real estate question. what would be better...

[GoChris]

So I am torn between getting the house we sorta picked out, about 1800 sq ft. on a regular size lot, 32m long, 10.6m wide (pretty sure) or getting this nice big corner cul de sac lot, 45m long and about 11m wide.

but if we get the bigger lot we would have to drop down in size on the house, same layout, just 150 sq ft smaller.

what would be better resale? will the house be viewed as kinda small for the lot later on?

cause on the smaller lot, after building a deck...theres only really 20ft max to play with once you put in a small shed etc theres not a ton of room for kids to play.

such a hard choice, I want the huge lot but not sure I want to sacrifice the sq ft. :dunno:

[Nufy]

Move the house further back on the bigger lot.

Some builders`will let you do that.

[abyss]

I would go bigger lot, then there's more room for renovations later on! I don't think you'll notice the 150sq ft that much, but you will notice how great it is to have a big yard.

[sputnik]

As someone who owns a bigger lot. Remember that you are paying for more fence, grass and landscaping. However it is worth it for resale.

Most people prefer a bigger lot.

[GoChris]

Originally posted by sputnik
As someone who owns a bigger lot. Remember that you are paying for more fence, grass and landscaping. However it is worth it for resale.

Most people prefer a bigger lot.

rear fence is built, west fence will be a retaining wall which is built into the price of the lot, if it gets built for any cheaper we get some $$ back, so only the neighbors fence we would have to worry about which I think they would have to pay since we paid for the other side of our lot fence (the retaining wall).

its a tough choice, I am going to go with the larger house no matter what cause the bedrooms in the smaller one are a tad smaller which i think kids will not enjoy. so its $11k more for the big lot

ugh, hard to say, if I can make $20k selling my condo which I should then I could probably make up that $11k diff with downpayment.

how much is an evergreen 980sq ft condo worth? $150k now, maybe $5k more in the spring?

[sputnik]

Originally posted by GoChris
its a tough choice, I am going to go with the larger house no matter what cause the bedrooms in the smaller one are a tad smaller which i think kids will not enjoy. so its $11k more for the big lot


Who cares what your kids what. Get what you want. I prefer having the green space in the backyard. Lots of room for parties, bonfires etc.

I grew up in a 1400 sq ft bungalow and when I was a kid I thought that was more than enough space. My parents didnt have a minivan either (2 dr cars).

IMO kids are catered to WAY too much lately.

[HRD2PLZ]

I would go with the larger house on the smaller lot. But it really depends what you would be comfortable with. The corner lots also have more sidewalk to shovel, a lot of people don't take into account the extra work and maintenance involved with a corner lot. A lot of my clients who currently have corner lots, don't buy another one the second time around.
When you go to sell your home, most people care about square footage over lot size (provided your lot is average in size with everything else comparable in your area).

[FiveFreshFish]

The big lot is considerably larger by area.

495 m² vs 339 m² assuming both are roughly rectangular in shape.

[Hakkola]

That's a lot more area, and assuming prices for land go up, that's more profit. Def get the biggest lot you can.

You didn't say where the lots are and IMO that should be the deciding factor. Which lot is in the better community? Or are they in the same community?

[GoChris]

Originally posted by HRD2PLZ
The corner lots also have more sidewalk to shovel, a lot of people don't take into account the extra work and maintenance involved with a corner lot.

well its at the end of a cul de sac, and the west side of the lot is a road, which will be on the other side of the retaining wall, so actually its about the same sidewalk as the other lot, so thats ok for maintenance, although the larger lot of course will have more grass to mow, etc. thats right.


Originally posted by Hakkola
That's a lot more area, and assuming prices for land go up, that's more profit. Def get the biggest lot you can.

You didn't say where the lots are and IMO that should be the deciding factor. Which lot is in the better community? Or are they in the same community?

both are in the same community, both are in new brighton in the SE (directly beside mackenzie town on other side of 52nd st, so right north of copperfield. we looked at copperfield and we seem to get a better value with new brighton, most upgrades are included for the same price and the lots are a couple thousand cheaper. (and staying in evergreen would be about the same price, but its at like 300 sq ft less)

[C4S]

:banghead: :banghead:

We picked a nice wide corner lots,with good mountain view, when we decided to build our house ....

And we like corner lot too, always feel nicer...

however, after we said go ahead .. there were tons of architecture control we have to follow .. such as Extra windows we had to upgrade .. tons of stones we had to upgrade .. bluh bluh ... :banghead: :banghead:

I don't know .. I think bigger lots is just nicer .. for resale .. ? and it probaby cost the same for hiring people to do your yard anyway, right? :)

[GoChris]

Ya, its not a corner we are looking at, so we dont have to pay for extra windows like a corner lot the builder did mention, its just "corner" in the way that we only have one neighbor to a side and one behind. I think it would be great to have a huge yard, like for bonfires as was mentioned, more room to have a shed, hammock, sand box etc. plus in front we have enough room we could park 3 cars on the driveway, not really a bonus, but its big frontage.

