el_bandido Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 Long story short, I'll be joining the housing market this year. The idea of paying daft amounts of cash for a starter home I don't even like seems a bit ridiculous, plus I'd like to build something off grid and eco friendly (to offset the supra or something...) using non-traditional materials. Has anyone done this before? I'm ideally looking for tips, pitfalls and places to actually find land. So far I've just been looking on rightmove and zoopla for plots in the countryside, but most of them are town infill or commercial sites. I've had a look at some of the related forums but there is a lot of mixed information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackyBoi Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 It's a pretty difficult topic to be honest. I too have been looking for similar (although closer to Cambridge and not in the countryside) and the main pitfalls I've found is finding land that is actually suitable for a residential building. LOTS of them clearly state it's purely agricultural/industrial etc. It also seems to be a pain in terms of finding land that currently has gas/electric/broadband installed but I suppose if building from scratch that's something you can take care of yourself. As you'd be building on 'greenfield' land I hear it's much easier to obtain planning permission than in less rural areas, but as long as you do your research and get a great project manager on board you should be absolutely fine as for websites to use I'm not too sure, I'd exhaust Google search and also keep an ear/eye out for local opportunities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_bandido Posted February 21, 2017 Author Share Posted February 21, 2017 Yeah, I was considering Northamptonshire/Cambridgeshire/Bedfordshire/Buckinghamshire. I've looked at planning laws in some serious depth over the past year, the trick seems to be early involvement in everything and get to know the people you'll be dealing with. I'm hoping building something green/carbon neutral will help the planning application too. I've already got utilities figured out (which also dictates the size and location of the plot) and will be completely off grid. Broadband doesn't concern me, I've been using 4g wifi for the past year and it's been sufficient for my needs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marc_p Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 Remember that you can't get a mortgage for buying land/building a house, so you would need to pay for it all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samdale Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 From what I've seen, land can LOOK cheap. However, if it's got potential as a building plot then you won't be the only one looking at it and those that are, will almost always be able to build cheaper than you and thus outbid you. Unless you pay over the odds of course in which case you'll be better off, financially at least, buying already built. My biggest concern would be how to fund it. You can't mortgage a house that doesn't exist yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackyBoi Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 Perhaps he has all the money he needs already besides, you can get a bank loan if you can't mortgage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blythmrk Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 From what I've seen, land can LOOK cheap. However, if it's got potential as a building plot then you won't be the only one looking at it and those that are, will almost always be able to build cheaper than you and thus outbid you. Unless you pay over the odds of course in which case you'll be better off, financially at least, buying already built. My biggest concern would be how to fund it. You can't mortgage a house that doesn't exist yet. You need cash or a loan to buy the land then build it then you can mortgage it afterwards so unless you or family/friends can help with money its a non starter. I bought a reposesed house a few years ago, the bank that owned the property gave me 21 days to complete that was very tough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_bandido Posted February 21, 2017 Author Share Posted February 21, 2017 I've already had the mortgage conversation. They would lend on a 60% mortgage given the right conditions/securities (provided I owned the land), but the advice was to set myself up as a business; I've not worked out the finer details of that because I stopped the conversation at that point. The intention is to buy the land first using my own money and build the actual dwelling in modular style stages. I've also seen "cheap" land isn't actually cheap because you can't do anything with it, it would be a gamble anyway even if it wasn't cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samdale Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 So you own a piece of land. Then you get a mortgage of 60%. 60% of what? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dnk Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 So you own a piece of land. Then you get a mortgage of 60%. 60% of what? /QUOTE] From the plans i'd have thought, wouldn't be that difficult to value it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dnk Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 My biggest concerns would be gas, water, electric and sewerage Pretty easy to build the house but what about all the above ? I almost bought a barn a while ago to convert but getting all the above sorted was going to cost more than the barn itself, obviously depends on the location Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samdale Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 On a building that doesn't exist?! What's to stop him having a blast in Vegas with the money? What collateral would the bank be left with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dnk Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 I'm guessing they would do stage payments, so you get x amount to do the footings, then x amount and so on They wouldn't just write you a cheque for the whole lot Bit like if you go to the bank with a business plan and want a chunk of cash to start it, pretty much the same really as you haven't got jack, all down to the manager to access the risk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_bandido Posted February 21, 2017 Author Share Posted February 21, 2017 I'm guessing they would do stage payments, so you get x amount to do the footings, then x amount and so on They wouldn't just write you a cheque for the whole lot Bit like if you go to the bank with a business plan and want a chunk of cash to start it, pretty much the same really as you haven't got jack, all down to the manager to access the risk This is essentially what I was told is the only option and it's a lot more difficult to get this kind of thing when starting from scratch. edit: hence I was advised to have a piece of land with permission (I presume, as collateral). