The problem it solves
Most people buy land the way they buy a house. They drive by, walk it once, and make an offer. The listing says "approved building lot" or "perc tested." The offer is accepted. Then the questions start. Where does the septic go? Is that outcrop ledge, and how far does it run? Why is the nearest power pole so far away? Can a driveway climb that slope? By then, every answer is expensive.
A site review asks those questions first, while you can still walk away, change your offer, or write the answers into the contract.
What we look at
A site review is a half day on the land and a written report. We cover:
- Sun through the year. Where it rises and sets in December and in June, what the trees and the hill do to it, and which way the house wants to face for daylight, for warmth in winter, and for solar if you ever want it.
- Where the house wants to sit. Grade, drainage, the approach from the road, the views, the distance to neighbors, and what the setbacks leave you to work with.
- Where the septic wants to sit. Without public sewer, the septic system needs its own area of suitable soil, with room between it and the well, the house, the property lines and any wetland. On many Valley lots it is the septic, not the house, that decides the layout. We read whatever soil testing exists and say what still needs doing.
- Rock, water and wetlands. Ledge at the surface or just under it, wet ground, streams and the regulated buffer around them, and what each would mean for the foundation, the driveway and the septic.
- Access and utilities. The driveway's length and grade, the sightlines where it meets the road, and how far power has to travel to reach the house.
- Likely site-work cost. Clearing, driveway, excavation, rock, septic, well, utilities, grading. Not a bid, but a clear picture of whether this lot's site work is a small part of your budget or a large one, and which items could swing it.
- Anything that would make us walk away. If we would not build there, we say so, and why.
What you get
A written report in plain language that covers everything above. The site review is a small fixed-fee engagement, and you know the cost before we start. The report is yours to keep, whoever you build with: hand it to your attorney, your lender, your architect or another builder. If we would not build on the lot, the report says so.
When to ask for one
Before you make an offer, if you can. If not, during your due-diligence period, with a contingency in the contract that lets you walk away or renegotiate on what the review finds. If you already own the lot, the review is still the first thing we do after a first call. It becomes the start of the design, and what it finds carries into the plans.