Should we buy the vacant lot next to ours?
laura1202
16 years ago
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amyks
16 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
Vacant Lot Grading Help
Comments (4)I don't know about $$$ but I'll bet that grading does make a lot more people look at it. When we first drove by our empty lot it was completely grown up. It looked like it went straight down hill and that it was impossible to build on. Fast forward several years when we actually got out and looked at it and walked around and realized it was a great lot but just needed to be cleared. People from the area were shocked at how much flat land was there. We got it at a good price too. But, I think you should wait a month or two after putting it on the market to grade. You might be able to sell it right away without all of that work and $$$. If not, then invest in curb appeal....See MoreBought a lot - what should I do next?
Comments (6)We're finishing up a house on heavily wooded land with a well and septic. We are in Minnesota and things may be different in NJ, but it would have been fine for us to clear land before getting a building permit. Weirdly, our builder might have gotten in trouble for clearing our land before getting the permit-- I think the logic is that as the owner, you can cut down your trees, but a licensed builder who is planning to build a house can't start the building process, including clearing the trees, before getting the permit. So, if you know where you want to put the house, odds are you can go ahead and start clearing. However, it might be good to at least talk to an architect first, so you know where you are likely to need to put the septic, or whatever, and you don't have to pay for the tree guys to come out again later. In our area, the septic has to be designed for the house and the septic plans are approved along with the rest of the house plans in the building permit process. If you were to install a septic system before finalizing your house plans, it could be either very limiting or something you have to pay to fix. Our septic went in before we were connected to electricity, and our well went in after, but I don't think it mattered either way. The pump for the well needs power to bring water into the house, but they don't need electric to dig either septic or well. I would recommend spending your time coming up with a plan with an architect, and possibly improving the land-- planting screening trees if necessary, clearing scrub and weeds, that kind of thing....See More1925 block foundation.. AS IS or vacant lot?
Comments (22)Dang! Wish we could see the inside - can't you go in with camera and take a few pics? Sometimes the neglected ones end up being most promising because they haven't been "updated" and modernized so much. "AS IS" means only that the seller isn't going to do anything but accept or reject your offer - the offer can be whatever amount seems realistic to you considering your repair costs. To bad your agent doesn't know anything about old houses - have you signed a contract? Ideally that person could be the one to be giving you ball park figures about repair costs. And then, if it looked feasible you could have an old house specialist come and look for an hour (for a fee) before you make the offer. There again, you wouldn't hire just any old inspector, but grill them good to make sure they know their stuff. Some do and some don't. Good luck!...See MoreOvens/microwaves: what should we get for next build?
Comments (0)For our current house (built in 2007), we installed a 220 Advantium and a Trivection oven. We've used the features of the Trivection oven a lot and would buy another one for the house we're building next year--except it's been discontinued. We never really learned how to use the Advantium fully so we've basically used the Advantium as a (very expensive) microwave. I like speed bake on the Trivection because I'm always in a hurry and short on time. I didn't take much advantage of the 3 cookie sheets at once functionality, though, even though I do bake in bulk. My original thought was to get another Trivection oven and a "standard" wall microwave. Obviously, that won't work now :-) What should I look into for our next house? I'm planning a single oven and a microwave (not a microwave drawer)....See Morefoolyap
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