buy land and build or buy home? (Charleston, Goose Creek: for sale, real estate) - South Carolina (SC) - City-Data Forum

Kerri · 02-14-2007, 08:32 AM

Hi All,,
We are looking to relocate to SC from Long Island.and were was wondering if anyone could comment on the price of buying say an acre of land and building a home vs. buying a pre-existing home. We are looking to be within 30 minutes from the Charleston area or closer. ASlo, any reputable builders you could recommend???
Thank you very much!

settlepa · 02-14-2007, 08:54 AM

Buy pre-existing and have many less worries and problems.

Girl · 02-14-2007, 01:48 PM

Kerri - my husband and I plan on doing BOTH. We bought land before we moved here, and upon arriving we moved into a pre-existing house. We plan on living in the house for about five years and then will begin building on the land we bought. The bonus is that if we decide we LIKE where we're living and don't want to build, we can either hold the land in case we change our mind or sell it and use the profits to put towards two college educations we'll have to pay for when the kids grow up.

USCJoe · 02-14-2007, 02:09 PM

You mentioned wanting to be less than 30 minutes from the Charleston area. If you are referring to the Charleston Historic District, you will have difficulty finding a reasonably priced acre of land in a nice area. Construction costs will also be higher than in some of the other popular, yet further out areas, such as Summerville, Goose Creek and Moncks Corner. I would say that all things being equal, it will be more expensive building a home than purchasing a "spec" or pre-existing home. SettlePa and Girl have good points. You may certainly have more worries when building a new home than you would have with one already completed or pre-owned. However, I have had contact with many home owners in the Charleston area who had good experiences with custom builders. At the same time, you would probably have less worries by having a "tract" or volume builder building a home for you on one of their own lots. A decision to build or not to build, particularly close in to Charleston may depend upon the price range in which you might have an interest. The closer you want to be to downtown Charleston, the fewer building options you may have, particularly if you want a large lot. If finances allow, you might want to consider investing in a lot and purchasing a pre-existing or a "spec" home on a smaller lot to see whether you like the area.

flgargoyle · 02-14-2007, 02:34 PM

Although it is cheaper in the long run to buy an existing house, we bought land, since we couldn't afford acreage w/ a house right now. We are not building for several years, and wanted to get some land while it was relatively affordable. The sale of our current house should more than pay to have a house built, so when we move to SC, we will have no mortgage. It was also easier to get the lot size and location buying just land. When we have our house built, we will also have exactly what we want, rather than settling for 'adequate'. Bear in mind- we're not building a mansion, actually less than 1500 sq. ft., as a semi-retirement home. From reading on other forums, having a home custom built is not for the faint of heart!

irrek · 02-15-2007, 06:02 AM

Thank you all--I have to look into just what an acre or half acre would go for say around Goose Creek or Summerville--any recommendations on a site I could visit to contact someone regarding land prices?

USCJoe · 02-15-2007, 07:01 AM

A 1/2- 1 acre lot with utilities with restrictions on mobile homes will probably start in the over $100,000 price range in the Summerville/Goose Creek area. If you go a little further out to Ridgeville you can find some lots in the $80,000 range. You can search for building lots for sale on most real estate web sites.

irrek · 02-15-2007, 08:50 AM

Thanks--I'm new at this. You mentioned restrictions on mobile homes...are you referring to purchasing land and living in a temporary mobile home until the actual home is built or am I not understanding?

USCJoe · 02-15-2007, 09:54 AM

That's correct. Many developments and/or lots may have restrictions on a mobile home being put on the lot as a permanent or even temporary structure.

Quark · 02-15-2007, 04:46 PM

I'd suggest you buy a home in an older development. Looking at Google earth, they have much bigger lots and nice trees. New developments are like rabbit hutches. The houses are about 10' apart.