Hello! My fiance and I bought a house together a while back(year and a half ago) that is pretty much just big enough for us and our three dogs. well we're getting to the point where we are starting to think about a family. This house would be more than sufficient with very young children but as they age we will definitely need more space. So, here comes my dilemma. We are having a hard time deciding what to do...we've narrowed it down to these things: 1) we have three acres here and one option is to build a new larger home on the back of the property, the old house is on the front of the property. This is what we are thinking first, because the property location and size are what we want to a T. The school system here is the best in the county. We only have neighbors on one side, and the land to our north(behind us) east(next to us) and south(across the street) is all owned by a large co-op that owns 5900 acres and farms even more than that with landleases, so theyre perty stable. our next door neighbors own the 28 acre plot to the one side of us. So the neighbors we have now are more than likely the only neighbors we'll ever have. We are within 3 miles of the road she takes to the big city to work in. Location, Schools, neighbors, all are a huge PLUS here, but the house just won't cut it for the long run. Adding on really isn't an option with this house, not really anyway TO add on. Plus the house is old(1905) and i'm not a huge fan of older houses, grew up in one. The other option 2) obviously pick up and move to a different house wether it be new or existing. This is all fine an dandy except that land out here is getting a little scarce(the ones who have it are hanging on to it for now) and we looked a long time to find a place close enough to the highway, with no close neighbors, with ample land, barns to house my junk and on a main road.

What do you all think??? Is the location worth taking the loss of building on our current property and getting rid of the current house on it?

Note: this probably won't happen for a while, but we want to have a positive decision on what road to take

 

I say build on the property you have right now. You gave all the reasons why you love it there. Why trade that in for life in suburbia with a tiny yard on a street where you'll just blend in with the rest of the Jones'?

While you're building you'll already have a place to live and keep all your crap, instead of having to move to another place and maybe put all your things in storage. It's gonna be an even bigger headache than you imagined. And with 3 doggies?

 

If the property is big enough I would build a new house in the back and rent out the other house to help pay the mortgage.

This way you get the best of both worlds..

You could always approach the neighbors to see if you can purchase a little more land to expand onto.

 

I'd start looking at house plans. You said enough positive things about the location to make me think you should build there. Its getting hard to find good locations like yours. Plus you have the old house to live in while you build. I have 60 acres I plan to build on when I retire thats a lot like your place. I know my neighbors will not change & can't get any closer than a quarter mile of my planned house site. I've lived in the suburbs with neighbors 60 ft from me too long. Its a good location in a nice town but I grew up on a farm & like having lots of space between me & my neighbors

 

You answered your own questions. I agree with all of the above.
Would that be answer C or D ?

Frank

 

The houses would be a little closer than i would prefer to rent one out. Probably only 175 ft apart.... Plus the new one would go directly behind the existing one.

 

I'd try to sell the old house if it could be moved. If it didn't sell I'd just tear it down & maybe use the material to build a storage building.

 

It could probably be moved pretty easy...it's a smaller house.

 

Fire depts are always looking for houses to practice a controled burn on.

 

Exactly what I was thinking, you seem to really like the property that your on now, and if it was me I wouldn't give up a property that suited me so well. With the two houses being that close together, you could also save yourself some money and do some of the work on the new house yourself, and be able to keep an eye on the work being farmed out to contractors.

 

Depends on how handy you are, but if it were me I would use my equity to build the largest house I could afford on the land. I would leave the interior unfinished and do it myself while I lived in the old house. You will end up in a nice large home with considerable "sweat" equity and the satisfaction of having done it yourself.

 

Dono's got the right answer, My BIL did that as his grandparents live next door...

 

Shop around. You won't know what anything is worth till you research your market. Sounds like you would do better to sell your place and find another lot. If having two houses doesn't suit your needs what good is it? You will need to rent, subdivide and sell the old one with a small lot or move it. Then if your building a very expensive place where older homes exist you may be overbuilding for the area and you’ll never get your money out of it. See what you can sell it for and price new places, built or lot. Then compare it all. With a little luck you may find something better just up the road.

 

Build it in the back while you live in the old one. Then tear the old one apart and build a outbuilding for the JD mower you will need to mow the 3 acres. Sounds like you have what you want and need, stay and enjoy.

 

Sounds great greg but I don't dare let myself on green implements...or red for that matter. Allis Chalmers will do for me