Please help - Need advise on a potential deal

[Dennis Hill]

I am strongly considering purchasing 1/2 acre of land w/ an existing structure on it.  The value is in the land.  The strategy I am considering is to tear down the existing structure and rebuild w/ a 4 unit complex.  However, I don't know where to begin with regard to establishing a valuation for the land, nor coming up w/ the cost to rebuild.  I am also considering replacing w/ a pre-fabricated/manufactured 4 unit building.  Is there any reason I should avoid pursuing the manufactured home route?  Thanks in advance for the information!

Dennis

[Andrew Johnson]

@Dennis Hill First question: What is the 1/2 acre of land with the existing structure zoned today?  Is the current structure a 4-unit building?  Like @Taylor L. where I invest it seldom makes sense to buy, tear down, and build from scratch. At that point I'm competing with professional builders/developers but without volume discounts, in-house labor, etc. It's a losing proposition. You could be in an entirely different boat if the land is highly valued. But if the land is highly valued, will you get the best ROI by using a manufactured home? I'm not sure there's an answer there but if the land value is low it won't support tear-down and ground-up development. If the land value is high then you're better off doing something "better" than a manufactured home. That said, you could be in the "just right" sliver where it makes sense.