Buy a property with a house on it or buy a property and build a house? Which is best and most affordable?

[jaxyaks]

did renovations and the GC was the worst part of the job
Did everything wrong , charged us for his **** ups, hired inexperienced help, stole supplies , when we fired him he demanded his full GC fee when we refused due to bad work the Ahole tried to put a lien on the house and we had to fight that legal battle.
Will NEVER hire another GC, i would do it myself , even if i messed it up it would cost less than the last GC cost us.

GC's can be awesome or your worst nightmare. The larger the project the longer and more thorough the interview should be, to include an examination of the GC's business financials and financial references to check credit worthiness etc. Also interviewing their subcontractors prior to the project to see how long they have done projects with the GC and get a gauge of how that relationship stands.

The last thing you want is a GC that is broke and robbing Peter to pay Paul using your money to bridge the gap. You don't want to be the project where the merry go round stops and all the subs aren't paid.

When any doubt, request to pay the subcontractors yourself, to make sure there is no risk of the GC not paying them. That will at least cut some of the risk of an out of the blue lean on your house. Doing it this way also helps with making sure the GC is not applying any extra padding to his markup and profit.

 

[basstracker89]

I was on a well for a while.PIA....when you are looking for property. Look for fire hydrants
Jus my 2 cents

I can tell you my Dad grew up on a well. He hasn't done well water since he moved from his parents. He apparently didn't like it.

 

[Realtor]

i have built, bought, bought and remodeled and they all have their pros and cons.

Much of the advice has been good advice, it’s always going to run over budget if you are rehabbing or building.

But, the upside is you will likely be instantly in the equity - we built in 2021 for 450k and sold in 2023 for 850k.

If you are rehabbing , find something with an unfinished basement to create value.

There are good deals to be had right now if you are a buyer , contact me if you need representation or want specific advice - happy
To help
678-800-9883 Joe

 

[WinstonSmith]

Best? Eye of beholder. Most affordable? Buy the house.

 

[1gunsnotenough]

I've built two houses. I did the contracting on both and very little of the building. I mostly just did the painting. I bought the land first on both of them. By having the land it act's as collateral so I could get 100% of financing the home. First house I built around 1990. 2400 sqft. Two story with masonry fireplace. Oak cabinets. Did not cut any corners. land 5 acres. I had $110,000 in it when I finished including land cost. 2nd home I live in now. Built in 2001. Did the same thing. Home is 2100 sqft with a full basement. I have around $138,000 in it with land cost. Appraisal is $475,000. And looking at building another in the next year. I need a single story getting to old to climb stairs. Doing it my way is a full time second job but worth it. Also buy and build out in the country land is cheaper.

 

[howl]

Buy, don't build if budget is a concern. Take care in choosing who you hire to do the home inspection. People are often too strapped to afford necessary repairs on older houses. Newer houses are often built by illegal labor who, if they ever knew how, don't care. A brand new house can be about to fall down.

There was one nearby that was built half-way, then sat unfinished with no siding and missing windows for about eight months. It was sold, then finished like they walked off the job yesterday. I don't if the buyers had any idea. It's a two story, maybe 3000 sq ft house.

 

[My name is Homer]

It is easier and cheaper to find something that is good enough and make it your own, and I have done both in the last 10 years.

 

[Spikey]

Build and you’ll have to deal with shoddy workmanship and subs getting there when they want to . Kind of an unwritten thing with subs , 50/50 it’s looks ok . Which is from fifty feet away at fifty mph . I have 8 acres in west Cobb . Bought it 25 years ago . 5,000 square foot with the basement . I’ve remodeled extensively . Done ALL the work myself . I have a 3200 square foot shot . Also a 750 square foot garage . It’s a lot of work , but if you find existing that fits your needs , buy and remodel . Just an FYI . My aforementioned garage lumber quote went up 17% today !

 

[edman99]

We built our house in 2018. Hired a GC that we knew from friends who had used him. We picked a plan, made the customizations we wanted to the blueprints. Broke ground Feb. 2018. House was ready by Thanksgiving, despite some multi-week rain delays. This was on rural Hart County land we already owned.

Originally, we budgeted for about $175/sq ft. Ended up at about $200/sq ft. We made some changes as the house was coming together that added cost (biggest ticket change was a bigger driveway). The worst kick in the nuts was lumber market due to tariffs on Canadian lumber. We were building at peak lumber prices for that time frame, which added cost over the initial estimate.

Because the GC was a solo-practitioner, we had a very collaborative build process. He and my wife clashed on a few design items (both are creative types). Most of the subs were excellent, a couple were awful. We went with engineered trusses so the HVAC could be routed in the floor joists; the HVAC crew created what looked like a spaghetti monster install, completely missing the point of the engineering floor joists. They got fired, a new crew came in and did a very professional job that was 10 times better.

Hart County had no inspections at the time, so we kept a close eye on everything. Sometimes caught mistakes and shortcuts the GC should have caught, but they got corrected. The lack of inspections was one of the things that allowed the project to go fast; we didn't have to wait on bureaucracy. Local health department did approve the septic plan and work, but they were quick. Local EMC was (and still is) very responsive and they were quick. Had an existing well, so that shortened things, too.

We had a great time building the house. We did some work ourselves (some design details, some finish work, some electrical fixture installs, well plumbing). We worked with a couple of the subs on detail work, and they were completely cool and helpful.

Building a house is fun, stressful, and I'd do it again if I was in the same position. The world has changed a lot in the last 6 years. Don't know that our experience would be the same this time around.

On the Bell Curve, your overall experience is far ahead of the average.

 

[edman99]

What are the costs for manufactured houses these days? Resale value down the road was a concern for me, so I knew I wanted to go stick built. If I had been close to retirement, I would probably have been happy with a 1500ish square foot double wide plus a large detached garage/workshop.

Seems like you were reading my mind. If you could find a manufactured house that met your needs and quality standards, then why not? Avoid all of the headache and drama......