Divide land

Good morning everyone,

I am fortunate to own a piece of land. I want to sell half of this land to partially finance the future house. Actually, I have always imagined a detached single-family house. For some reasons, I am not so sure about that anymore. The land is about 980 sqm and is to be divided in half. I have attached an excerpt from a survey plan. At the upper area where the land is slightly rounded, the street runs. A sewer connection is already on the property, near the street.

The whole area is on a slope. From east to west, the land drops about 1.5 meters. The shaded areas were buildings that have since been demolished. My first idea was to divide the land in the middle from west to east. That way, two detached single-family houses could be built.

However, I find there are many disadvantages with this:

- The rear building plot would incur higher development costs for the necessary utility connections, due to the long way to the street,
- An access road is needed which would take space from both parties. In addition, many issues would have to be considered (right of way, snow removal, etc.).
- The biggest disadvantage for me: both buildings cannot be oriented south. However, because of the location of the land (slope almost at the top, no shading) I definitely want to make as much use of solar energy as possible.

So my idea was to build a duplex along the north side by the street.
It’s like that on the other side of the street as well.

The question is only whether the length of about 30 meters is enough. If you plan a garage at each property boundary or integrate it into the house if necessary, it should be possible, right?

The disadvantage would of course be that it’s simply something different than a detached house and you are close to the neighbor.

What advantages and disadvantages do you see?

Regards

It depends on what house size and house shape you want or what is allowed. On 2x15m even detached houses would be possible. With 3m boundary distance on the left and right side, that makes about 9 m house width. With a 2-story house (if allowed) you get about 130m² with 9x9m. The garages could then be placed on the left or right property boundary. That way you would have your south orientation, short access routes, no semi-detached house, and everyone their own driveway. With not quite 500m² plot area, you will have to accept that the neighbor is not excessively far away.

Hello Darkamage,

in principle, a rear development with access/easement/right of way is possible, but this will significantly reduce the selling price of the northern plot, and I don’t think that is in your interest.

The plot width is basically sufficient for two plots with a north-south orientation, but you have to be careful to ensure that the western plot remains reasonably buildable. The western boundary is not parallel and narrows towards the back, which should be taken into account when dividing.

Due to the irregular plot shape, I would generally recommend a duplex here, or both single houses must be planned together and the new boundary in the middle aligned precisely. Of course, small houses with 8m or even just 7m width can also be planned, but this is not necessarily sensible in terms of optimal plot utilization.

The advantage of the duplex is that you gain 3m house width but "lose" a garage or have to compensate for this through clever planning.

Detached is possible, but it depends on how big the house is supposed to be.

Best regards Dirk Grafe

Hello Darkamage,

if there is a development plan, the building line is also recorded there. In theory, you can exceed it, but you then need (at least) a building encumbrance or similar (depending on the respective state building code) and/or neighbor approval.

If there is no development plan, the new building must adapt to the existing one, including things like the street setback.

Best regards
Dirk Grafe

The demolished buildings on the property were an old farmhouse. I now know that my property is not within the scope of a development plan. Is that good or bad?

This week I will inquire about it again more thoroughly at the municipality.

I now know that my property is not within the scope of a development plan. Is that good or bad?

This week I will inquire more precisely about it at the municipality.

You can save yourself the trip to the municipality; not much will/can come out of it. If there is no development plan, planning must adapt to the existing buildings; possibly the municipality is not even the approval authority, but for example the district. The municipality would only be consulted, but a higher authority would decide.

A concrete statement in these areas can only be made with an (approximate) existing plan or you first go to a (locally experienced) architect, who can roughly tell you what can and cannot be realized on your properties.

Tip for the procedure:

1. Contact a locally experienced architect
2. Obtain utility plans, encumbrance extracts, cadastral extract (architect)
3. Topographic survey of the property to capture elevations, if necessary boundary investigation and verification/supplementation of the cadastral map for neighboring properties (surveyor)
4. Architect and surveyor cooperatively determine the possible plot division (rough)
5. First rough draft by architect/surveyor including setback areas, access routes, etc.

=> with this you then approach the city/municipality and present it roughly and then you get useful feedback from the municipality or the approval authority.

If an obstacle arises beforehand (i.e., after point 1), it is the task of the architect or surveyor to recognize this early and either stop the planning or steer it in another direction. Everything the municipality can tell you, a local architect and/or surveyor can also tell you or clarify with 1-2 phone calls and emails without you having any effort.

If you still want to go directly to the municipality, treat yourself to a meeting with an architect beforehand and/or take them directly with you to the appointment at the municipality.

Best regards
Dirk Grafe