Cabin Lot “Quick Sheet”: What to Check Before You Buy (and How We Can Help)
by David Dial, Lead Architect of Facet Architecture and Facet Retreats™
If you’ve found a piece of mountain land that feels right, the next step is to make sure it’s the right fit for your cabin and your budget. After 40+ years designing and building across the Southeast, I’ve seen gorgeous properties turn into expensive headaches simply because key site basics weren’t checked early. This post distills our Cabin Lot “Quick Sheet” into plain English—and invites you to hop on a 30-minute call so we can apply it to your specific parcel.
The 6 Checks We Make on Every Mountain Lot
For our free checklist, you can download the one-page PDF here.
A Quick Word on Horror Stories (and How to Avoid Them)
I’ve met folks who closed on land only to learn the “easy” driveway needed switchbacks and a retaining wall the length of a boxcar. Others discovered, after conducting due diligence, that their ideal house plan didn’t fit within setbacks—or that winds on a ridge pushed their structural budget 15% higher. And more than a few learned too late that the pretty meadow was actually a septic no-go. Each one of those could have been prevented with a simple front-end Site Fit.
Our Site Fit Consultation (30 Minutes That Can Save You Thousands)
On a brief call (and a quick review of county maps, topo, and soils), we’ll:
Verify legal overlays.
Review geometry for realistic costs.
Assess utilities.
Flag risk items.
Outline a right-sized budget range.
You’ll leave with clarity: what your land can build, where the cabin wants to sit, and how to move forward without costly detours. (We serve NC/SC/GA/TN/VA.)
Building for Personal Joy and STR ROI
If you plan to rent, these Site Fit decisions directly affect your nightly rate and occupancy. Driveway convenience, view corridors, parking, hot tub and fire pit placement, and the “arrival moment” all tie back to the lot. Good siting = better photos = better ROI. We design with both guest appeal and practicality in mind to make maintenance easier.
Ready to sanity-check a lot—or one you already own?
Let’s talk. Book a free 30-minute Site Fit Call, and we’ll apply this checklist to your property, address your concerns, and outline next steps.
Email: david@facetarchitecture.com • Call: 833-322-3838 • facetarchitecture.com
Source: Facet Retreats™ “What to Know Before You Buy Land for a Cabin or Retreat” quick sheet, summarizing lot due diligence items and our Site Fit process.
