MCMAHON CUSTOM HOMES
Understand your land’s building potential and what it may take to prepare it for a home.
A home site evaluation helps you understand the conditions that could affect whether and how you can build on your land. Josh McMahon walks your property in person to identify potential challenges, site-development needs and questions to resolve before you invest in design.
We consider where the driveway enters the property and how it reaches the home. A long or steep drive can require more grading and site work, affecting both the available building area and the cost of preparing the land.
We look at utility availability and whether the property would use public water and sewer or need a private well and septic system. Well and septic feasibility can affect whether the property supports the home you want and where it can be built. Required testing and approvals are separate from the builder’s site visit.
The slope, soil conditions and water flow affect how the site is developed. We consider clearing and grading needs, drainage, and whether the terrain supports a basement or calls for a crawlspace.
Setbacks require space between buildings and property boundaries or other specified features. Easements can also affect home and driveway placement. We consider these constraints and potential permitting challenges when evaluating the available building area.
The land’s constraints help determine where a home could sit. Within those limits, we consider sunlight and views alongside driveway access and drainage.
We discuss your land, the home you have in mind and your budget. This gives Josh a starting point for evaluating the property against your building plans.
Josh walks the property to assess access, utilities, terrain and other site conditions. He looks for potential challenges and site-development needs that could affect whether and how you build.
We consider the site work your plans may require and questions that need further investigation. If you move forward, these findings help guide design, permitting and budgeting.
See the full Build on Your Lot process for the steps from pre-construction planning through construction.
Preparing a cleared lot with nearby utilities is different from developing wooded acreage that needs a long driveway, a well and septic. Clearing, grading, utility requirements and driveway construction all contribute to site-development costs.
McMahon helps you consider those needs alongside the cost of the home. Understanding the site work early helps you assess whether your plans are practical for the property and your budget before settling on a design.
No. McMahon evaluates the land before design begins. Your ideas for the home give us a starting point for evaluating the property’s suitability and the constraints a design would need to address.
No. A builder’s evaluation helps identify opportunities and potential challenges. Required site and soil evaluations, design work and permitting still need to be completed as applicable. A site visit does not replace local approvals or the permits required for a private well or septic system.
Josh’s personal involvement starts with the land and continues through the build. The builder walking your property is also involved in the decisions that follow, from planning the home to overseeing construction.
Based in Goochland, McMahon builds across Goochland, Powhatan, Hanover, Chesterfield, Richmond and Charlottesville/Albemarle County. Site conditions and permitting requirements vary by locality, so the evaluation considers the property and where you plan to build.
Talk with Josh about your land’s building potential, possible constraints and the site work your plans may require.
