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

[basstracker89]

My in laws moved from a $600k home in metro to North Georgia. Bought 13ac. I think. Already had a well. He moved a camper up there to live in. His wife moved in with her mother, LOL. So he moved up there, then discovered he had no power on site......LOL. Then they found out they couldn't build a simple crawl space house for less than $500K...... I tried to tell them before they moved. So they wound up buying a1700sq ft house across the street from they're land. They moved from a 4500sq ft home. So the home they bought had a previous fire in it and remodeled. So they had all their stuff in storage from where they moved to where they lived. Encroaching on anybody and everybody they could at the other person's expense.
So they lived in the new to them house for a couple years and finally built their new home. But they had to borrow money from the family to do......
So now they're trying to sell the old house and haven't been able to unload it........Meanwhile, he's been building a workshop/shed, on his 3rd year now. While I'm waiting for him to come get his crap from my house.
Another thing to consider is health. Another thing I tried to tell them. Between myself, wife, parents and In Law parents I've recognized the need to be close to good medical facilities. Well so he had some medical issues already. He wound up with some problems. Then had to be transported a few hours away to a hospital......A few times......

 

[rbstern]

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.

 

[basstracker89]

The truss idea is the best. I'd do the same thing if I were building. If I had to rebuild where I am, that's the way I'd go. We have a great lot, so I know the ole lady ain't movin. She's in her dream house. So I made sure we're insured for new full replacement coverage. I'd be ashamed to say what this place would cost to rebuild new.

 

[GFB]

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.

 

[InTune]

I held a real estate license years ago. Lot to be said for an already built home..... Sending all the Mexicans home is gonna be a strain on construction...jus my 2 cents

 

[rbstern]

I held a real estate license years ago. Lot to be said for an already built home..... Sending all the Mexicans home is gonna be a strain on construction...jus my 2 cents

Americans building houses again. Fun!

 

[jaxyaks]

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.

No inspections? I bet there are a few houses floating around in that county that would make you shake your head...lol

 

[rbstern]

No inspections? I bet there are a few houses floating around in that county that would make you shake your head...lol

No doubt. Fairly common in rural counties, although less so as time goes on. The subs supposed to do things by national code, but with nobody looking, bad subs will take shortcuts. Unlicensed handyman types, who might not know the code...gotta watch them carefully.

The engineered joist system for our floors had specific documentation for how to attach a deck ledger. I found the GC's handyman doing it exactly the way you were NOT supposed to do it. Redid it myself, as specified by the documentation.

 

[InTune]

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

 

[Rush Je3p]

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.