After all the love and attention I have bestowed on my renovators delight (not to mention expense) I have reached the point where the option of buying some land and buillding from scratch is starting to look rather attractive. Not because the house is a problem but because my neighbours (neither of whom is going anywhere) are just not capable of behaving nicely. One has smoked waaaay too much dope in her life to be capable of anything barring aggressive paranoia and the other one treats his animals horribly. Not so horribly that the RSPCA will intervene, but too horribly for me to sit and watch on a daily basis. And did I mention he has thought it would be a good idea to keep pig sties seven metres from my loungeroom window in a village zone and feels hard done by because I suggested he put them elsewhere?

So I have found a block of land, around 3 ha, which allows me to be close to the village (I have been here long enough to know the potential neighbours will be nice) but with the capacity to build with your back to the neigbours (with a decent buffer zone to boot) and look out over miles and miles of lovely bushland, farmland and the railway track (far enough away for the light to be interesting at night but the noise to be attenuated). It's gorgeous. I am in love! And I can pay for it!

What I am not sure is whether I can pay for a new build (no structures on the property at present). Unfortunately, despite the time, energy and emotion I have lavished on this place the value has not increased noticeably at all, so I will be starting with a very small budget.

The proposed site is on a thinly covered rock bench that sits maybe 45cm above the level of the surrounding pasture. Behind it is a solid rock face (very attractive), and the building area is around 15 metres by 20 metres, so room to move the footprint around to get the best views, fire protection etc. It is about 40 metres or less from the boundary from which the drive would be launched, and there is pasture below the site to allow builder access without damaging the newly made driveway.

I have looked at Tiny House plans which are all well and good if you are a monkey and can climb vertical ladders in the middle of the night when you want to go to the loo. I have looked at container homes (prefab) which look lovely but are too narrow - I would feel claustrophobic in the bedroom particularly; I have looked at prefab houses, but both these two seem to involve a lot of choices that are not mine, or which, if I were to change would cost extra. I am considering building a shed and fitting it out.

Basically all I want is two bedrooms, a centrally located bathroom (accessible from both bedrooms and the living area) and an adjacent kitchen, with open plan living beyond. The smallest I have managed to squeeze the plan down is about a metre wider than a 40 foot container with an extra bedroom tacked onto the side. Not sure what that is in square metreage.

So. Does anyone have any views about desirability, building options, thoughts, input etc? I need to keep enough aside from the budget for a driveway (graded gravel), a septic tank, rainwater and fire-fighting tanks and solar off-grid as there is no power to the block. Please assume that all planning conditions are OK (if they are not I will not buy the place.)

I would be available to assist with most of the work if required, and can to detailing for myself if I run out of money, but the walls, roof, wiring, plumbing and internal layout pretty well have to be done for me, albeit with my assistance.


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