Buying some land

[snakeblitz33]

Quote:
Originally Posted by 2Quills http:///t/395395/buying-some-land#post_3520128
Cheers to that. Big Brother creeps me out!
lol. It's not so much being "creeped out" as just wanting some independence from the system. I want to know that if anything happens and there is some kind of national food crisis or something - that my family and I can support ourselves without help from big brother.
I do believe the best thing to do at this point is for us all to become a little more energy and food independent from the main system. Where do your groceries come from? What happens if supply lines are cut? What happens if a city looses power? Just want to be prepared. And if nothing happens - that's AWESOME! but eventually everything reaches a tipping point. The pages of history are filled with civilizations rising and falling. It's naive to believe that it can't happen to us.

 

[2quills]

Quote:
Originally Posted by SnakeBlitz33 http:///t/395395/buying-some-land/20#post_3520130
The pages of history are filled with civilizations rising and falling. It's naive to believe that it can't happen to us.
Especially during times like these. Especially, during times like these.
Rest assured though that if I loose power and food over here in the city I'll be coming to your house. And I'll probably be coming with guns.
J/K, my friend. Sleep tight tonight.

 

[reefraff]

We might have the option of moving to Oklahoma. If we can get up around Tulsa I'd do it. I just know I want the heck out of Colorado, it's becoming East California at Warp 9.
Check the loan requirements for off grid. Some places wont finance without utilities. But speaking of off grid check this place out. Tripped over it when I was still looking for vacation property in this state. Looks like something from Mos Eisley from Star Wars
http://cosprings.craigslist.org/reo/3658904095.html
If it were in another state I'd already own it.

 

[deejeff442]

what i a doing has been planned for a couple years.no loans here.bought the land a couple years ago and building with cash as i get it.so its taking a long trime.we live in our 34 foot rv next to the house .also in the gararge is our washer/dryer fridge etc.. got 220 runnuing to the rv and gararge .also have internet ant tv sattalite.maybe they way to go is find a trailer house that aint so nice,live in that and build your house. we dont have any kids so it makes it much easier.i figured the house would be done by now but i kept making it bigger. so hoping to be in by this fall the latest.i am saying even with a drawn plan you can add at least 10-15% of what you figure on cost .especially if your wife is like mine lol

 

[snakeblitz33]

Lol, so true.
That's what I planned on doing, actually. I feel like I was put on this Earth to build a house. It's one of my life goals - and something that I will regret if I never accomplish.
My plan is to buy about 5 to 10 acres and pay on it over the course of the next year as much as I can - while making some improvements to the land and start an orchard. When I get a full time teaching position, it will be more feasible for us to move into the country. The trailer on the land that we buy should be big enough to live in while I build the house and subcontract out work that I can't do myself. That way - by the time the house is done - it will be paid for in full the day that I move in.
My wife and I know our limitations - and we know that we don't want to live in a mansion or one of those huge fancy houses that we see elsewhere. Building a 1500sqft house or less is right up our alley. My wife and I decided early in our lives that we wouldn't get into an unmanageable amount of debt and we would strive to live as simply and debt free as possible. Our only debt right now is student loans, which may be considered "good debt," because it helps strengthen our credit scores, etc.
I'm also older than your average college student. I've had full time jobs and have owned a couple of businesses. I know what I am getting myself in to. At this point, I was just doing extra research to know the full ins-and-outs,... and if anyone had some extra advice on what they might do differently before they bought land/country home.

 

[reefraff]

Getting a nice enough mobile so you don't feel pressured to hurry up and build the house is a good idea. My son and his ex tried to build their own and failed miserably. You only have a year with a construction loan and they ran out of both time and money, and her parents owned a home construction company LOL! Paying cash as you go will actually prevent a lot of stress.
Another upside to getting a little better mobile is if you plan things out right you could turn it into a rental property once your real house is done.
Just be patient and get the right piece of land. This could very well end up being a decade long project so don't settle. You got the right idea about not building a Mac Mansion. If it were me I'd build a 2 bedroom 1 bath that is designed to add a master suite and family room onto later on. That's what I tried to talk my kids into doing but noooo, she insisted they needed 2000 plus square feet for 2 adults and a baby.

