We qualify for the loans, but there just aren’t enough log homes that have been sold recently around here for the banks to use as ‘comps’ in order to determine a fair appraisal value for our proposed log home. They’re coming in way lower than we can build this log home for. And the banks won’t budge.
All These Delays & Changes May Actually Be A GOOD Thing…
It’s been about 2 years since we started the process of building our log home. We had the land picked out, the bank picked out, the GC picked out, the builder picked out, the logs picked out, the floorplan designed the way we wanted it, and we even started clearing the land. Then why isn’t our log home done yet? Why haven’t we even raised the first log yet?
Personal Highs Matched With Regional Lows
The first official sign that construction is about to take place on our new log home site: the posting of the Building Permit! But it was a day of highs and lows, thanks to a series of tornadoes that hit in Williamson County the night before.
Williamson County TN Building Permits & Fees: What You Need To Know
We got our Building Permit today. Who knew the cost for a Building Permit in Williamson County TN could be so much?… $9,177! It’s mostly due to the county’s Privilege Tax. And boy do we feel privileged to live in Franklin, TN!
Yes, Our Dale Hollow Lake Property Is Still For Sale
We’ve decided to advertise our Dale Hollow Lake property for sale. If you’re interested in building a new home, vacation home, rental home, or lake cabin at Swan Ridge Lake Resort on Dale Hollow Lake, let us know! Here’s more info…
Getting The Lay Of The Land… Surveying The Property
Of the 5 acres we own, there is only one tiny little spot where the home can actually go. The rest will be hilly trails and a forest of thick trees lining the creeks. So, to ease our mind, and clarify for all involved — including the bank, the County, and ourselves — we asked the surveyor to come back out and re-survey it again for us.
The Exciting Process Of Digging A Ditch And Putting In A Culvert
If you’re building a home on a private piece of property, chances are you’ll have to put in a ditch and a culvert. Here’s how it went for us… including photos of the culvert, ditch, and driveway.
Tips For Buying Lake Property In East Tennessee
Joe and his wife were recently in Tennessee visiting potential homesites for their future log home. He has compiled a summary of his findings. If you are interested in buying lake property in Tennessee — or you’re simply exploring the option of buying or building a log home near a lake — then I’m sure you will find some valuable information here.
Important Info Regarding Lake Property For Sale In Tennessee
Are you looking to buy a lake lot in Tennessee? Whether you plan to build a log home on it, or a conventional stick-frame home, here are some tips from someone who has thoroughly explored lake property in Tennessee. Just some thoughts…
Douglas Lake Properties For Sale
Douglas Lake has a LOT of expensive, high-dollar homes, so we didn’t even think we could afford to build there. But, there were actually a handful of new developments going up, and we picked out about a dozen or so lots that we felt were well worth looking into.
Center Hill Lake Properties For Sale
Center Hill Lake is between Dale Hollow Lake and where we currently live in Williamson County, Tennessee. It only made sense to see what lake property was for sale there, but we never found anything we liked.
Lakefront Living In Tennessee
Looking for lake property in Tennessee? Did you know that lake FRONT doesn’t necessarily mean lake ACCESS in Tennessee? The thick perimeter of land surrounding every major waterway in this state is technically owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers or the Tennessee Valley Authority. As a result, they dictate what you can and cannot do on that piece of property between your house and the lake.
Clearing The Land: Day One of Bush Hogging
First photos after we cleared the land to build our log home in Williamson County Tennessee.
Preparing To Clear The Land For The Homesite
Our first official step toward building this log home was to clear the land. We decided to hire a professional team to take out most of the trees & brush that we knew would be in the way of the home. They had all the right equipment for heavy duty bush hogging, and they were even set up to deal with all the rock they encountered on the property.
Tennessee Lake Property For Sale
Here are details of our lake property on Dale Hollow Lake in middle Tennessee.
Got Creeks? What Is A Blue Line Stream, Anyway?
I had no idea what a ‘blue line creek’ or ‘blue line stream’ was… until recently. The 5+ acres of land we purchased has 3 creeks running through it and one of them is a blue line creek, and it is controlled by FEMA. Here’s what you need to know.
Can’t You See It???
When you’re trying to decide on which property to buy for your new log home, sometimes it’s hard to visualize how things will look. Here are a few tips…
It’s REALLY Official This Time… We’re Building Our Log Home In Williamson County Tennessee!
Pictures and details of our 5 acre property in Williamson County Tennessee.
The Top Vacation Log Home Hot Spots To Build A Log Cabin
The Log & Timber Homes Network has compiled a list of the most ideal areas across the country in which to build a vacation log home. See if you’re as surprised as we were to see which ‘hot spots’ are on the list…
Enjoying The View At Our Dale Hollow Lake Property
Here’s a photo collage of a day spent at our property — at Swan Ridge Lake Resort on Dale Hollow Lake. It was our dog Tenor’s first time visiting the property. Also his first time off-leash to roam free. He did great!
Where We Are Now In The Log Home Building Process…
We’re down but not out! After a year spent securing the land, finding a log home builder, designing the blueprints, and saving money to build the log home of our dreams, we had a minor setback when we learned that we couldn’t build our log home for under $160/SF. Now we’re gearing up for Round Two in the log home building process. See what we’re planning now…
Can You Build A Log Home For $150/SF?… Apparently In Middle Tennessee You Can’t!
This article is one of the few in which we have actually vented our yearlong frustrations in dealing with finding a general contractor to build our home, topped off with some of the runaround we’ve received from the banks who seem unwilling to finance log homes in this area.
Snowy Dale Hollow Lake Property
When we bought our property on Dale Hollow Lake, we wondered just how much snow would fall in that area during the winter months. Dale Hollow Lake is a couple hours north of Nashville, and a tad east — it’s fairly close to ‘the plateau’. So yesterday morning, we hopped in the car to check out the freshly fallen snow on our property.
How We Decided On Dale Hollow Lake (& Swan Ridge) As The Place To Build Our Log Home
Word of mouth. That’s how we found this beautiful property on Dale Hollow Lake. Here’s how we discovered Swan Ridge Lake Resort near Cookeville, Tennessee.
Summary of Our Search For Lake Real Estate in Dover, TN (Lake Barkley/Barkley Lake)
When we began exploring lake real estate in Tennessee, we started with Dover, TN. Here’s why we ultimately decided NOT to build on Lake Barkley or Kentucky Lake. While definitely beautiful lakes — and a great place to visit — we just couldn’t see ourselves living there. Here’s why…
