Take Two: A leap of faith
To Utah we go.
Making the decision to pull out of our plans to build near Durango was not easy. There were lots of tears, heartache, and wonderings of if this dream would ever come to fruition. Colorado has been home to my family for 30 years, and my mom especially did not want to leave the state. The reality of the cost to live, let alone build, in Colorado was hitting us hard along with the changes the state had undergone in the last 15 or so years. Ultimately these all made it somewhere we were no longer proud to call home. It’s a beautiful state, but we can’t even access the beauty or fun it offers because of traffic and cost.
My husband grew up in Utah. We had been visiting several times a year to see friends and family over the last decade and often have thought about a move there. We had reservations, yes including religious reasons, but with aching hearts my husband threw it out there, “Let me show you the beauty of Utah.”
So, on a trip to Utah we go. We visited this small string of towns in rural Utah nestled in between two mountain ranges and start checking off everything on our list. Dirt biking? Oh yeah, there’s 100s of miles of trails 10 minutes from town. Views? Absolutely breathtaking. HOA? There are both options available. Family friendly? Way more than we have felt in Colorado. And the best one…cost? Not only was building estimated to be more than 50% cheaper, cost of living seems incredibly lower. Another plus to us was access to a bigger town, and less than an hour drive takes us to big city amenities if needed.
To put it in fewer words: we fell in love. Hope rekindled.
We visited with lots in mind to look at and quickly fell in love with one. It checked more boxes than our last lot:
5 acres
views for days
Most utilities available on site
Dirt bike-able
No HOA
Close to big towns but also close to nature to play in
Another bonus was my husbands connections in the area. He has a good friend who would act as our GC and the price per square foot felt like a breath of fresh air.
For the numbers people:
5 acres of land with electricity and a well: $240,000
Price per square foot estimate: $189
We knew that we were paying more for the land, but gaining acreage. We also have to instal propane and a septic system. But the land is pretty level already and the price per square foot made this all feel possible.
If there’s one promise I can make to you at this point in the process is that building is a roller coaster of emotions. We left this trip feeling hopeful again, but the nerves and uncertainty definitely return.
Let’s dig in to where we went next.