 

[snakeblitz33]

A nice 40x40 house with an open garage is all we need for ourselves and two kids. I dont want a whole lot of fluff. I want to do as many "built ins" as i can in the process but fix up the interrior with gadgets over time.
My wife and i have some good ideas on homr layouts. Maybe i will post a couple soon.
I know buying land takes time and i wish my wife would slow down some. When my wife gets an idea in her head she has to do it and do it NOW. If you know what i mean. Its just her personality. But yes, i have the final decision on what we are buying.
Paying for a house paycheck to paycheck is a great way to know that you are debt free. I hate havingthousands of dollars hangin over my head in debt at any one point.

 

[snakeblitz33]

Oh, i have also taken a class in basic construction and i have helped on a few work sites. I have also built quite a few insulated sheds with electric hookup. Pretty sure home building is about the same - with more permits.

 

[reefraff]

Quote:
Originally Posted by SnakeBlitz33 http:///t/395395/buying-some-land/20#post_3520162
Oh, i have also taken a class in basic construction and i have helped on a few work sites. I have also built quite a few insulated sheds with electric hookup. Pretty sure home building is about the same - with more permits.
Cost estimating is the hard part. I've know enough contractors in my time to know my kids were screwing up big time. They figured they had X amount of money to spend and budgeted the whole thing without accounting for cost overruns, breakages or miscalculations.
Building to code can be a little tricky. It helps to have people who know what the inspectors look for in your particular area. In California a lot of them didn't know the trade so they looked for stuff based on what they read in a book. In Montana they tended to be people who used to be in the trade so they were a little more realistic about what they wanted to see. If you know people in the business there pick their brain. Another good idea is to do your own grunt work on the electrical but hire a licensed electrician to finish it off for you. That's one of the things they tend to be really picky on and just knowing a professional did the work tends to decrease the chance they'll nit pick you. It also makes it less likely you might make a mistake that an inspector wont catch.

 

[2quills]

I wouldn't even attempt this myself unless you're farmiliar with the current building codes for all of tje trades. Either way you're going to find yourself in sutuations that you're going to need some professional help.
I don't wish to deter you because I know you're just gathering information right now. But even in our business, we dont build but we have to repair...time and time again I see folks who think they can do everything themselves wind up finding out that's not necissarily the case. And often get themselves in too deep and lose their house and destroy their credit because of it.
That's a big reason why you're supposed to pull permits now for practically everything. Because folks try to do things themselves under the radar and end up screwing up their houses which brings their value down quite a bit. Just food for thought.
Some inspectors are real idiots.

 

[reefraff]

Quote:
Originally Posted by 2Quills http:///t/395395/buying-some-land/20#post_3520169
Some inspectors are real idiots.
Aint that the truth. Years ago my brother and a bunch of his friends added a room on to my moms house and re roofed it at the same time. They were all in the construction trade and there was a general contractor among them. So they are ripping the old roof off and an inspector comes in and stops them because they didn't have a permit. The general though he didn't have to pull the permit until they started replacing the roof.
Anyway the inspector goes into the backyard where they were finishing up on the forms for the foundation for the new room and patio, which permits were already pulled for and displayed as required. The inspector asks what they are doing and then says "I don't think I want you doing this either. I don't know if the soil is suitable". My brother asks the guy if he noticed the dumpster in the front yard and he says yes. My brother told him if he didn't want to find himself in there with the roofing material he should leave NOW! LOL! The general contractor told him that probably wasn't the best way to handle the situation.

 

[snakeblitz33]

I know what your saying. I understand the risk. The only money at stake is the money i have already earned. Of course, some jobs like plumbing, electrical and roofing and hvac will have to be subcontracted. I plan on having a friend, who is a contractor, come to the build periodically for inspections.
Im fine with all of that though. I am almost a college grad, and i know how to do my paperwork.

 

[dragonzim]

Quote:
Originally Posted by reefraff http:///t/395395/buying-some-land/20#post_3520170
My brother asks the guy if he noticed the dumpster in the front yard and he says yes. My brother told him if he didn't want to find himself in there with the roofing material he should leave NOW! LOL! The general contractor told him that probably wasn't the best way to handle the situation.
He's lucky he didnt get the whole project shut down by the town and fined on top of it!

