Infills List

[photon]

You've got the foreclosure lists, is there a similar kind of list of properties that would be appropriate to tear down and do infills on?

Is it kind of like foreclosures in that you have to have a bit of an inside track or edge to get the real good stuff?

Is there money to be made just buying a property on the market at close to market value and doing an infill? Assuming one had the resources, expertise and trades connections?

[Travis Munroe]

The biggest thing is having the connections (as you already mentioned) and a rough idea of what you would put up and its total cost. The last thing you want to do is guess along the way only to lose 100k on the final product.
Ive been tied up all weekend but need to update the foreclosure list today and I will also prepare a list of properties zoned for infills.

[jdso]

Is there a summary of approximate costs and procedures I can find somewhere that outlines how this works? Or can someone provide a quick summary or some insight? I'm a bit intrigued in the pre-fab homes like Karoleena.

Right now off the top of my head some things that come to mind:
- how does a mortgage work here? (with or without a house on the land)
- teardown procedures and costs
- how to pour basement (cost?)
- can any type of home be built? (community restrictions)
- approximate cost per square foot. I've been seeing anything between $100 to $300 per sq ft.
-length of time to get permits
- approx cost for designs etc.

[DFO]

I'm not sure how you'd make much money by building one house on a lot. I'm in the middle of the buy/knock-down/build process (in Renfrew) and we wouldn't get all of the $ out if we had to sell right away. To be fair that's due mainly to our building & finishing selections - it's been eye opening to go through the budget process. We would have to of built a fairly cheap house (poor suburbia box builder quality) to break even potentially.

Our cost does include paying a GC - you'd have to be F'ing nuts to manage a project yourself (and hold down your real job).

[Travis Munroe]

I wont be of much help on your question JDSO.

PHOTON....my search criteria doesnt make it easy to search for such properties. I can search for specific zoning...in this case I looked for RC-2 lots that had not already had infills put up. Only 3 places came up. If you have a different type of zoning you want me to search, please let me know as there are too many to look up right now.
http://abmls.mlxchange.com/DotNet/Pub/EmailView.aspx?r=676139583&s=ALB&t=ALB

[moncton golden flames]

Is there a summary of approximate costs and procedures I can find somewhere that outlines how this works? Or can someone provide a quick summary or some insight? I'm a bit intrigued in the pre-fab homes like Karoleena.

Right now off the top of my head some things that come to mind:
- how does a mortgage work here? (with or without a house on the land)
- teardown procedures and costs
- how to pour basement (cost?) hire a cribber to do the work for you. you do not want to mess this up by trying it yourself. cost is heavily tied to the going rate for concrete. best to check with a supplier for actual cost.
- can any type of home be built? (community restrictions) refer to the zoning of the property and reference the 1p2007 land use bylaw for restrictions and permitted uses for that zoning. some might allow for only a single family, some a duplex, some four-plex, some mixed-use. always be aware of the zoning.
- approximate cost per square foot. I've been seeing anything between $100 to $300 per sq ft. a high end home would be around the $300/sq ft mark. at $100/sq ft, you're looking at low end, basic finishes like linoleum, laminated counter tops etc... once you have plans, get some quotes from builders based on the finish level you want in the home. my guess is you will come in around the $200 - $250 / sq ft mark for a nice home.
-length of time to get permits there are 2 types of development permit. once is a contextual application, the other is discretionary application. contextual means you meet the rules outlined in the bylaw and you get the permit, more often than not, in about 2 months. a discretionary means the rules are slightly more forgiving, but it is now open to commentary from the community association and your neighbours. this permit takes anywhere from 4-6 months, depending on the complexity of the project and how good your designer is.
- approx cost for designs etc. costs will vary greatly, depending on who you ask. my employer charges $5 sq ft for new design. with my own company, i charge $2 sq ft for the same thing. i have been lowballed by potential clients, telling me they can get a house drawn up for less than $1 sq ft. although the price looks good, you rarely get a quality designed home for that price. those prices are more from a draftsperson who will replicate a plan you bring in without even considering the potential of copyright infringement.

i am a home designer with over 6 years of experience in calgary and area. if you have any other questions, i will try to help out.

[moncton golden flames]

I'm not sure how you'd make much money by building one house on a lot. I'm in the middle of the buy/knock-down/build process (in Renfrew) and we wouldn't get all of the $ out if we had to sell right away. To be fair that's due mainly to our building & finishing selections - it's been eye opening to go through the budget process. We would have to of built a fairly cheap house (poor suburbia box builder quality) to break even potentially.

Our cost does include paying a GC - you'd have to be F'ing nuts to manage a project yourself (and hold down your real job).

most developer/builders will buy a lot and sit on it for quite some time while the tenants pay down the principle and lots appreciate in value. once they get that 'magic number', it becomes feasible to begin construction. for an average joe to jump in and buy a lot to redevelop right away, it is very difficult to turn a good profit. one way a few of my clients have approached this is to buy, build and live in for a year or two, then sell. this allows them to pay down principle and the house appreciates enough to make that profit margin grow, similar in how a developer will buy, rent and sit on a property before building on it. then they move on to the next house...

[morgin]

Is there a summary of approximate costs and procedures I can find somewhere that outlines how this works? Or can someone provide a quick summary or some insight? I'm a bit intrigued in the pre-fab homes like Karoleena.

Right now off the top of my head some things that come to mind:
- how does a mortgage work here? (with or without a house on the land)



http://www.rbcroyalbank.com/mortgages/building-a-home.html

[billybob123]

Right now off the top of my head some things that come to mind:
- how does a mortgage work here? (with or without a house on the land)


In addition to the above poster, we're going through this now. The way draw mortgages work depends somewhat on the lending institution. Some will fund up to 65% of the land purchase value on a first draw. Our experience was that we did not use a draw until 40% completed (house closed in, roof, windows, doors on). Our next draw was at 60%ish where drywall was up, and we're now struggling to hit the 100% for the finish. The bank will obviously not loan you money on something that isn't collateralized - so you fund to a certain portion of the build, they inspect and then release the funds.

It can really be a struggle to make it to particular completion points. Cost overruns are not uncommon at all.

-tear-down procedures and costs

We were lucky that the house on the property was something someone somewhere wanted so we were able to "sell" the house to a salvage company. They removed the house and took it away, leaving us responsible for demolishing the basement and excavating site. We had a financial agreement with them to minimize cost to us, but without them taking away the house it would easily have cost us over $10,000 to demolish and send the stuff to the dump. Excavation to prep the property, basement demolishing, and removal of material cost us nearly $6500. We wound up being "down" about $4000 after all was said and done.

There is a real wax-and-wane cycle in house removal. We had ours removed at a bad time so there was little demand for the house on the property. When the demand is high, you can negotiate for lots more than we were able to.

[photon]

Thanks for the interesting discussion on this guys, my dad's been thinking about doing these.

[jdso]

Yes, thanks it added some good insights. I might be too lazy or not enough of a hard-ass to make sure this gets done quickly or on budget