If you’re going to build a home from the ground up, there are significant advantages. You can design and create precisely the house you want. It will have all the features you crave, and none of those you don’t feel are necessary.

When you build your own house, though, you will need a new home development site plan. This is a part of the process that you can’t skip, so let’s talk about it in detail right now.

A detailed architectural drawing that shows the layout of a plot of land for a new home development, including features such as topography, driveways, fencing, power lines, and swimming pools
Photo by Unseen Studio on Unsplash

What is a Home Development Site Plan?

First, let’s make sure you know what this term means. A home development site plan is a drawing that shows in intricate detail what the plot of land should look like on which your new home will sit.

This drawing will show all of the property’s topographic features. It should also include things like the driveway, fencing, easements, garage, power lines, and so forth. It will even feature things like your swimming pool if you plan to have one. 

Is a Site Plan a Floor Plan?

You should also understand that a site plan is not a floor plan. Floor plans will show what your home will look like on the inside. By contrast, a site plan shows the relationship that exists between the land on which the house will sit and the building itself. 

A visual representation of a building or structure that provides details such as dimensions, materials, and layout
Photo by Pickawood on Unsplash

Consult with an Architect

Unless you’re an architect yourself, you will need to contact one to draw up the home development site plan for you. You can describe to them in detail what you want, and they will work with you on the dimensions and the various features.

You can also talk to them about any constraints you must take into account. You should already know about these by walking the property and looking at any existing topographical maps.

Talk to Contractors and Local Government Officials

At this point, you will need to confer with local government officials who can sign off on your site plan. You can bring it to them and make sure you don’t want anything that they deem to be impossible for any reason.

Once the local government officials have signed off on the plan, you can move on to the next step, which is showing it to the contractors you will use. They will weigh in and give you their expertise. When they’ve finished voicing their opinions, you can get the architect to make any changes the government officials and contractors feel you’ll need.

The natural features of a plot of land, such as hills, valleys, and other elevations, that are represented on a site plan
Photo by Kyle Glenn on Unsplash

Last-Minute Considerations

You’re close to breaking ground on the construction now, but before you do, you must do a last-minute assessment of the most recent site plan to make sure you haven’t overlooked anything. You’ll want to look at things like the wind patterns, potential drainage issues, the sun’s orientation to the home’s position, and the environment in general. You might bring in both the architect and the contractors for this final consultation.

Now, you should be ready to move forward with the final version of the home development site plan.

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