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You’re ready to build your custom home, but you need a place to secure the dream. The lot you choose for your home is one of the most important and impactful first steps you make in bringing your dream home to life. Once you know where you’ll be living, you can begin designing your new home in earnest. The final details, such as your home’s orientation on the lot and the landscape features you wish to preserve influence your architecture and layout. We understand the appeal of a completely blank slate. Control of every detail from the ground up is one of the main appeals of building a custom home.
First Choice Builders Creates stunning custom homes in Sheridan, WY, and throughout the great state of Wyoming. Our extensive expertise as area builders positions us to speak about the process of buying a lot for building a home in Wyoming because we have been on this journey with many clients as they search for the perfect location for their new home.
Is Wyoming a Good Place to Build a House?
As long-time Wyoming residents, we have to admit we’re a little biased, but we think Wyoming is a fantastic place to build a custom home. Wyoming is tax-friendly, collecting no income tax. Our rugged and wild spaces mean that prime landscapes for backyard hunting, fishing, and other outdoor adventures are readily available.
What Should I Know Before Buying Land?
Make sure you spend some time learning about the basics before beginning your search for the perfect place to build your Wyoming custom home.
What Kind of Property are You Looking for?
The perfect lot for building your Wyoming home depends on your goals. If you’re interested in living near a town or a new development, your search will be a bit easier, and you won’t have to worry about quite as many items on our list. There are special considerations for buying large pieces of undeveloped land if you’re interested in a remote retreat.
Know Your Neighbors
Knowing the zoning and ownership of the surrounding area is vital to evaluate its long-term suitability. Just because the lots around yours are currently vacant, doesn’t mean they always will be. Is your lot adjacent to state land? Is your neighboring lot zoned for commercial or farm use? Answers will help you evaluate a potential property. Tax records are an excellent reference for identifying stakeholders in your immediate area.
What Influences Land Prices in Wyoming?
Lots with nearby utilities, buildable options for your custom home, and desirable amenities nearby will be more expensive than comparable ones lacking these items. Acreage in Wyoming is a highlight variable. Elevation, existing infrastructure, accessibility, location, presence of moving water, and hunting appeal are a few factors that may increase the land’s cost.
How Do I Finance Land to Build a House?
Financing vacant land is a different process with different requirements than traditional mortgage land with an existing home. You will need to put down about 25-35% of the purchase price of your vacant land upfront to secure financing for the rest. If you plan to finance your land, meet with a lender first if you have one you trust. Your realtor is an excellent resource to point you in the direction of reputable and competitive lenders if you need a reference.
Wondering about the cost of building a custom home in Wyoming? First Choice talks about details in our recent blog post.
What Makes a Good Lot for Building?
Beware the bottom of the price bracket for vacant land. There is usually at least one feature that would make it a challenge for building a home. We can often address the issues that reduced building appeal, but this can be expensive.
Elevation
A lot must have an area that is high enough to build upon so that water does not collect inside the home. If there is no suitable area, your lot will need significant fill and earthwork before your construction can begin, which adds expense to your project.
Accessibility
Is there road access to your property? This is especially important if you are interested in remote lots. If your lot is completely landlocked, you will need an easement to access it from a neighbor’s property. You will need to factor in the cost of building access roads and long driveways as part of your project.
Utilities
Does your property have access to gas, electricity, water, or sewer? If not, how far away are these utilities? How much water does the existing well provide? Will you need to drill a well and install a septic tank? If so, is the lot suitable for this? Many parcels provide this information in the listing.
We’d love to talk to you about your Wyoming custom home project. Head here to connect with First Choice and provide some basic details about your project to steer our first conversation.
