CHAPTER 1

Finding Property/Jan. 3, 2022

 So you’ve decided to buy land and have a home built … congratulations. Be prepared for what is to come and how long it takes. My story starts with moving to a rental in a new town without any pre-planning. It helped that I had just retired and was an empty nester.

The first thing was working with a realtor getting leads on potential properties. I wanted one acre minimum of pristine forest on level land which after looking at about 50 properties found was as rare commodity. You can drive around with a realtor or as I did just get a list of properties to look at yourself.  I found that I could focus more on the property by myself without worrying about wasting the realtors’ time by standing on a property for an hour getting the feel for it.

Listen to the noise, is there too much traffic, are neighbors too close, is the Sun orientated so that you won’t have severe morning or evening sun, do you like the drive to the property? … after all you will be on that road a lot!

 If there is a HOA, it is very critical to check out the rules to make sure you can build the home you want. The HOA can be your friend, or your adversary so choose wisely. I was extremely lucky as their rules aligned with my desires.

Knowing what you want in a property makes it easier to say, “This is it!” when you find it.

Make sure your Architect approves the lot for any build challenges.

Stay tuned!

Mike Lazzareschi - Homeowner