Posted by Sunny Parikh on February 22, 2005 at 16:03:31:
The owner of the land didn’t put the land on the market. We actually found it by accident. The realtor I was going with somehow found a listing of it, but when checking the MLS, it wasn’t listed on there. The builders of the homes down the block started construction about 6-12 months ago since they are both nearly done. However, I’ll look into it and possibly contact the owners of the homes being built to see if they know anything.
Evaluating Market - Posted by Sunny Parikh
Posted by Sunny Parikh on February 22, 2005 at 13:32:53:
Hey,
How can I research the market in the area I plan to buy land and build on? I want to make sure that if I buy land and build on it, that it will sell for well over the construction and land costs. Is there a way to check if theres a high demand to live in the neighborhood and what newly constructed homes sold for in the area?
Thanks,
Sunny
Re: Evaluating Market - Posted by Randy (SD)
Posted by Randy (SD) on February 22, 2005 at 14:35:25:
Sunny, you have been beating this horse for two days…
A simple answer to THIS question is the MLS. Ask a Realtor for the average DOM (days on the market) for luxury homes, I think you need to consider what you’re trying to accomplish here. If you’re considering building this home for your own personal use, I suggest finding a qualified contractor to act as a general contractor in this project, buy the land subject to “suitability” for the type of home you wish to construct. As someone else posted earlier there are many considerations as to suitability including zoning, drainage, easements and or setbacks etc. you can get additional information at your city building services department. They may also be able to “suggest” a qualified contractor. While they will not act as a referral service for builders they do maintain records of builders who have unresolved code violations or complaints filed against them.
If you’re considering this project as an investment… personally I think you need to direct your enthusiasm in another direction. First of all attempting to be your own GC when you have no prior construction experience is very dangerous, some of my best friends are general contractor’s and they will all tell you their first projects were full of mistakes, that’s fine when you’re building a middle-class bread-and-butter home or doing a rehab project on a low-end property - not acceptable when you’re building a $1.2 million luxury home. Additionally your pool of prospective buyers is the top 1% of the market and you are competing with every custom builder in your market, not a place for a newbie to start. I don’t want to discourage your enthusiasm, I just think this type of project is beyond your capabilities as a first project, good luck.
Re: Evaluating Market - Posted by Sunny Parikh
Posted by Sunny Parikh on February 22, 2005 at 14:47:08:
Hey Randy,
Thanks for posting. Yeah I’ve decided not to be my own GC being that it is way to risky. However, I plan on hiring a builder to do the job. Do you think this is a good idea? The land I’m about to buy is the only available land in the area. As well, its hard to find a newly constructed luxury home in the area since theres no more land. However, down the block from the land are 2 new homes being built. But they bought the houses that were there, demolished them, and are constructing new ones. One of them payed 1.2 million for the house, demolished it for 200k, and is building a luxury home. One of them is about 6-7,000 sq ft and the other about 4-5,000. I’m not sure if they plan to sell them or doing it for their own use. The area is well desired from the looks of it and the location is great. The property is 1 block away from the country club and only 15 minutes away from NYC. Its in an affluent neighborhood with “Elite Super-Rich Families” and “Executive Suburban Families”. I’m going to check a local real estate agent regarding recent home sales in the area of new construction and their DOM.
Thanks for the help,
Sunny
Re: Evaluating Market - Posted by Randy (SD)
Posted by Randy (SD) on February 22, 2005 at 14:56:28:
Well… Now you really got me guessing! You better checkout the land before you do anything else. In your earlier post you indicated you could buy this lot for $355,000, now you say down the block from this lot someone paid $1.2 million for a house-demolished the existing structure at a cost of $200,000 and is now building and new luxury home on that site… what’s wrong with this picture? Why pay 1.2 million for a tear down when right down the street is a vacant lot for $355 K. you think they might know something you don’t?