Hello everyone,
I’ve been following the forum for a while now, and finally, we’re ready to build our own home!
We have already found a very nice plot of land, but it is planned to be divided into two lots. There are already two interested buyers, namely us and our future building partner (who will also be building with the same construction company).
Now, the question is about access. Attached you can see the first site plan from the architect. Our plot would be the plot on the right. The land will be subdivided into three parcels, with both buyers jointly purchasing and sharing the small “access strip” 50/50 as a driveway.
Alternatively, we could purchase the entire right plot, and our neighbors would then have to create their access from the other road to the south. According to the building authority, both options are possible.
If we choose the option shown in the attachment, we would have to buy less land. The architect said that the right plot (with a small border adjustment) could be reduced to a maximum of 500sqm (5,382 sq ft). This is already somewhat expensive for us, but manageable. With the shared driveway, our plot would be “only” about 420sqm (4,521 sq ft), but we would presumably have to pay for half of the driveway. We were also told that we might save some costs on utility connections with a shared driveway.
Here are the questions we have:
Has anyone had experience with this kind of subdivision and could offer us advice? Of course, such an arrangement requires more communication with the neighbor. Also, we couldn’t use the driveway area ourselves for parking or anything like that. The neighbors would always be driving directly in front of our house. But financially, there might be advantages.
I would greatly appreciate any help and your thoughts! And if you have any general suggestions about the site plan, feel free to share those as well! (:
Best regards,
Fyddles
I’ve been following the forum for a while now, and finally, we’re ready to build our own home!
We have already found a very nice plot of land, but it is planned to be divided into two lots. There are already two interested buyers, namely us and our future building partner (who will also be building with the same construction company).
Now, the question is about access. Attached you can see the first site plan from the architect. Our plot would be the plot on the right. The land will be subdivided into three parcels, with both buyers jointly purchasing and sharing the small “access strip” 50/50 as a driveway.
Alternatively, we could purchase the entire right plot, and our neighbors would then have to create their access from the other road to the south. According to the building authority, both options are possible.
If we choose the option shown in the attachment, we would have to buy less land. The architect said that the right plot (with a small border adjustment) could be reduced to a maximum of 500sqm (5,382 sq ft). This is already somewhat expensive for us, but manageable. With the shared driveway, our plot would be “only” about 420sqm (4,521 sq ft), but we would presumably have to pay for half of the driveway. We were also told that we might save some costs on utility connections with a shared driveway.
Here are the questions we have:
- How does the agreement with the neighbor work regarding the construction of the driveway? Could it become expensive for us if, for example, expensive materials are required?
- Is there really a cost saving on utility connections?
- How much does subdividing the land cost? Both in general and specifically for dividing it into three parcels?
Has anyone had experience with this kind of subdivision and could offer us advice? Of course, such an arrangement requires more communication with the neighbor. Also, we couldn’t use the driveway area ourselves for parking or anything like that. The neighbors would always be driving directly in front of our house. But financially, there might be advantages.
I would greatly appreciate any help and your thoughts! And if you have any general suggestions about the site plan, feel free to share those as well! (:
Best regards,
Fyddles
Maria16 schrieb:
Yes, the neighbor doesn’t have to create a driveway through the south garden, but naturally benefits from it. However, if they are very active and need about 10 trips a day for work, hobbies, etc. (kids growing up ), you will have the extra traffic right outside your door.
Apart from that, I’m curious (I’m not an expert!) how the setback requirements for their house would work if they are possibly on the shared plot?
And what would actually happen if the neighbor sells and the buyer doesn’t want to purchase the driveway – can the new owner be forced to take responsibility, including maintenance obligations?I’m not sure about the setback requirements either. I would need to ask the architect about that, thanks for the hint! Especially your point about selling the property makes me think, since we are still quite young and moving later on can’t be ruled out.
wurmwichtel schrieb:
I would definitely not want to share a driveway with a neighbor to reduce the risk of conflicts.Thank you for your opinion. We also fear that tensions are likely in such a situation.
face26 schrieb:
250 * 80, so 20,000€
From that, you would need to subtract half the land price for the driveway and half of the much longer access road.
I could imagine that this might be a simplistic calculation.You’re right.. that really does seem like a simplistic calculation with quite a few “uncertainties” (regarding agreements with neighbors about materials, etc.). Thank you very much! I think we will rather try to raise the 20,000.
When you say the plot is "already level" – how exactly was that done? Was any fill added? The last thing you want is for the ground to be unstable, meaning you might have to invest a significant amount of money in soil replacement or foundation work.
Regardless of the fact that you always need to check and calculate carefully – if 20,000€ already makes you seriously doubt the feasibility of the plot, I would strongly reconsider whether you can or want to afford the entire project. Do you even have a sense of the costs for your finished house? Or are you planning to buy just the plot first and build the house some time later?
(By the way, another argument against a shared driveway: what if the neighbor is still using it for construction traffic three years after you move in, or if they’re unwilling to invest as much as you do and refuse to pave the driveway?)
Regardless of the fact that you always need to check and calculate carefully – if 20,000€ already makes you seriously doubt the feasibility of the plot, I would strongly reconsider whether you can or want to afford the entire project. Do you even have a sense of the costs for your finished house? Or are you planning to buy just the plot first and build the house some time later?
(By the way, another argument against a shared driveway: what if the neighbor is still using it for construction traffic three years after you move in, or if they’re unwilling to invest as much as you do and refuse to pave the driveway?)
W
wurmwichtel20 Mar 2019 12:19Fyddles schrieb:
...The plot of land (...) is, as far as we know, one of the last available in the area (and in any case the only one currently for sale)... Don’t let yourselves be rushed!
We found our plot ourselves (gap in the building line) and approached the owners to see if they were willing to sell.
Various geoportals are extremely helpful when searching.
First look for gaps in the building line, then visit in person to see if it makes sense to inquire about purchasing.
If budget is an issue, you might consider giving the strip of land entirely to the neighbor and positioning your garage and front door directly facing the street.
Perhaps with easements or similar arrangements, you could also adjust the setback requirements to allow building closer to the boundary strip.
Perhaps with easements or similar arrangements, you could also adjust the setback requirements to allow building closer to the boundary strip.
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