John Boy Posted April 25, 2010 Share Posted April 25, 2010 Hi, Looking for your opinions. I am thinking on buying a building site which is located where I always wanted to live. I know there’s only one way house / land prices are going to go after 6th May, but I will be getting married next year and would ideally like my house to be close to complete by the time of my wedding. There are two possible sites. 1) Like where the site is located, really like the plans for the house which is passed. The site is close to 1 acre in size. But I think the land is pretty soft, and would more than likely need piled foundations. 2) Like where the site is located. Like the plans for the house that is passed (but prefer first house). 0.5 acre in size. Good firm land. The two sites would be selling for the around the same price, but I would honestly prefer the first site. I suppose my questions are: Would anyone advise or advise against buying a site which has poor(ish) land? How much additional would piling cost? How much roughly do you think is a suitable price for a site? I have the cash to buy the site. Does anyone know how much tax the owner must pay when they sell a site? Thanks for your opinions. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ravedave Posted April 25, 2010 Share Posted April 25, 2010 (edited) . Edited April 25, 2010 by ravedave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dieselfreak Posted April 25, 2010 Share Posted April 25, 2010 There are a fair few houses around my area that are built on concrete piles.. A number of them resulted in the land around the house sinking over time leaving the house above the surrounding land. An example in the below photo of a house close to me: http://app2.propertynews.com/images/large/32958773.jpg There is a line under the window on the right of picture where the land used to be... and to disguise the problem they built that ridiculous wooden structure at the front and end of the property. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belfast Boy Posted April 25, 2010 Share Posted April 25, 2010 I suppose my questions are: Would anyone advise or advise against buying a site which has poor(ish) land? How much additional would piling cost? How much roughly do you think is a suitable price for a site? I have the cash to buy the site. Does anyone know how much tax the owner must pay when they sell a site? Piling will cost 10's of thousands depending how much and how deep. S S or Belfast VI may be able to advise how you could get the land surveyed before you make any offers. My solicitor told me this year that sites in my area are selling for £50,000. Though you may be in a more expensive area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Boy Posted April 26, 2010 Author Share Posted April 26, 2010 Thanks for the replies. I was thinking on getting a ground investigation report done before making an offer, but don’t want to be spending a lot of money if I don’t end up taking the site. I spoke to the owner in June and she wanted £95K for the site. I told her she was mad and £55K would be more than enough. She called me in January asking if I was still interested. I never said yes or no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R + R Posted April 26, 2010 Share Posted April 26, 2010 Thanks for the replies. I was thinking on getting a ground investigation report done before making an offer, but don’t want to be spending a lot of money if I don’t end up taking the site. I spoke to the owner in June and she wanted £95K for the site. I told her she was mad and £55K would be more than enough. She called me in January asking if I was still interested. I never said yes or no. i would hope you would have an inkling as to which one or two of the local builders you would like to use preferably from reliable testimonals if they knew there was a chance of a job i am sure they would offer some free local advice suspect it may well be the same as my own keep to a hard footing! rock on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BelfastVI Posted April 26, 2010 Share Posted April 26, 2010 Impossible to give advice without visiting the site. Is your opinion that the site may need piled purely from a look at the site or have you had advice. Lots of houses are piled and very, very few have any problems. Cost depending on size and completely of layout will range from £5k to £15k extra. If you have to pile have your house designed with that in mind. If you keep within certain spans you can half the number of piles. Just because the ground looks 'soft' on the surface will not necessary mean it has to be piled. I would be hiring a builder you know/related to and get permission to dig a hole close to the position of the house. You will soon know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxdiver Posted April 26, 2010 Share Posted April 26, 2010 How well do you know your local MP? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Boy Posted April 28, 2010 Author Share Posted April 28, 2010 How well do you know your local MP? I'd know him fairly well. Why? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eyes wide open Posted April 28, 2010 Share Posted April 28, 2010 (edited) I'd know him fairly well. Why? so you can; 1) complain to him that having poor groung is just not on 2) ask him if he'll sell you his garden for £2k and a £50k cash backhander 3) bury him in the foundations. Edited April 28, 2010 by eyes wide open Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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