It’s very exciting to build your own house. But there’s so much more to building a home than decorating with the perfect furniture and choosing a spot with the perfect view. One of the most important things you’d have to do is to identify the land for your home, taking into consideration several factors like the growth on house price and other considerations that would impact your family’s security. Read on to know why you need to identify your land before putting up your dream home.
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You need to know if it’s suitable for you and your family
If you have kids, you’d want to build your home near their school, place of worship, hospital, doctor, and/or dentist. Are there nearby police stations and hospitals in case of emergencies? Is the neighborhood friendly and does it have a good security system?
You need to know other basic services available
Aside from hospitals, schools, and police stations, you’d also want to consider power, water, and telephone and Internet availability. If you or your family members have to commute or use public transport to get to other places, also consider road safety and accessibility. All of these are essential if you take your health and security seriously.
You need to know the soil, water, and sewer conditions
Think carefully before you build on lowlands and rocky soil. Remember that clay drains poorly while sandy soil drains very quickly. Nearby streams, ponds, and other bodies of water can also be contaminated by your sewer septic system, so you’d have to take these into consideration if you’re going to build your home. Ask neighbors for sewer and water issues before you buy your land.
You need to know if you can afford it
Obviously, you can’t build on land you can’t afford. The cost of land partly depends on its location and how big the land is. Factors that would affect the total costs for your home are land valuation, landscaping, legal fees, moving expenses, site works, settlement agents’ fees, building costs, land tax, and furnishing costs. Work out the total budget before you decide on the land you want to buy. Also consider the growth on house price, which can be affected by the location of your land. Building a home is also a financial investment and can give you added financial security in the future. If you need financial support to build your home, check if you’re eligible for financial assistance from the government. For instance, the Government of South Australia has a Home Start Finance program that lets first-time home buyers apply for grants to build their home.
You don’t want to build on disaster-prone areas
Ask the developer or local government if the land you’re considering to build on does not fall on fault lines or is not affected by mudslides, floods, and other natural calamities. For instance, if you build your land near the shore, it might be vulnerable to storm surges. It’s tempting to buy low-priced land, but you can’t compromise your safety for affordability.
All in all, it takes some amount of research to identify your land before you start building your home. Be willing to do the work if you want to be a satisfied home-owner.
