Should I Talk to a Builder Before I Buy Land in Oklahoma?
Should I Talk to a Builder Before I Buy Land in Oklahoma?
You find a beautiful four-acre property with mature trees, plenty of room, maybe even a great view, and it feels like exactly the place where you could build the home you have been imagining.
It can be tempting to buy the land first and figure out the house later. But if you are purchasing property with the intention of building a home, one of the best things you can do is talk with a home builder before you buy the land.
Why? Not because every piece of property comes with problems. And not because a builder can tell you everything there is to know about a property from a single visit.
But an experienced local home builder can help you look beyond the land and what makes the it attractive to begin asking a much more important question:
What will it actually take to build the home you want here?
That conversation can give you a much more realistic picture of the property, the potential costs involved and the challenges you may need to solve before construction ever begins.
In some cases, it may simply help you plan better, but in other cases it could save you considerable money, frustration and time.
Beautiful Land Does Not Always Mean Easy Land to Build On
When most of us look at a piece of property, we naturally notice the things we can see and the things we want to see.
We look at the trees, the view, the amount of acreage, the neighboring homes, the privacy, the road, the place where the house might sit and so on.
A builder, however, while looking at the same things will likely see them differently.
While your vision may be your house, fence, garden, pool and outdoor barbeque, he will be considering questions such as:
How will construction vehicles get to the home site?
Where will the driveway go?
How far will utilities need to travel?
How does water move across the property?
Is there enough room for the home, septic system, shop, pool or other things you may want someday?
Are there easements or restrictions that affect where the home can sit?
What kind of site preparation might be necessary before the foundation can even begin?
While none of those questions necessarily make a property a bad choice, they do help determine whether the property fits your plans and your budget.
Access Can Affect More Than the Driveway
A long, private driveway across an acreage may look wonderful when you picture the finished home.
Getting there during construction is another consideration.
Builders need to think about access for concrete trucks, framing materials, equipment, tradespeople and deliveries throughout the building process.
The location of the home on the property can also affect how much driveway must be built and maintained.
Sometimes moving the proposed home site farther back on a property gives a homeowner exactly the privacy they want. But that same decision may also mean additional driveway construction, extra utility runs and more site work.
Again, these are not reasons not to build farther from the road.
They are simply costs worth understanding before you purchase the property and begin designing around a particular location.
Utilities Can Change the Cost of a Property Quickly
One property may already have convenient access to electric service, public water and sewer.
Another may require electricity to be brought a considerable distance onto the property, a water well to be drilled or a septic system to be installed.
In rural areas around Oklahoma, these considerations can become an important part of the total building budget.
A lower-priced parcel of land is not necessarily the less expensive property once the cost of preparing it for a home is considered.
That is one reason we encourage buyers to think beyond the purchase price of the land itself.
The question is not simply:
“How much does this property cost?”
It is also:
“What will it cost to make this property ready for the home we want to build?”
Drainage Matters Before—and After—the House Is Built
When it rains, when it pours and especially during our Oklahoma storms, the water has to go somewhere.
When a home, driveway, patio, shop or other structure is added to a property, the way water moves across the land can change.
A property may need grading, drainage solutions or thoughtful placement of the home to help move water where it needs to go.
That makes drainage an important consideration before deciding where the house should sit.
A beautiful low area surrounded by trees might look like the perfect building site during dry weather, for example, but a builder may want to understand what happens there after several days of Oklahoma rain.
Thinking about drainage early is generally much easier than trying to solve a water problem after the home is built.
Soil and Site Conditions Can Affect the Foundation
What is beneath the grass matters too.
Different properties can present different soil conditions, slopes and site-preparation requirements.
Before construction, additional evaluation may be necessary to determine what kind of foundation design and preparation are appropriate for the home and property.
Again, the purpose of talking with a builder early is not necessarily to have every engineering question answered before purchasing the land.
It is to identify the questions that need to be answered.
If something about the property suggests that additional dirt work, engineering or site preparation may be needed, it is better to know that while you are still evaluating the property than after you have already purchased it.
Septic Systems Need Space Too
If the property is outside an area served by municipal sewer, the home may require a septic system.
That system becomes part of the overall site plan.
Where the house sits, where the driveway goes and what else you hope to build on the property can all matter when thinking about how the land will eventually be used.
Maybe you want a detached shop someday, or a swimming pool or an outdoor living area, a garden or a second structure.
Those future plans are worth discussing before the home is positioned on the land.
Custom home planning is not only about designing the house you need today. It is also about making thoughtful decisions that leave room for the way you hope to use the property tomorrow.
Easements, Setbacks and Restrictions Can Limit Your Options
Owning lots of acreage does not always mean you can build anywhere you want on those acres.
Properties may have utility easements, building setbacks, drainage easements, neighborhood restrictions or other limitations that affect what can be built and where, restrictions that may influence the location or orientation of the home, driveway, shop, fence or other improvements.
This is another area where doing your homework before purchasing matters.
While a builder will not replace a surveyor, engineer, title company or other professionals who may be needed to fully evaluate a property, an experienced builder can help you recognize the kinds of questions that should be answered before you move forward.
The House You Want Matters Too
There is another side to this conversation that sometimes gets overlooked.
The question is not simply whether a house can be built on the property.
It is whether your house can be built there in a way that makes sense.
You may want a wide one-story home with a large three-car garage.
Maybe you want the home positioned to capture a particular view or with a backyard facing a certain direction.
Perhaps you want enough room beside the house to eventually build a shop.
Maybe privacy is more important to you than being close to the road.
Those preferences influence how a builder evaluates the property.
The more your builder understands about the home and lifestyle you are envisioning, the more useful that early conversation can become.
Talk to the Builder Before You Fall Too Far in Love With the Land
We understand how easy it is to become excited about a beautiful property, especially when sometimes you walk onto a piece of land and can already picture the house.
That excitement is a good thing.
We simply want homeowners to pair that vision with good information.
Before you purchase land for a custom home, talk with a local builder. Show them the property. Talk about the kind of house you hope to build. Ask what they notice and what additional questions should be answered.
You may learn that the property is a great fit and move forward with much more confidence.
You may discover a few additional expenses that need to be incorporated into the budget.
Or you may learn something that makes another property a better choice.
All three outcomes are valuable.
At Beacon Homes, our goal is not simply to build a house on the land you bring us. We want to help you understand the decisions that lead up to building it.
Because when you are investing in both land and a home, good planning before the purchase can save a lot of difficult decisions afterward.
Talk to Us. We'll Help You.
If you are considering property in the Oklahoma City, Edmond or surrounding areas and hope to build a custom home, talk with us early in the process. Even if you have not purchased the land yet, that is often one of the best times to start the conversation.
Maybe you have not chosen a builder yet—or you are still deciding who you want to build your home. That is okay. Whether you ultimately build with Beacon or not, we are happy to help you take an experienced look at the property and identify questions, challenges or potential costs worth understanding before you move forward with the purchase.