Land or House – Which One Should You Buy First?

It's one of the most common questions people ask when planning their dream home – and we have answers.

Standing on an empty block and visualising your future can be a powerful feeling – one that can tempt you to start the process of building your dream home by buying land. Even more so if you’ve spent time researching locations and this one hits the spot when it comes to proximity to school zones, public transport and amenities.

But it’s important to understand the potential pitfalls of doing things in this order. According to Taylah White, Carlisle Homes Group House and Land Manager, there are risks in financially committing to buy land if you don’t fully understand the factors that determine what can actually be built on it. “So often people have come to us with their land and their selected dream home, only to learn that it can’t be built on that block,” she says. “Unfortunately, too often when people buy a block of land first, they end up having to compromise on their home.”

The challenges of buying land first

One of the simple mistakes people make is to buy a block of land that doesn’t have sufficient frontage or depth to accommodate their chosen home design. Another is failing to understand the impact that fall has on the building process. “A block of land is very rarely just flat,” White explains. “Any gradient can have implications on the home you’re able to build.”

And if your dream home has two storeys, the process can present even more challenges: regulations around overshadowing and overlooking could prevent you from ‘building up’; and your double-storey design may be similarly compromised if your estate includes 3D building envelopes, which are sometimes enforced by developers to achieve an attractive streetscape, in part by restricting the height of each house. In some cases, you’ll have little choice but to select a different home design that works on your block of land – or sell and start again.

Other situations may have financial implications. For example, if your block is too close to a major freeway or powerline easement, it can affect how much finance banks are willing to offer, not to mention the resale value of your house.

So, there’s a lot of research to be done before you pay that deposit for your land. Of course, if you feel confident enough to proceed, Carlisle Homes can assist at all stages of the process, from advising on alternative house designs to offering fixed site costs to help manage your budget. But, as White points out, “We just can’t change your block of land after it’s been purchased.”

The benefits of choosing your house first

Most of us tend to talk about our ‘dream home’ not our ‘dream block of land’ – and for good reason. It’s the specifics of your house that deliver the lifestyle you want – whether it’s one or two storeys, the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, or having a beautiful kitchen and dining space if you love to cook and entertain. Once you know what your dream home looks like and you have a desired general location, you can then look for a block of land that meets your needs.

Doing it in this order puts you in a good position to achieve your desired outcome without any compromises. However, the process of finding the right block can still be time-consuming and frustrating. If this seems daunting, there’s one other approach you can take that eliminates risk and worry, and is guaranteed to deliver a fantastic result…

Why house and land packages get the best result

Given the complexity of choosing your dream home design and matching it to a suitable block, it makes sense to get help from the experts who do it day in, day out. Buying a house and land package with Carlisle Homes gives you that opportunity, and it opens up additional benefits, such as the Land Connect service, which gives you access to sought-after blocks of land.

“Carlisle has successful and longstanding relationships with key developers, giving us access to land exclusively for our customers across Melbourne,” White explains. “We hand-select blocks with the least amount of fall, in the very best locations.” So that means you can work with Carlisle Homes to choose your perfect home design and then let them find the perfect block to build it on, saving you from stress and uncertainty so you really can have the best home in the best street.