<prompt> Human: Ive decided that it is the right time for me to start looking at getting a house of my own rather than rent. Im not buying because I think renting is throwing away money, or that a house is a good investment - I think Im savy enough to know that neither is the case. Rather, I want a place of my own to call home. Not immediately, of course, but maybe within the next couple years.I looked at buying a house built in a new development, but the lot sizes are tiny and dont conform to my vision of how I want to live in it in the coming years. I then thought about buying a pre-owned home, but even with a thorough home inspection and my own admittedly limited experience with construction its a big risk. On top of that Id likely have to spend even more money on top of what I spent to make the house conform to how I want to live in it, not to mention on-going maintenance costs.I was just about to give up when I saw a lot in an older part of my town that was damn near being given away. Only 24,900 for a rectangular shaped lot 110 at the curb, 48 at the very back, and 301 long. Estimated acreage is .57 acres. Zoning laws in the area require a 40 setback from the street, and 10 from the sides. Rough estimation with the county GIS software shows that I can build a square footprint house 65 on all four sides. HUGE. Im looking at building something in the 1600-1800 sq ft range, and this lot will handle it easily.Being the cautious individual I am I went and looked at the lot after work. It was dark, but it turns out that the lot drops almost 16 from the street level to where the house could be built. Extreme grade, to say the least. Not a deal breaker, however. Since I wanted a house with a walk-out basement this could be a blessing in disguise. I could truck in some fill and have retaining walls built to give me a decent backyard, but I have no estimate on how much it would cost. Could be anywhere from 10k to 100k.Im leaning towards buying the lot since its only 259month for a lot loan. Ten year length, with the first 3 years fixed at either 4.5 if I put 15 down, or 3.5 if I put 25 or more down. After three years the loan can either be refinanced, rolled into a construction loan, or go to an adjustable rate for the remainder of the loan.I checked the values on the nearby houses - the house right next door was built 3 years ago, and was sold at 110k. Across the street the house was built maybe 30-40 years earlier, sits on 1.5 acres and is 1300 sq ft and appraises at 140k. The house at the rear of the property sits on the same acreage as the lot Im considering, and is 2700 sq ft and appraises at 225k. The house next to it sits on 1 acre, is 4300 sq ft, and appraises for around 450-475k.Lots of variation in building sizes, lot sizes, styles, age, and price. I doubt if the value of the land will go down. At worst I break even or lose a little money if I do nothing to the land. I could probably get all the brush and trees cleared and have grading done and increase the value of the land to almost what I paid to have the work done. Grading would definitely get other buyers interested.I should mention the lot has been on the market for 4 months, and usually something like that in my area gets snapped up in a hurry.I think the land could work for me, and frankly there arent many vacant lots left in the area, and the farmland is getting bought out by the big developments and are usually half the size of this lot.Ive got the money for 25 down plus closing costs, I was pre-approved for a 185k mortgage, I have less than 4000 in total debt, I make 74k a year, and my credit score is in the low 800s. Tell me Im not totally insane for considering this...  <response>: Theres a ton of things you havent provided details on.1. Utilities on site? What are hookup charges?1. You say you can truck in fill: can you actually do this? What are the local water run-off regulations?1. Steep slope. Is it stable? Is it already a pile of soft-fill? Can you excavate a basement? Will grass grow or will be it a dry sand pile?1. How about a drivewaygarage? Downslopes garages are horrible things for flooding or ice.1. You mentioned trees. Are there any tree protection laws?1. Local zoning max lot coverage? minimum front lawn size?1. Emergency services: distance from nearest fire hydrant kind of stuffIve never bought vacant land. These are things I thought of in a couple minutes. Im sure there is a huge list of items to deal with before building is practical.If you do decide to buy, make sure you put a condition in your purchase agreement allowing you to consult with an engineeringarchitectcontractor and allow backing out for any reason. Make sure youre real-estate lawyer looks at the offer and knows what you would like to do before submitting it to the seller. 