 

[2quills]

My brother told him if he didn't want to find himself in there with the roofing material he should leave NOW! LOL! The general contractor told him that probably wasn't the best way to handle the situation.
LOL probably not. But I can certainly understand where he's coming from. Unfortunately, they gotcha by the short and curlies most of the time. And the screwed up thing about it is that most of these inspectors are in the pocket books of some of the bigger builders out there.
I could tell ya some pretty crazy stories that I've heard over the years. I've dealt with a lot of contractos who do work for the builders around here. Most of these newer neighborhoods around town I wouldn't touch those houses with a ten foot pole.
Heck, one got busted a while back. This builder did a bunch of really high end homes out on the island. What he was doing was the inspector would come out before the foundations would be poured, pass the first faze then the builder would have his guys (illegals) pull all the rebar out and then throw in a bunch of tin cans and go ahead and pour the concrete. That way when the inspector came back the tin cans were in there to fool the metal detectors. Then they'd just keep using the same material from site to site. No telling how many homes were done that way. Some are already having problems.
Actually theres a few big builders around that are well known for being some of the shadiest guys around town. They get contractors to do the work and then dont pay. So contractors get mad, come back and mess up the houses, pour concrete down the drains, cut the framing studs, etc. Then things get pached up and pawned off to unsuspecting buyers. Ouch!
I know what your saying. I understand the risk. The only money at stake is the money i have already earned. Of course, some jobs like plumbing, electrical and roofing and hvac will have to be subcontracted. I plan on having a friend, who is a contractor, come to the build periodically for inspections.
Im fine with all of that though. I am almost a college grad, and i know how to do my paperwork.
Hey, you know me. Just felt is was worth a mention. Biggest thing I'd watch out for is just starting a bunch of work before you know exactly what to do and how to do it so that you dont find yourself stuck having to redo it. Honestly, its pretty common, even for some of the so called pro's out there.

 

[deejeff442]

hey seth .instead of PM'ing you if you have any questions about building let me know.seriously i know more than most builders from foundation(now this depends on your soil,ground movement and climate) electric,plumbing ( of course i suggest pecs now a days) my suggestion is and you probably found this out already ,buy land that isnt annexed .no permits except for water and septic.then you can do what ever the hell you want.which is what i am doing.might take 3 years or 5 years but like you said it will be paid for and F the city.we love it out here you couldnt give me a free 4000 sq ft house in a track home .yes i consider us redneck ,hillbilly farmers now and i love it. you sound like you have your head on straight and have a good plan. as for the wife i feel ya brother my wife wants this house done 3 months ago. well i said make $30k in the next 2 months and i will get on it lol.

 

[deejeff442]

hey Quills, i hear alot of messed up stuff here. a contractor did a huge job using around 50 mexicans.on the last day when he was supposed to pay them he called immigration to the site. i am not for illigals really (dont get me wrong i work with them here and there) but that is just wrong.i cant find a white boy worth anything in this state. my main workers for me are white but are from up north. sorry to say but the kids here are lazy to say the least

 

[reefraff]

Quote:
Originally Posted by DragonZim http:///t/395395/buying-some-land/20#post_3520185
He's lucky he didnt get the whole project shut down by the town and fined on top of it!
They couldn't shut down jack because that part was already permitted (and this ass hat was a roofing inspector and had no authority to deal with other aspects of the job) but he was lucky he (brother) didn't get thrown in jail.

 

[reefraff]

Quote:
Originally Posted by deejeff442 http:///t/395395/buying-some-land/20#post_3520210
hey Quills, i hear alot of messed up stuff here. a contractor did a huge job using around 50 mexicans.on the last day when he was supposed to pay them he called immigration to the site. i am not for illigals really (dont get me wrong i work with them here and there) but that is just wrong.i cant find a white boy worth anything in this state. my main workers for me are white but are from up north. sorry to say but the kids here are lazy to say the least
There's a video floating around youtube where a guy picks up a pickup load of illegals from Home Depot and ends up dropping them off at the local INS office. That was funny. The dude using them then turning them in to avoid paying them is a douche.

 

[snakeblitz33]

Annexed huh? Im going to have to look into that.
Thanks man for boosting my ego, lol. I am just plenty familiar with codes and code enforcement and ordinances and all of that. I am ready to be done with a lot of it.
Im getting where dropping out of the comsumerism rat race really appeals to me. So much so that i am considering selling off my aquarium.

 

[reefraff]

Annexation is the anti christ. In the town I lived in in Montana they did a land swap with the state to take control of a state highway for no other reason than to "wholly surround" an area that had previously voted down annexation. once they were wholly surrounded they had no choice in annexation.