What to do after the purchase contract is accepted
1. Rights-of-way for utility lines
Contact the company that owns the pipeline or power line that crosses the property and find out what you can and cannot do on your easement. Some companies, such as Colonial Pipeline, will fly these rights-of-way almost daily by plane or helicopter. If you start disturbing the ground in this right of way without their knowledge, they’ll shut down the job.
2. Percolation test
If you don’t have access to a sewer line, you probably have a septic tank. If you have a septic tank, they will perform, in conjunction with the county health department, what we call a leak or “benefit test.” Most county health departments will allow you, the owner, to take this benefit test. Due to my busy schedule, I usually hire the surveyor to do it. The health department will provide you with instructions on how to perform the perk test – it’s simple. If you don’t pass this benefit test, it could mean you can’t have a septic tank. Make sure you have completed proof of benefits and that the property is approved for a septic tank. If the property doesn’t pass a benefit test, many people think it’s “unbuildable” for a home because they think it can’t have a septic tank, it doesn’t! There are other alternatives; for example, you could use what is called an aerobic treatment unit. This system is more expensive than the conventional septic tank, but it would allow you to build on what some would consider a non-building lot. Be sure to check with your health department because the aerobic system may or may not be approved for your area.
3. Soil test
In North Georgia we have “good old” red clay. If you’ve never been to Georgia, it’s really red and a real pain to take off your clothes and carpet. However, this red clay is very stable for a base. There are many parts of the country and Georgia where the ground is too unstable for a foundation. In those areas where the soil may not look “right,” you may need to perform soil and/or engineering tests to properly lay a home’s foundation. If you fear a problem with the soil, I recommend that you call a “soil engineer.” A soil engineer can test the soil and tell you whether or not it is stable enough to support your home. If it is not stable, the soil engineer can tell you what can be done to stabilize it. You may also need a “structural engineer” to lay out the foundation for any unstable ground. You can find these engineers in the Yellow Pages under Engineer – Geothermal and Engineer – Structural. Building a house is basically the same throughout the country. The base is what changes a lot from one place to another due to the ground. If you lay the foundation correctly, the chances of anything major happening to your home, from a structural standpoint, are very slim. You don’t want a base issue. So check your floor and seek professional advice if the floor doesn’t test well or doesn’t look “perfectly” right.
4. Wetlands
Wetlands can be a real and serious problem. The department that oversees and regulates wetlands is the United States Army Corps of Engineers. The Army Corps of Engineers has mapped many wetland areas and can provide brochures to help you determine if your property contains wetlands. What is confusing are those areas that appear high and dry that are designated wetlands. If you unknowingly build in these areas, they can shut down construction on your home because it is illegal to disturb a wetland environment. If in doubt, check with the Army Corps of Engineers and see if there may be a problem. To learn more about the US Army Corps of Engineers, visit their website.
5. Floodplain
A floodplain is another type of land area designated and regulated by the US Army Corps of Engineers. The Corps of Engineers will designate an elevation point called the “100-Year Floodplain Mark.” In theory, only once every 100 years would there be a floor where the water level would exceed this point of elevation. Your surveyor may indicate this 100-year mark on your survey. Most cities and counties will not allow you to build in a designated floodplain area. In some floodplain areas, you may be allowed to add fill dirt to raise the elevation of the house above the flood mark. However, in many flood-prone areas, you may not be allowed to do this, because if there is not proper drainage, it would exacerbate the problem if there was a flood. It is like putting a stone in a glass of water; you will raise the water level. I remember a property that I put under contract for a subdivision and there was a small creek on the property. I didn’t think there would be any problem. It turned out that more than half of the property was in a designated flood zone. It was also the kind of floodplain that you couldn’t fill. The seller was surprised; They said they had lived there for 30 years and had never seen the creek flood. If the owner was correct, he could possibly do the necessary paperwork to have his property removed from the designated floodplain. It didn’t matter to me, it was a dead deal. You can view these designated flood areas by purchasing copies of the flood insurance rate maps. [FIRM]. The easiest way to get a copy of a FIRM map for your area is to visit the Federal Emergency Management Agency website. [FEMA]. It is not uncommon for part of a parcel to be in a floodplain. The problem arises when any part of the home’s structure is within the designated flood zone. If the house is in the floodplain area, your lenders will require you to purchase flood insurance. The maximum amount available for flood insurance is $285,000.00 and flood insurance premiums can be expensive. Many lenders will not even make a loan for a home where part of the structure is in the floodplain.
