Basic raw land improvements for house building

[SkizzlePig]

We're planning to build a house on a few acres of raw, vacant land in Southern Oregon.

I'm curious if I've considered all the basic improvements and services necessary for a full-time residence. Please review my list and add items I missed and challenge me on ones you don't think we should need. Here's the list:
1) Electricity lines - we want to generate our own power, but will still need grid power sometimes.
2) Septic
3) Well
4) Driveway - thinking a graded gravel driveway, nothing fancy
5) Telephone
6) No need for cable television as we're going to go with satellite
7) Internet will come from satellite as well

[bill not in oh]

Heating?

[cfabe]

Well personally I wouldn't consider satellite tv and internet a "basic land improvement".... but I might suggest you look into using a cell phone for both your telephone and your internet service, most of the carriers offer data packages that are very competitive with satellite internet, though still more expensive than cable internet or DSL. You can even get a big antenna for your phone if you are in a fringe coverage area.

Not knowing the area it may or may not be necessary, but you should at least evaluate the drainage of the land, you may need to install drain tiles in wet areas or do something fancy with the roof runoff from your house.

[coalroadcabin]

Our telephone company runs the phone line for free when you have your electric line put in. If you don't run the line when the electric goes in and you decide later that you want it, they charge for it. So, even though we probably won't use it, we went ahead and had them run phone line to our building site.


The only other thing you might want to consider is a natural gas line if you have it available.

[yellowsprings]

I think you pretty much have it covered, except for the heating and cooling. We built our own home and went with geothermal units.

You may also end up needing a pole barn to keep all of your equipment that is needed to maintain the land.

[jassytoo]

If you're setting up a homestead as well as just building a house, costwise you might factor in fencing and some kind of building.

[SteveD(TX)]

Clearing and leveling a pad site for your house - making sure it drains properly, etc..

I wouldn't consider heating and cooling to be "basic raw land improvements".