After acquiring your dream property, now you must select the perfect spot for building your new home. If you hired a builder and architect, be sure to consult with them on home placement. Alternatively, if you are acting as your own builder, you will need to carefully select the house site on your own. Be mindful of your house’s dimensions to ensure you select a spot that will accommodate and adequately support the structure. Position the house for optimal accessibility, access to utilities, site drainage, and solar gain.
As you consider the implications of house orientation while laying out your build site, pay attention to the grade, or slope, of the land. Depending on your topography, land in your area may be very flat or it could have rolling hills, or even mountains. Ideally, your house should be placed on a flat, elevated portion of the land such that water would run away, and not toward the house. If you are building on a large parcel of land, you will have more options for house placement, though you may also have additional challenges such as flowing water, ditches, rock formations or other natural barriers, and other such geological considerations.
After evaluating the land’s grade, consider the ground coverage. Do you have trees, tall grass, brush, or other ground cover to remove? If your lot is covered in mature trees, there may be an opportunity to harvest the timber to help offset some of clearing costs. Talk to your builder or contact a local timber expert to ask about selling the timber. In parts of the country where other natural resources abound, you may have opportunities to sell those resources. Examples may include gravel, large stones, excess dirt, or anything else of value found on the property.
Decide on the ideal spot for your home site and work with your builder or subcontractor to estimate the costs of preparing the site. Be sure to include costs for a temporary driveway that provides access to the build site, gravel for your passageway or permanent driveway, and culvert(s) for any water crossings or low spots where water might pond. The estimate should be as detailed as possible with line items for clearing, grading, cost of gravel, cost of dirt (fill or removal), and underlayment material. Underlayment material may be needed in muddy or soggy spots. Likewise, you may need lime or another drying agent if the ground where you wish to build is muddy and soft.
Consider the time of year and the corresponding weather. Is it the rainy season? Will a muddy path prevent sub-contractors and delivery companies from reaching your build site? Will snow or ice halt progress? Planning ahead will help ensure your build stays remains on schedule.
Pay attention to any property restrictions such as setbacks or right-of-ways that may restrict construction. Ensure utilities can be brought to the location you desire. Many utilities charge by the foot for service. Utilities may also have stipulations on aerial clearance from trees or other structures, requirements to bury cable versus running it overhead, distance limitations in the case of coaxial cable runs, and other regulatory or environmental considerations that could impact house placement. When in doubt, contact local authorities to get approvals before doing dirt work.
Pro tip: After selecting your ideal build site, consider contacting your local 911 authority/postal office/etc. to obtain an address for your future house. Make a large sign with the new address and post it near the entrance of your property so everyone can locate your construction site.