(To Play Song, Hit Orange Button Above)
The Land Process
A shortage of homes for sale causes prospective Home Owners to look at raw land and build their dream homestead instead.
​
However without the proper site feasibility, a prospective homeowner may end up purchasing a piece of land that is not buildable.
​
It is recommended before purchasing raw land that the following things have been verified at a minimum (surveys and site evaluations are also highly beneficial prior to purchasing raw land):
Water:
Check with the city or county water departments and ask if water is already available at the street. If it's not available at the street you will want to ask them for information on local water tables. Also, asking several of the closest neighbors about their private wells can give you an approximate estimate on well depth averages. If not enough sufficient information can be gathered then you many want to consider hiring a "water witcher" aka "water dowsing" professional. A reputable drilling company should be able to give you ballpark numbers and for budgeting purposes you will want to use the high number of their range and hope it comes in around the average cost for that area).
Septic / Sewer:
If public sewer in not at the street then you definitely will want to get what's called a "perc test" in certain parts of the country but more commonly called a "Level 3 Soil Survey" here in Georgia. A perc test is a test to determine if the soil is suitable for an on-site sewage system (a septic tank + drain field). This Level 3 soil survey (perc test) can also tell you the types of soil/rock that exists and how deep the water table may be. If the soils aren't suitable (drains too fast/slow) or the water table is too high (problematic when the drain field coming out of the septic tank leeches "grey" water straight into the water table below that your well would be pulling its drinking water from) then you won't be able to build a home on that property.
Builder:
Different slopes and elevations may be more suitable for one type of home than another type of home. So before becoming to emotionally attached to a piece of land make sure your builder has done a site visit to verify the home you want can be built within budget and with limited cost over-runs on that particular piece of land. Another very important question for a General Contractor is how much of the permitting process do they oversee or how much will you (or your team) be responsible for. If you are not looking for a custom home, then our vetted General Contractors can assist you in building your home with all the right customizations.
Construction Lender:
There are a lot more steps / complications when it comes to getting financing for residential construction. Make sure your lender has construction loan experience and that they can work with your builder's "draw" process. Also, make sure your lender clearly clarifies the interest rates during the construction phase and more importantly the interest rate guaranteed when the construction loan switches to a permanent loan. With how fast interest rates have been rising, nothing is more discouraging to finish the process only to find out that interest rates were not locked down and you can no longer afford to live in your dream home that you have just built. We also have specialty lenders we partner with in the early stages to make the process more streamlined.
Land Agent:
Hiring a real estate agent (like the group at Southeast Home Group) that has land experience can be highly beneficial to your wallet and your sanity. If they have a background in residential construction (not necessary) then that is a really nice bonus. We work with all agents in helping them help you in developing the right piece of land for sale.
Selling Land:
For those looking to sell raw land then hiring an agent that understands the entire land process is important, and hiring an agent that also understands the marketing of raw land is highly beneficial to your bottom line profits, and hiring an agent that understands how to clearly communicate to a buyers agent (who may not know anything about raw land and doesn't want to look stupid in front of their clients and secretly may be hoping their client just buys a house with the much larger compensation they would get instead) is imperative if the seller and prospective buyer are to come together at the closing table to finalize the deal. We assist land owners in properly marketing land and in assisting the feasibility process for the buyer(s).
Buying Land/Home:
For those looking to purchase raw land- hiring a real estate agent that understands the entire land process is important to both your sanity and can help prevent you from grossly overpaying for a piece of land (key is water & the perc test mentioned above). Many start out looking at land but once they realize the cost of materials and labor is too high, they resort to purchasing a home. If this ends up being you then our real estate partners can help you switch gears as our firm is experienced in both land and the purchase of homes. In fact, with our mortgage partners we can save you a considerable amount of money on the closing costs of an existing home. However, if land is an option for you, then nothing quite beats being able to first trying the purchase of raw land to build your dream home upon and everyone at the Southeast Home Group and the 8020 Firm, LLC are here to help make that dream a reality.
Our Network of Investors Also May Buy Your Land,
If It Doesn't Fit Their Parameters,
Then the Southeast Home Group Can Help You Sell It
Submit/Purchase Your Property
If you are looking for quicker assistance then you can text us at (470) 693-8020
Otherwise, send us the property you are interested in selling and/or purchasing and we will call you with a more detailed response.
(We don't Spam or Sell your Info)