Where are the custom home lots for homes under 3,000 sf? (Phoenix: for sale, real estate market)

[newnorth777]

OK - here is what we are looking for: over half an acre but not much more than a acre; close up mountain views, sewer, water, phone, cable, gas to the lot line; paved streets, natural veg.; $150,000 and under; building site with gentle slope or flat, no steep hillside; minimum sf build requirement of under 3,000.
We don't care what part of the metro area it is in since we will not be doing much commuting however, we don't want to live in a rural area that is too far out - we are not cowboys. We are not interested in living on a golf course but would if it provided what we were looking for.
So far, we have checked out Verrado (we found everything that we wanted, price was good but most lots we liked require a minimum of 3,500 sf.); Estrella Mountain Ranch (again, the lots we liked require 3,500 sf); north Peoria (there are many open lots but very little for sale); Gold Canyon (again with the 3,500 minimum required in most places.) We have also looked in Cave Creek and north Phoenix but the lots were over our budget or they required installing utilities or that dreaded large sf requirement.
We are going to build a nice custom designed house around 2,800 sf with high end finishes. We don't want to be in a builder development where we would need to pick one of their designs.
I'm honestly confused by this insistence that in order to live an area like we want, we have to build a very large home. I don't think that is very smart considering the market the last few years. Are there really that many people that will buy all these lots with a requirement for a huge house? Verrado and Estrella both have a huge inventory of lots with these requirements. We have not had much luck with having realtors help us. They just tell us to build a bigger house. We found most of the lots that would work for us by going on the MLS ourselves. I just thought that maybe someone out there would know of some hidden gem that would work for us so I'm giving this a try. I know we are picky but if we are going to do this, we are not going to compromise; we'll just stay where we are. Any ideas for us?
Thanks for thinking it through with me!

[azdr0710]

Originally Posted by newnorth777

I'm honestly confused by this insistence that in order to live an area like we want, we have to build a very large home. I don't think that is very smart considering the market the last few years.

sorry you're having trouble with this...

in fact, the real estate market has become a good bit better lately, so land developers can be picky now....

lots over a half-acre, as you'd like to have, are somewhat rare these days...when they do appear, the developer assumes people would like to build larger houses and maintain some upscale prestige, thus the large square-footage requirement....

but I think you'll find what you want somewhere....others may have specific ideas....it won't be in a smashing area, though, I think....I hope you find what you want

[newnorth777]

Thank you for the comments. There are in fact many, many lots available and at great prices. Lots that sold for $200,000 to over 400,000 are now selling for less than $150,000; some lower than $100,000. Most of these lots were purchased in the last few years for crazy low prices - less than $50,000 from people could not pay for them or bank foreclosures. I wish I had been looking during the last year. If you drive around in any of the growth areas, you will see masses of open lots just waiting in the hope that there will be another building boom. Good luck with that. There are so many of these lots that there will be a supply for years to come. The problem is that developers made legal requirements in the CC&R's for homes to be at least 3,500 sf and the number of people who can or want to build homes that size has decreased dramatically since the recession. To make matters worse, there is a large inventory of existing homes that are on the market for a long time and people who would have built in the past are now buying these instead of going through the hassle of building.
Since I posted this thread, I have found some lots that will work for me in the north Phoenix area. But I'm beginning to think that our best bet will be to buy an existing home.

[(*)]

Hi NewNorth777. Have you approached property owners adjacent to Verrado, etc and asked about purchasing a half acre from them? Might seem bold, but why not? And depending on your budget, why not shop homes based on half acre lot size, then raze the home and build per your plan?

[newnorth777]

Thanks (*) for thinking outside the box and offering your ideas. The thought of talking to lot owners in an area that I like who do not have their property for sale is a good idea. These days, it is easy to find out who owns property. Your idea is possible.
Thanks.