When looking to buy a new house or for a site to build your new home on, the 3 most important items to look for are: location, location, location. This is the old adage, but it still holds true! You must understand your property and the surrounding area. Are there busy roads nearby, train tracks, a commercial building? Drive the area to be sure you understand where shopping centers are nearby, how close you are to any items you may consider negative and what the property looks like in winter without any trees and leaves covering a view. Pull up google satellite images of the site to be able to see the surrounding area from above.
Understanding your site, the particular constraints that come with it and what you can do on that site is critical to the success of your project. What you will be allowed to do with your site will depend on where it is located.
After you understand the surrounding area, you will need to know where your building can be located on your site. This information will be a combination of an Engineer and your Architect. Next, check with your Architect (that’s me) to see if this property will allow you to build the addition or new home that you would like. Verify what utilities are available and if there are any constraints on the property due to water, Wetlands, and CAFRA constraints.
Once you decide to move forward with your project, you will need to hire the engineer to prepare your survey, show the existing conditions of the site, and what you are proposing to do, the plot plan. They will show all the grading needed and a topographic plan that describes it all. They can also perform a soil boring, which will tell you the various soil types below the surface, down to a 20′ depth and how deep the groundwater table is. Your architect and engineer will use all of this information in the foundation design for the structure.
Looking for a good Surveyor and Engineering firm at the Jersey Shore? Call Us! We work with specialists that can handle any project type.
Remember, location, location, location. Understanding your lot and what you can and cannot do is important to the end result of your project!