Faz

It is just legwork I suppose. Use Plot Finder / Plot Browser / Rightmove and see what pops up. Speak to agents who sell lots of small new build schemes - they are always tapping into the land deals and teeing up small developers on the basis that they get a fee and the resales. Bear in mind a single plot doesn't really work for any developer so you may pick something up. Finally drive around the areas you like and chat to people - you never know what pops up!

Initial thought is that January is a terrible time to start with groundworks... You would probably finish at the same time if you started in March to be honest and save some money on all of the weather delay extension of time claims depending on how you contract this.

Hi All An interesting one - I am a surveyor (25 years Chartered until I got fed up with sending the RICS a £700 payment a year for nothing!) with 30 years post qualification experience and have previously 'built' big sheds, offices, 100+ bed hotels and large London resi schemes - 80 units+ at a time. I am about to undertake a scheme of 3 houses (one of them being for me)... Now here is the issue - on my previous schemes I have always had an established site team of PM and numerous site managers to deal with the day to day issues while was dealing with the higher level stuff - finance, letting and legals and the like. A scheme of 3 houses in northern Cambs is not going to stand such costs so I am it! I have drawn up our CPP which I am pretty happy with and have got the site set up sorted. It became apparent that none of the contractors here carry a valid ticket for our telehandler so I went and took the course last week (£1250!) so will take care of that. Not looking forward to offloading the brick lorry mind with the driver getting grumpy if I take my time - he will just have to suck it up I suppose. My worry is that, while I have a great take on the 'big picture' stuff, my knowledge of the real detail items is limited - potentially a dangerous combo! Main concern at the moment is floor makeup - we are using a Floorspan Efloor Plus beam and poly infill floor - Plots 1 & 2 (not to be mine) have 100mm poly sheet over with a 65mm screed to go on top - mine has a 150mm poly top sheet with u/f to go on top with a 65 - 75mm screed - it is doing my head in thinking about how this relates to the block coursing over the beam. Anyway we got the P1 footings in Thurs / Fri of last week (I am up on the Fen north of Huntingdon and we have left it really last before the weather / water table makes the site unviable until next May!). P2 excavation tomorrow with mass pour on Tues with mine to follow Wed / Thurs with mass pour all day on Friday - worked mine out today as 68 cube into the footing...