"Do I reach out to local builders and get quotes, and pick one to help us navigate all the steps/processes that need to be done?"

Yes, because you can't get the thing that you need the most and that's leverage over subs. You're a onesie and will probably stay that way. Subs will flirt with you, but when Daddy calls, you're toast; contract, schmontract.

Get a survey of the property first. Meet with an architect to design a lovely home for the spot and find a builder. Or meet with a builder who works with architects and have them work together. Or find a design build firm. You cannot do this without support.

When we built we found a builder first. For us we felt like that would be the longest relationship so worth getting it set first. Even with lots of thought on our part and being selective it still was far from smooth sailing.

The builder gave us a list of designers and architects they had successfully worked with in the past and we met with several of them and chose one off the list thinking a past working relationship would help.

Having the builder actively involved in design with us was good because they caught some cost saving options and guided the designer on a few things that would have been bad calls.

Lake lots have lots of environmental/build size/scenic/restrictions. You need an architect that is familiar with them, and with all of the expensive reports required to develop it.

Classic tank and leach field septics are usually not allowed because of the high water table and need to keep the water clean. Your well will have similar concerns. Flloding can be a concern, and the cost of flood insurance.

You need an architect for the design phase. No plopped plan ever fits all of the restrictions. You'll also need a builder to build the plan, and to offers cost control advice during the planning phase.

1 room ”lake cabins” are things of the past. So are the antique costs assiciated with those. If you are not willing to spend from $250-400 a square foot for this, sell the lot and buy something else not on a lake. Smaller, more efficient, classically attractive, homes cost *more* per square foot than rambling large inefficient ugly ones.

Find the website for the county that regulates your property.

https://dnr.wi.gov/topic/shorelandzoning/documents/shorelandzoninglandownerinfo.pdf

https://www.vilascountywi.gov/departments/administration___officials/zoning_and_planning/index.php

I have family in Vilas County. They used architects be to design houses on their respective lakes to last them. My uncle's architect designed their ranch home in 1960 that served their then-young family well to the end, not long ago. My cousin had their home designed to accommodate a health issue that they know is coming. It's an amazing house, but doesn't look over-the-top, or ADA even though it is, it's just perfect.

Neither plan would ever be in a builder's portfolio of standard plans. Because those standard plans are not designed for you, but for, well, nobody, just some fictional idea of a person..

@Joseph Corlett, LLC your recommendation to secure a builder SO they deal with subs is a good one. The proprty is in Wisc. and I live in Colorado, SO I will not be able to deal with vetting & securing subs and/or managing the project as a whole

@WestCoast Hopeful a common theme mentioned by many is to hire an architect for the 'design phase' and work with the architect & builder through the design.

This makes sense but I am wondering how do you pick the builder BEFORE having the home designed? If I dont have blue prints/the design, how do you pick a builder when you dont know what they will charge to build the home/manage the project?

We picked the builder first because we would work with them directly the longest. Meeting their team and learning about their management style and who would work with us and what it would all look like as a team. We focused on fit in communication and who we trusted.

We also toured a home they were building to see if we thought it was nice. This didn’t mean much as hard to know what to look for in 30 mins. Our best resource was a reference who they didn’t give us but who used them for a project. Those insights were awesome and helpful.

The builder gave us sample budgets for similar sized homes to us. We knew this was very open and not accurate to our build but it gave us a peak at how they produced their budgets, itemized things, and how often they went over and by how much.

Another local resource will be realtors. Maybe even the one involved in your lot sale. They've been dealing with homes in the area for years. In the lake area I'm familair with one office gets some of the best listings. And they know a lot.

Recently a friend in Northern Mchigan used Amish builders for a pole barn construction project. No difficulties. https://amishamerica.com/amish-builders-wisconsin/

"This makes sense but I am wondering how do you pick the builder BEFORE having the home designed? If I dont have blue prints/the design, how do you pick a builder when you dont know what they will charge to build the home/manage the project?"

Architects are subs on jobs like this. Just like a plumber or electrician, your builder has a relationship with a good architect. Houzz is replete with posters who went architect first, paid thousands, only to find out that while the math on the drawings was excellent, the math on budget to get it built was off to the point of unfeasability. No one has his fingers on the pulse of the local building costs better than a builder or GC.

