive piece of land, but there’s always a chance that there are problems you don’t see immediately.

What to Look for in a Builder

There’s a lot of work that goes into choosing a trustworthy homebuilder, especially when you want to build on your lot.

You need to look for a local team with experience in build-on-your-lot projects. These teams are more likely to keep your build on budget and bring a critical understanding of zoning laws, restrictions, and easements. Hiring locally is especially important if you’re planning to build in a rural area, where the rules are more likely to be different from those in the city. Your homebuilder should have the following qualities:

• Experience: Do they do many build-on-your-own-lot projects? Ask for a reference or two and talk to them about their experiences.
• Floorplans: If you purchase your land first, it might be in your best interest, financially, to work with your builder to choose a floorplan they’ve done before, or customize any of their existing designs. The critical thing to look for is options – do they have them, and are they flexible in delivering what you want?
• Purchasing Power: A homebuilder with good connections is more likely to get you a competitive price on building materials, especially if you’re using one of their floor plans.

Choosing a Piece of Land

Most of the time, you inherit a piece of land or work with a realtor to buy one. In any scenario, you should involve your home builder of choice before diving into planning a home.

So now that you know what you can spend, how do you calculate how much land you need for your house?

For many homebuyers, it typically becomes more of a preference than a calculation. For example, while you’ll need to consider property lines, you’ll most likely be thinking about how much grass you want to mow and maybe even about the potential for playsets or pool placement sometime in the future.

Where Will You Live During Construction?

This is both a lifestyle and budget concern. Depending on the time it takes to build the home, your options may vary, and you’ll need a plan. Will you sell your current home and live in an apartment complex for a few months during the construction process? Will you wait to sell until you’ve moved into your new dream home? These are all situations that should be considered.

What Licenses And Permits Do You Need To Build A House On Your Lot?

This entirely depends on how you choose to build your home. But regardless, you could face serious penalties if you build without a permit. You may have to take down and rebuild in a way that satisfies legal requirements.

If you build through a contractor, they will assume legal responsibility. These home builders should be very familiar with the local building codes. From paperwork to talking with the building department, they’ll ensure the home they’re building is within code.

The Importance of Following Building Codes

A home that has been “future-proofed” and created with health and safety guidelines will be a home that can be used by anyone. For example, electrical work needs to be up to code to prevent any eventual fires. Most importantly, homes are harder to sell when they don’t meet any kind of code.

Are you ready to build a custom home on your lot? Whether you envision a convenient suburban location or dream of building a beach home, we can make it happen. You select the location, and Accessible Home Builders handles everything else. Our expert team ensures your new custom home meets your quality and design standards.

Contact Accessible Home Builders Today

Here at Accessible Home Builders, we’re proud to say we’ve been building and remodeling homes since 1994. We’ve serviced Rehoboth Beach, Lewes, Selbyville, Millsboro, Georgetown, Laurel, and more communities within Delaware in that time. We work to guarantee a high level of professionalism, dedication, and the use of quality materials to ensure our customers have the homes they deserve.

To get in touch with us, give us a call at our office at 302-663-0464, send us an email at info@accessiblehomebuilders.com or visit us in person at 28412 DuPont Blvd, #103 Millsboro, DE 19966. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, and YouTube to stay updated on what we’re up to next!