Land Property in Cary/N.Raleigh/Wake Forest (real estate, construction loan)

[sam123]

My wife and I are thinking about moving to RTP area from NJ in a year or two. We are thinking about buying a lot around .25 - .50 acre preferbly in Cary for now. Once we are ready to move, we can either sell the land possibly with some gain, or use that to built a house.

Can someone please provide some insight on land property value/availability. Or comment on if that's the right thing to do at this point ?

We would prefer area with a good schooling system as we have a 16 month old son.

Thank you,
Sam

[VickiR]

Originally Posted by sam123

My wife and I are thinking about moving to RTP area from NJ in a year or two. We are thinking about buying a lot around .25 - .50 acre preferbly in Cary for now. Once we are ready to move, we can either sell the land possibly with some gain, or use that to built a house.

Can someone please provide some insight on land property value/availability. Or comment on if that's the right thing to do at this point ?

We would prefer area with a good schooling system as we have a 16 month old son.

Thank you,
Sam

As a Real Estate Agent, I can tell you this...its difficult to find property that the developers don't already have. Most developers get the land, get the permits, invite a few builders and then sell the property and the home as a package deal. So there just isn't alot of lots setting around for someone to buy.

And...if you do find a lot out in the country, its possible that mobile homes can be built around you, which doesn't increase your home value.

Since you have kids, not being in a neighborhood means they wouldn't have the neighborhood kids to play with.

My brother has horses so we did find him about 25 acres with a pond and a log cabin on it. He had to build his horse barn and fencing but for that much land with a home on it, he paid about $700,000.

I don't mean to discourage you but I've had clients ask this before and we try to find it but its very very difficult and you need to understand all the consequences and then determine if this is the right route for you.

Hope this helps!

Vicki

[sam123]

Thanks Vicki,

It was very helpful. I will continue my research as currently I am waiting for my NJ property value to further increase upto the value where I would have enough cash to pay atleast more than half of the purchase price in NC.

As my son is not going to the school for another few years, I think I have more time to do research and continue looking for a job there.

Thanks again for your valuable advise.

Sam

[NCHomeFinder]

Another thing to be aware of is that if you purchase land with the intent to build on it more than two years into the future, if you do finance the purchase, you will probably end up with a much higher interest rate. Banks will do a construction loan if you are planning to build right away, but there is more risk to them if someone just wants the land. I had this situation with clients who wanted to do exactly what you're doing. We found a subdivision that would allow them to "sit" on the land until they wanted to build to get a good price on land before the area boomed (not easy to find, and still pretty rural), but the financing was so high for the land that they're rethinking the idea.
However, sometimes a developer will sell off a couple lots in a subdivision - I know of one right now that the developer sold off two lots to private individuals who may or may not build right away. Trying to do this is more of a timing game, and who you know.
I agree with Vickie, that if you're just looking to buy land in the hopes that it will appreciate, this can be risky, and you will be able to find a great land/home package when you're actually ready to move.
Good luck!