:banghead: cant decided, I don't want to pay outta my ass for mortage, but it was mentioned to me I could probably make enough on the condo over what I thought we could make to offset the upgrade cost.

[GoChris]

:thumbsup: went with the big lot :love:
signed papers tonight on it! thanks for the feedback!!

[JordanLotoski]

Originally posted by abyss
I would go bigger lot, then there's more room for renovations later on! I don't think you'll notice the 150sq ft that much, but you will notice how great it is to have a big yard.

u wont notice 150 sq feet..thats like a 12x12 room, i think id notice that.

Reemember this, people buy houses not lots, id get the biggest sq footage for the best price, when my clients come to me the first thing they tell me is what sq footage they are looking for. The yard, landscaping are a bonus

Get the smaller lot, with a south facing backyard and the bigger house, in the end your gonna put more in your pocket.

good luck..whos the buildeR?

[JordanLotoski]

Originally posted by GoChris
:thumbsup: went with the big lot :love:
signed papers tonight on it! thanks for the feedback!!

ok..well guess i should read down further, what direction does your lot face...please tell me you didnt buy a west front yard lot?

[t-im]

I would rather have the larger house on the smaller lot..

But of course, it all depends on how the layout is that will effect resale.

I don't necessarily think having a larger lot will help resale, but it just means that you have that much more yard to landscape and more work to make it 'presentable' (and not like some huge boring backyard) when you decide to sell.

[JordanLotoski]

area also does account for resale too. but if i was building a home under 300k id go size over large lot anyday.

remember this, nowadays people are lazy and dont want a huge lawn to take care of...i think you would have made alot more cash at the end of the day with the bigger home..but congrats regardless.

[D. Dub]

Congrats. It sounds like ya bought the one ya wanted. Thats whats most important. Who cares about MINOR resale issues in your primary residence?!?!?

Unless you're gonna move soon ....buy what YOU want.

[Seanith]

Originally posted by GoChris
theres not a ton of room for kids to play.



WTF is wrong with you Chris?! Put off having kids as long as you can man!

:rofl:

[GoChris]

Originally posted by MIWYFSHOT


ok..well guess i should read down further, what direction does your lot face...please tell me you didnt buy a west front yard lot?


well I stayed with the larger of the house, I think its big enough so I got both, didnt downgrade to get the big lot.

and I would never get a west front yard lot, ugh. backyard faces west south. its in new brighton, morrison is the builder.

[Weapon_R]

Why does the direction of a home matter?

[robpark]

Generally, land is an appreciating asset (depending where you buy) and the home a depreciating asset. You want the land to appreciate more than the home depreciates......

So to me, it sounds like you did the right thing.

[JordanLotoski]

Originally posted by robpark
Generally, land is an appreciating asset (depending where you buy) and the home a depreciating asset. You want the land to appreciate more than the home depreciates......

So to me, it sounds like you did the right thing.

how so, new homes are going up in value on an average of 2.5 % a month for th past 6 months, materials are more, gas is more...houses are appreciating. Iam looking at it from a resale stance. most people when they come to me they ask for (A) sq footage, (B) area and (C) style of home. the lot being a pie shape will be reflected in the price it does cost more when you buy so the seller will wanna get more. ive sold many homes and from experience if they fall in love with the house they can live with the land.

If u can afford the house u want on the biggest lot..hey even better!

Ohh and position of the house plays a major role in resale...i have so many of my clients wont buy east facing backyards..most popular is south facing backyards, for those who are thinking about buying.

[/////AMG]

Originally posted by Weapon_R
Why does the direction of a home matter?

It depends on the buyers. Whenever we bought houses, especially in Calgary my mum would want it so the sun rises/set to the front or back of the house doesn't matter which way though.

I think othe rpeople might have other reasons? :dunno:

[HRD2PLZ]

Generally, West or South facing backyards are the most desireable and are worth more on the resale side. This way, you have the sun in your backyard in the afternoon/evening. North rear yards are generally the least desireable.

Congrats Chris, sounds like you got the best of both worlds :thumbsup:

[abyss]

Originally posted by MIWYFSHOT


u wont notice 150 sq feet..thats like a 12x12 room, i think id notice that.

Reemember this, people buy houses not lots, id get the biggest sq footage for the best price, when my clients come to me the first thing they tell me is what sq footage they are looking for. The yard, landscaping are a bonus

Get the smaller lot, with a south facing backyard and the bigger house, in the end your gonna put more in your pocket.

good luck..whos the buildeR?

We have a 4 level split, with 2 8x8 rooms in the basement. Guess what, if we didn't have those rooms I wouldn't even notice them, they are completely empty and we haven't spent longer than 2 minutes down there in the year and a half we've been in the house. Maybe it's just my personal opinion but I would much rather have that sq footage added to our pathetically small backyard then have rooms that are completely useless and empty. Even if we had had a bigger yard and a smaller house, like I told Chris, there's always room for renos later then if you need the extra room in the house.

Congrats on getting the house Chris!