Self Build Land
Self Build Information
As a way of achieving the dream of a purpose-built, luxury home on land for sale with all the features and benefits that brings, self build homes can be thought of as an investment because they are likely to receive more care and thought in their design and construction than other houses built by standard developers.
This means that they could see stronger price appreciation than other properties, and self builders often incorporate innovative techniques or design. Yet, more innovative features are often constrained by planning requirements, concerns over resale values and limited experience of innovation within the construction industry.
They can also be constructed at a cost far less than any major house builder can meet; cost savings can be as much as 30%, depending on how much input from the individual self builder and friends.
The market for self build land and housing has generally been on the increase for the last few years. The government's new house building targets for various "development areas" around England has piqued interest and demand in several areas of the country, with good resultant house prices more assured than other areas, what with the levelling off of house prices and the subsequent slight drop experienced during the Spring of this year.
Self build tends to be more prevalent in less urban areas and in areas where the market for speculative house building is relatively small. The growth in self-build since 1991 has only partly been driven by changes in the wider land and housing market. Other factors include: relatively well-off households seeking more individual homes; financing becoming more straightforward; and more publicity for the concept.
There has been a shift in self builders from those who cannot afford mainstream housing or are not eligible for social housing, to those who want an individual property or a particular location. The average age and income of self-builders have also been rising. There is also no reliable data on self build land construction costs. However, the most recent market research reports that the average self build home cost almost £150,000 in 1999, including land.
