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What is considered good or bad land? |
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Written by Kennedy Funding
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Wednesday, 18 January 2006 |
The worst land you can buy is swamp or marshland. Usually, flat land is the least expensive to develop and the most desired for building purposes. Land with barren rock will increase costs and virtually eliminate a basement just the same as a high water table. Loamy soil, which consists of a balanced mixture of clay, sand and some organic matter, appears rich and dark in color and is considered ideal for most purposes. As opposed to good soil, you don't want hard cracking ground when dry or sticky soil when wet.
These days, some people are literally heading for the hills. Granted, the views can be spectacular but roads, utilities, water, sewer, and foundations, such as pilings, can add 25-30% to building costs alone, further adding to this already expensive proposition. When considering going vertical, an 8-degree slope is about the limit when concerning building economically on hillsides. Plots with trees, a view, rectangular in shape, a gentle slope or none and a good location are most often preferred, and streams can boost values by 100% in some cases.
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