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dnk Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 http://www.buildstore.co.uk/buildloan/index.php http://www.moneycrashers.com/new-home-construction-loan/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wez Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 A piece of land that has planning permission for a dwelling costs almost as much as the land with the structure already built. Land without any planning permission is dirt cheap as there is no guarantee you will ever get permission, it can sometimes work in your favour if there is a large plot that has been carved up into smaller plots for which the group then applies for planning permission together, again this can be a lengthy process. Been a while since I looked into it but checkout these sites :- https://www.homebuilding.co.uk http://www.plotfinder.net The home building show at the NEC is coming up in March :- http://national.homebuildingshow.co.uk EDIT: just to add, mortgages, you can get trickle release mortgages / loans that assist with the build Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_bandido Posted February 21, 2017 Author Share Posted February 21, 2017 cheers gents, all of those links are very useful. Most of the advice I've had from anyone at the bank was basically buy a cheap house and build my own later on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wez Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 cheers gents, all of those links are very useful. Most of the advice I've had from anyone at the bank was basically buy a cheap house and build my own later on. This seems to be a common approach, buy a run down property, bungalows seem popular for the plot size and then apply to extend which basically means flatten it and start again with a decent size dwelling. Its far easier to get planning for extension / renovation vs planning on land that hasn't previously had it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_bandido Posted February 21, 2017 Author Share Posted February 21, 2017 Yeah, I was advised by a builder "friend of a friend" type to look for brownfield sites that needed clearing, but that comes with its own host of problems. I'd have thought the rules would be getting a bit easier since we apparently need eleventybillion new homes. I'll spend a bit more time doing some research when I get home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SupraAyf Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 Don't forget any potential access issues. We were close to buying a piece of land but pulled out because someone else owned the 1-meter stretch of land (yes, 1-meter) which gave access to the bit we wanted. The plot eventually went for £150,000 but if we had bought it then the owner of the ransom strip could have imposed an access charge resulting in a bill for tens of thousands. My advice: When buying land you really need to be certain of its provenance in terms of deeds, covenants and access rights. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X13mgr Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 I'm aiming to do the same in a few years. My dad owns 4 fields oprox 40 acres just outside the village where we live. I'd love to build a house on there. I'm going to enquirer about planning soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_bandido Posted February 21, 2017 Author Share Posted February 21, 2017 Covenants are something I've investigated a lot, they have some strange rules and are potentially terminal for any plans. I basically want to gamble on a non-residential plot in a district that's not averse to unorthodox housing. I have an incredibly detailed plan that I've spent about two years putting together, it would be a shame to miss out on a lifetime dream because of red tape. It also appears that starting a smallholding may be a cost effective endeavour in this respect, as it opens up avenues on land that previously didn't have permission for a residential dwelling. The only issue is that quite often it appears the building must come down again once the smallholding is finished with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dnk Posted February 22, 2017 Share Posted February 22, 2017 Don't forget any potential access issues. We were close to buying a piece of land but pulled out because someone else owned the 1-meter stretch of land (yes, 1-meter) which gave access to the bit we wanted. The plot eventually went for £150,000 but if we had bought it then the owner of the ransom strip could have imposed an access charge resulting in a bill for tens of thousands. My advice: When buying land you really need to be certain of its provenance in terms of deeds, covenants and access rights. Very good advice, almost fell foul of this myself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Massey Posted February 22, 2017 Share Posted February 22, 2017 Covenants are a nightmare. I nearly bought a house with a covenant on the drive. Next door neighbour had access rights to the drive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skippyboyo1 Posted February 22, 2017 Share Posted February 22, 2017 we looked at this, in the end my mind was made up, its unnecessary hassle and stress. we decided pay more buy something thats existing but it all depends on personal circumstance of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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