Buying land and then building on it

[Mark Stone]

Hi, I occasionally have some RE scenarios come up and have always found these forums to be a wealth of information and full of individuals willings to lend their expertise and opinions. So, I have recently found myself in a similar scenario, way outside my comfort zone, and would really appreciate any insight that anyone is willing to take the time to give.

I recently got my RE license, mainly in hopes to save money on my own future purchases, both primary residence as well as future investment properties. However, at the time I didnt really expect to go the route of buying an empty lot and then building on it for my primary residence.

So, my questions begin with when I buy the land is it reasonable to expect that I could potentially save some money/negotiate for a slightly lower price if no buyer's agent's fee is needing to be paid.

But then my bigger question is if I higher a local company to handle all of the building of the home, would having a RE license not really be very beneficial from a cost savings perspective?

I haven't actually hung my license yet, but am just trying to see if there is any urgency to do so before dealing with a builder, if I will already own the land they would be building on.

I do respect the knowledge that an actual seasoned realtor brings to the table and have recently spoken to a broker who focuses on helping people in the area build custom homes. He has also offered to meet us at the lot to give his input on building on it. It is roughly a 2 acre lot and is in a flood zone, so he has already shed some light on some important contingencies to put in the offer in regards to allowing enough time for a topography survey to be done. The property actually has gone under contract a couple of times but fell through because apparently the buyer's ran out of time during their due diligence window to determine the things they needed to. The listing agent was pretty honest about both times the sale fell through that they kept their escrow deposits, I believe in a honest attempt to warn us that I would be wise to make sure I am going to make an offer that allows me the necessary time to determine what I need to. If it makes any difference it would be a cash purchase for the land. And for the eventual home building, barnominium style, I am currently undecided if I will do cash or financing.

Also, in this scenario should I expect the broker helping give his opinion on the land for building on to be given a commision for the land purchase, or would it be appropriate to think that he may simply have the motivation to make sure the land would be appropriate to build on, so in the near future when we work with him building on it that there aren't any major surprises that make that deal of his fall through.

Again thank you for any thoughts you can give on these issues, it is much appreciated!