Potential New Home Build

[Robert Barnes]

Hello BP, 

I'm looking at getting a piece of land under contract and I'm working on figuring out what it will cost to get utilities and etc to where the house (SFR) will be built.

I have costs for water and gas (if i even decide to use gas) and am waiting for returned calls from the power company. I'm assuming it wont be to costly to have overhead power ran from existing poles across the street down to the new house.

The owner/seller tells me there was a house there at one time, decades ago, and it already had gas and water (the gas and water company both told me other wise) but the land was essentially an empty field in 2007 (google street view), and is now completley grown over with 10-15ft tall spruce trees, so you cant really see anything at all.

Couple of questions for you guys..

What are some typical $/sqft build costs (the property is in Isle of Wight County, Virginia) I know costs can vary greaty across the country. Just looking for rough ideas.

If there is or was a septic system at one point would that need to be removed or filled in or anything like that since I will be tapping into city water?

Any other considerations or precautions i should be taking? This is my first crack at development/new construction.

Thanks!!

[Kevin M.]

I've built a couple of projects in Portsmouth, VA Beach, and the eastern shore. Multi-family residential construction square foot costs were $75-95.

J. Scott was spot on.  After the downturn end economy, several of those jurisdictions restructured their permitting and inspections process, significantly increasing fees, subbing out inspections, and last minute imposition of right-of-way improvements ( roadway improvements, etc.). So some lengthy conversations with the local Authorities is a great idea.  Local contractors should also be familiar with the new norms as well.

Re: existing utilities. You could try calling miss utility for your property, that would give you an idea of what services are in the area. I think it's 811 in VA