While single family home and condo sales pique the imagination, sales of residential lots for a build, or investment, constitute a big part of our real estate market.  Lot value is always considered when deciding whether to build a home or purchase a resale and is a huge driver in home values.  This is especially telling when supplies of ready to build lots become scarce.

There have been nearly 6000 sales of residential home sites of an acre or less in the greater Southport/Oak Island area since early 2005 to the present.  They have ranged in price from less than $1000 to over $1,000,000 for oceanfront building lots in Caswell Beach and in the King's Lynn area of Oak Island when  purchased at the height of the market. 

To view last year's building lot sales in each of the MLS areas I work, click on the links with that area's name in it.  They are much easier to navigate on a laptop than a phone. 

A mix of old and new Southport has some water front lots along the Cape Fear River, the Intracoastal Waterway and Dutchman's Creek. There are areas with homes built at the beginning of the last century and newer neighborhoods featuring a variety of building styles. The waterfront lots and those within a few blocks of Downtown Southport and the waterfront are generally the most valuable.      

Listed at $175,000, this is one of the widest building lots in "The Landing."  The property allows for a left-side garage entry if you have the home oriented towards the Cape Fear. The lot is wide with a rear property line almost 190 feet across.

The Landing is close to Southport and has a pool and clubhouse overlooking the Cape Fear River.  Click on the video above to see where this property is in The Landing and more views of this very desirable neighborhood. 

Celebrating 20 years as a corporate entity, St. James Plantation is the premier gated community in Brunswick County.  Building lots here can be had on the Intracoastal Waterway, one of the creeks, lakes, ponds or with scenic views across the marshes.  With 81 holes of golf, there are plenty of building lots can be found on tees, greens or along the fairways, near the parks or within walking distance of one of the clubhouses or pools. Not as convenient to the beaches, the lots are larger with a third of an acre being typical.  The average residential home resale in St. James is over 2700 square feet. Lots sales here over the past year ranged from just under $20,000 up to $300,000.  Anything over $200,000 was one of the larger golf course lakes, the Intracoastal Waterway, or had views of the Intracoastal Waterway.       

This building lot is on the Intracoastal Waterway in St. James Plantation.  There are  pier restrictions here, but the lot is within walking distance of the St. James Marina with both wet slips and high and dry storage. Listed at $320,000.  St. James is heavy on amenities with multiple golf courses, clubhouses, restaurants pools and a myriad of clubs and other activities. Click on the link above for video and views of other homes on Harborside Way.            .

Oceanfront lots have incomparable views but many of the second and even third row lots in the Beach Area of Oak Island have water views as well.  Those views can be either to the ocean or back across the marshes to Davis Canal and Montgomery Slough.  Waterfront lots along Montgomery Slough are particularly attractive to kayakers, conoers and fisherman.  All homes built in Oak Island Beach Area have vacation rental potential. In the past year the price rangers here have been between just under $100,000 to over $500,000. 

The smallest MLS area I work, Caswell Beach is known for wide ocean front lots, second row lots with fantastic views back across the Cape Fear River and golf course lots around the Oak Island Golf Club. There are so few sales in this area that the link below includes lot sales from the last two years.  That price range has been between $117,000 and $375,000 over the past couple of years.   

The community  furthest from the beaches, so the most affordable lots.  Larger than found closer to the beach lots here often measure a  quarter acre. BSL has sewer, but many homes are on septic.  Properties require a perk permit in order to install a septic field and build a home in the absence of sewer.  Because many lots can't gain a perk permit, they will remain lower priced until sewer is available.  In the past calendar year the properties that have sold for less than $10,000 are almost exclusively in BSL and are not buildable. Boiling Spring Lakes was also hit very hard by Hurricane Florence, resulting in the catastrophic failure of the dam holding the The Big Lake (Patricia Lake) and some of the smaller lakes. Still drained, the property values around the Big Lake and North Lake will remain depressed until the dam is rebuilt. The most expensive lot sale this year was $60,000.              

The most sales activity on Oak Island occurs here.  The Wooded Area has lots north of Oak Island Drive and extends to Oak Island Estates.  There are plenty of Intracoastal Waterway lots on Yacht Drive and more waterfront lots on Davis Canal.  Most of those lots are located at the end of the roads with Southeast and Southwest addresses. The Wooded area has the most affordable lots within walking distance of the beaches at Oak Island and lot sales here are typically active. Non waterfront lots were selling here in the lower 30's just a few years ago. In the past year the sales have all been between $40,000 and $200,000 except for one lot on the Intracoastal Waterway.  

Off the island and between the waterway and Southport, properties here are convenient to the island but, because it is on the mainland side, with lower insurance costs.  Beaver Creek, Oakwood Glen and South Harbor Village are the larger communities in this area.  In the last year there have only been a handful of sales recorded in the Oak Island Mainland side. .