6. Tax delays
If there is a creek or creek on the property, even if it is not in a designated floodplain, there may be restrictions on how close you can build to that creek or creek. These restrictions are federally mandated to minimize sediment runoff into a particular creek or creek. Check this with your city or county building department.
7. Hydrology Study
Some houses I build are very expensive; I treat them like a commercial job and hire an engineer to do a “hydrology study”. The hydrology study will indicate if there is going to be a problem of water runoff, after the house is built. If there is a problem, this engineer will design a solution to the problem. The type of engineer to do this is a “civil engineer”. If you ever have a problem with your water drainage and need to correct it, contact a civil engineer. You’ll find them in the Yellow Pages under Engineer – Civil. Some areas of the country may require a hydrologic survey on every home. The Building Department of the city or county where you will be building should be able to tell you. Don’t be put off by the fact that I recommend these engineers. In any case, you should be afraid if there are no engineers involved in the project. Don’t spend a ton of money on these engineers and shop around, you will see a huge variation in price from engineer to engineer. Don’t be afraid to hire these engineers; I would rather spend some money up front to find and solve a problem than spend a lot more money later to solve a problem.
8. Hazardous waste and buried garbage
I am starting to see more and more builders required to submit a certified document that there is no buried trash or hazardous waste on the property. There are engineering companies in a certain area that can perform these tests and provide these documents if you need them.
9. Rock Test
Even if you don’t see any rock on the surface, if you have serious doubts about the rock, you can hire companies to check for rock. Contact a soil engineer to find out who to use. They can drill or dig test holes in the ground to tell you how far below the surface the rock is. This way you’ll know if you’re going to have trouble installing a driveway, basement, pool, sewer line, or septic tank.
10.Survey
After you have the property under contract to purchase, I recommend that you go ahead and get a current survey (not older than 6 months) done by a licensed land surveyor. The survey will clarify many potential problems. For example, the survey will show any easements on the property that you cannot see with the naked eye. The survey will also show any areas of the property that are in a floodplain. I know people who believed their lot was 200 feet wide on the road and 2 acres in size. Their dad even told them it was 2 acres with 200 feet on the road. They would sell the property based on this information, only for the new owner to order a survey and find out that the property is 1½ acres in size, not 2, and there is only 150 feet on the road, not 200 feet. The deal could fall through right there. If you have an old survey, the original surveyor may update it for as little as $50.00. If there is a flat subdivision on file with the court, find out who did the original subdivision and they may be willing to inspect the lot for a cheaper fee. Remember to shop around; You will see a wide variation in price from surveyor to surveyor. One last item, ask the surveyor to provide a survey legend for clarification. A person new to the industry may not understand that “IPF” on a property corner means “Iron Pin Found”.
11. Topographic map
The topographic or “topo” map will show the contour of the land. If your property is relatively flat, you may not need to spend money on a survey. The surveyor is the one we hire to do the topo. Like the survey, to get the best price you’ll have to shop around.
If you are designing a house for a certain lot and/or are working on steep or rolling terrain, a topographic map will be very beneficial. The ideal mole is what we call a “2 foot mole” (as opposed to a 4 foot mole). What this means is that the distance between each line represents a 2-foot drop or rise in the ground. In the grading world, a slope of 2% or less can have problems with drainage, and a slope of 15% or more can cost you money to fill in the dirt, remove any excess soil, or build retaining walls. The topographic map can show you whether you will need $10,000 in fill dirt or a $20,000 retaining wall. These are issues you want to know about before you buy a lot. If you are in a major metropolitan area, check with your county highway or engineering department. They may have on file a mole for the property you are interested in purchasing.