SundayNewspaper

At Home in theNorthwest 6 COVER STORY Expect a minimum of two years to pass from the moment you decide to build until the time you can occupy the dwelling. If you plan to do some of the work yourself, it likely will take even longer. Building in the city is rela- tively simple since you can hook up to water, sewer and power. In the country, an extensive amount of time is spent answering the “Can I build here?”question. Before you even proceed with plans and permits, you’ll likely have to survey the land, plan a septic field, dig a well and schedule geologic testing. It’s also rushed: A surprise to many is that the actual building window for new construction is fairly short. You usually have about one year to finish the house after breaking ground. Building permits don’t stay open forever. Con- struction loans are even more demanding and require you to finish on time or pay penalties. It can consume your free time: The biggest downside to doing some or much of the work yourself is the time required. Even a simple job, such as install- ing trim, can take several weekends. If the whole point of building in the country is to escape city life, do you really want to spend of every weekend and holiday working on your house? Even if you hire profes- sionals, you can still expect maintenance, decorating and landscaping to consume much of your free time. Vacation or permanent? Plan to be away: Like cars, houses don’t do well if they sit unused for long periods of time. If you’re building a vacation home, a host of problems can arise while you’re away. A tree can fall on your house, pipes may freeze or mice can infest your house with- out you knowing it. Even if nothing dramatic happens, you can expect to spend many weekends fixing and maintaining various issues. It helps to have a trusted neighbor or a property manager to keep an eye on things and help you during an emergency. Make extra money with Airbnb (maybe): Many people envision using rental income to pay for their country getaway. In certain areas, offering your house as a short-term rental can pay the mort- gage and then some. But be sure your location allows weekend rentals. Some popular spots, including Leavenworth, have banned them outright. Move in permanently: Before making the leap to living in the country full time, you should imagine your life.Will it be lonely without friends nearby? If you dread living without delivery pizza, ballgames or good libraries, it’s probably not a wisemove. Also, most rural areas have poor cellphone service and slow internet. As you imagine living somewhere (or you need to work re- motely), you have to decide if dial-up-like internet speeds and land lines are worth the trade-off for a country life. Writer Jeff Layton owns Osprey Acres, a three-year building project near Leavenworth that in- cludes his dream home and a pair of weekend rental units available via Airbnb.com or Peerspace.com. Advertisement PHOTOS COURTESY OF JEFF LAYTON Hiring local builders, as the author did for his home near Leavenworth, allows you to tap their knowledge of the best materials for the area. Continued from previous page