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Hi NC people!
My husband and I are thinking of relocating to North Carolina from Wisconsin. We like the 4 seasons, but would prefer a slightly milder climate (with less winter!!), and after much research on all the states, NC seems like a good fit for us.
We will be building an earthship house (Earthship - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia for those who don't know what that is), so we would need a county with few or no building codes/regulations.
We would like to buy around 20 acres of land, with some forest, some open area, and some type of water (lake/pond/stream etc), that is in a rural location, but within 30-50 minutes of Asheville or a similar medium-sized city, with interesting, artsy things to do. The land would not need to have any utility hook-ups because of the type of house we are building, and we have a farily limited budget so the cheaper the better!
I have looked through several land for sale websites like landwatch.com, and found some interesting pieces of land for sale, but I thought I'd ask here as well and get the opinion of some local people! What counties and cities should we consider?
Thanks in advance!! =) I look forward to hearing what you all have to say!
All NC counties have building codes, and in my experience (which is admittedly limited regarding the mountain counties) they are very similar. Doesn't mean you can't build the type of house you want, but it does mean you'll need to work closely with the county inspector to be sure you meet code standards no matter where you build. I suggest contacting the inspector's office of any county within your target area, and talk through your design to determine what code issues you might encounter.
For lenient building codes check into Johnson County TN. You only need a septic permit/inspection and a final on your electric..if you are on the grid. Other than that there are no restrictions.
The only problem you might have is price. Mountain land and especially land with water is not cheap.
For lenient building codes check into Johnson County TN. You only need a septic permit/inspection and a final on your electric..if you are on the grid. Other than that there are no restrictions.
The only problem you might have is price. Mountain land and especially land with water is not cheap.
Good luck.
I agree. I found an article from 2010 in the local "Tomahawk" newspaper that described the county commission rejection of the state building code adoption. Institution of a building code is probably inevitable but now is the time to get in under the radar if you think codes would actually prevent this type of construction. My understanding is that state law requires this to be reconsidered every time a new county commission is seated. (I know someone that built an earth sheltered home within Kingsport city limits but I think they used reinforced concrete- not old tires.)
There seems to be many parcels on the market throughout the county (Johnson, TN) but as Lisa commented, pricing has remained at about 2007 levels for the most part (not sure how much has sold at those prices). I am sure that the OP is looking for land containing a south facing slope for an solar earth-berm dwelling. There is a large amount of land near our property in the north part of the county that was bought by speculators 5-10 years back. They have clear cut this hilly land, added some rough roads, and have been trying to sell (maybe desperately). They left the land covered with slash and stumps (love speculators). I know there is one 65 acre parcel (a small valley) that has been subdivided into 5 to 15 acre tracts and I think several have south facing hillsides. I'm no realtor- just an innocent observer.
NC is a lot more on top of this stuff, even in the very rural counties. TN, not hardly at all. Heck, straight piping is still allowed there!
They still allow straight pipes?
You got that right! NC Regulates the crap out of things ... look at what they did to the giant slip & slide that was going to come to town I really wanted to go to that too.
D'Oh! I didn't even pay attention to the fact that this post is nearly 4 years old.... but I must give Kudos to Wingcover for doing a "Search" before creating a new thread.
When we bought this land just outside Weaverville, a small house came with it... We had to buy the house because it was siting on the land that we wanted.
I had been a free spirited guy who thought that building codes were an immoral oppression of my freedom. I noticed that the house had exposed 2 x 6 rafter tails so I assumed that the roof structure was adequate. Later, after the sale, I discovered that those were just scabbed onto the existing 2 x 4 rafters. Then it was time to re-roof the house. The roofer gave us two bids: if the existing roof turned out to only two shingle roofs I'd get the lower of the two bids. If the house turned out to have more than to (a not unheard of practice around here and illegal according to code) then I would have to pay the higher of the two prices.
Once the crew got started on the tear-off, we discovered that there were actually seven old roofs on the house. If the roofers had stood close together the whole thing would probably have caved in underneath them.
Cherokee county or the western counties that are 90% + zoned as rural. Or find a property with a grandfathered in building or unincorporated community. I think you'll still need a building permit but they won't hassle you about it as much.
landwatch.com is a good site. I monitored it religiously for months and bought 2 properties off there when the right deal showed up.
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... look at what they did to the giant slip & slide that was going to come to town 
I really wanted to go to that too.
