Five things to think of before buying a piece of land.

With rising home costs, We’ve been getting a lot of questions from clients about buying land to build their future home. This might come with  obvious obstacles but some things always remain unknown and very often go forgotten through the process of buying land. Everyone wishes it was as simple as “buy the land, then build on it” Unfortunately it’s not . Here are five things to think about, apart from the obvious when buying a piece of land.

Unless you are looking to live completely off the grid and don’t want to have water at your house or sewage systems, The first important thing to consider is if the land you are interested in buying is connected to municipal services, electricity and infrastructure. Although we wish it was simple, Connecting your home to sewage systems and local infrastructure is complicated, extremely expensive and time consuming. Definitely a must when purchasing land to build in the short term.

2. Zoning & Regulations

Ever wonder why most homes on the same street look similar? Yep, you got it. Make sure to verify the municipal zoning by-laws and understand exactly what you can build on the land before making an offer. If you must make the offer, remember to make it conditional for at least 30-90 days on verifying with your municipality on what exactly can be built. Some things are simple such as residential, industrial or commercial, but other factors can be height of the building, garage or no garage, distance from your neighbours and the street etc. This step is imperative in the building process, you don’t want to get stuck with a piece of land that does not permit you to build what you are looking for.

As obvious as this may sound, It is not to be overlooked. Buying land is a little different from buying an existing home because usually, you are in an area with less homes around you, less services/public transit etc. As a buyer, it is your responsibility to look into what will be built around you, which services will come in and when. Apart from the obvious, it is also important to look at the zoning around your land and make sure you are not right behind a heavy industrial zone. No one wants Bombardier in their backyard, Am I right?

Alright so we’ve gone through the first 3 important factors which are infrastructure, zoning and location, If all of that checks out, do you know how much it actually costs to build a home? and do you know how long it will take you to move in? Before purchasing land, make sure to sit down with at least three contractors and discuss the costs associated with building a home of the size you’d like, and more importantly, discuss the timeline. Important: It always costs a little more than you expect, and takes a little longer too 

Again, might seem obvious, but a condition to think about when purchasing land is at the bare minimum a phase one soil test. This allows a certified company to check the history of the lot and make sure that you are not at risk of soil contamination. Cost associated? Yep, but long term it is definitely important to know what you are investing in and make sure that your tomato garden isn’t planted in what used to be an oil bunker.

Buying real estate is never an easy or straightforward task, which is why representation is available. As a buyer, your cost of buying with a real estate broker is 0$. Yes, FREE. Don’t make the mistake many make, call a broker and take the right steps together. Call us at Groupe Baronello and let’s take the first steps together.