Joseph exactly! Thank you for clarifying this was our experience to a tee!

Just chiming in that picking a builder first is what we did as well.

OP: You pick a builder based on their portfolio, your meeting(s) with them, references, and whether you think they will be a good fit for your project. You maybe don't start with the guy who just built a $13 million estate in Door County. You look for builders who work on homes in your price range and you talk to them about their process. They will be able to tell you if what you want to do will fit within your budget.

Unfortunately building is expensive. Cost varies based on a lot of factors - how much foundation and roof, what your finishes are, how much you need to do to the land (septic/well/clearing/grading are not cheap). You are really talking about building a custom home, not a cabin. We went through a custom process last year in MN - even minimizing our square footage of foundation and roof, our cost came in at $240/SF. That was at the beginning of price increases due to covid - so while lumber prices have come back down a bit, labor definitely hasn't, and I would expect that if we bid our house today it would be even more.

The first step required before hiring anyone to design or build a structure will require a shore land assessment to know what you can build and where it can be built. Only then can you go forward with any development and some expertise is needed of the State, county (if in an unincorporated area of the county) or city and village ordinances. There are minimum requirements set forth in State statue but local levels can amend them to be more restrictive.

Without knowing anything about your lake lot or location I can't even speculate what restrictions are involved with the lot and only can generalize based on the state minimum restrictions regulating shore land development. Until it's assessed and plotted on a map no plans should be made with designs or desires, and costs can't even be guessed. You will need to prepare a plot plan yourself or hire someone knowledgeable to assist and submit for review by the county. (advised before spending any money on anything until you're certain you can build within the boundary's allowed.) It's not hard, only learning the requirements in the ordinances are.

The plot plan should be made on a copy of the lot survey. It should show the normal high water level of the lake and the 75' setback from the high water mark. {This land is off limits to development}. Sides and front setbacks should be shown along with any wet lands. (wet lands within 1000' and body of water are off limits and can not be disturbed.)

You mentioned slope and a fine line divides the difference between a slope and bluff by 1%. If the slope you mentioned exceeds 30% over a defined distance it is considered a bluff and a new set of setbacks are required from the top of the bluff. If there are any questions it may even be close to 30% the topography will need to be plotted over distance. (I've seen lake lots people have purchased who forfeited to the state because the lot had a bluff to the shoreline and were unable to build considering all the setbacks.)

Once your have a good plot plan and a topographic map now you will be able to select a design and size which will work and get a estimates on construction. The topography will determine if you can build a walkout basement and believe you can't dig into the shoreline setback to achieve the walkout.

The Normal high water level of every lake should be found in published data of the lake by the DNR.

@Joseph Corlett, LLC 'Architects are subs on jobs like this' this makes sense...makes complete sense to me. Thank you!!!

@outpaientzero Ordinary High Water Mark, 35' vegetation buffer zone, Viewing & Access Corridor) (35% of lot width at shoreline), 75’ structure set back from Ordinary High

Water Mark (OHWM), septic, well, bordering property, and road set backs.... AGREED...all things that need to be surveyed, marked, and considered to define building envelope....also. Yes, need to consider 'slop' and if that affects anything. SO MANY VARIABLES.

https://www.barroncountywi.gov/vertical/sites/%7B55B35465-9825-4C7F-A839-E0EDFC6408E8%7D/uploads/Setbacks_effective_2019.pdf

Thanks for your input

@anj_p thanks for your input and information. Where in MN you build, willing to share any photos?

Our Property is on a smaller lake near Cumberland, Wisconsin

@dan1888 We found an Amish group (Shrock's Hilly Acres in Chetek, Wisconsin. Ivan Schrock is the builder) that builds garages, homes, and cabins on their property and transport them to location. We LOVE their styles, looks, quality, and price. UNFORTUNATELY, they are BOOKED 4+ years out and not even adding people to the waitlist.

@Thomas Lombard unfortunately at that price we couldn't justify the cost. Especially since we know estimates are just that and it would've likely cost us much more in the end. We ended up building with a tract builder instead. Ours is a regular old suburban home outside of St. Paul, not a lake home - but maybe we can do that in retirement :). I liked the process through the builder as (in our case) it didn't cost us TOO much to get bid plans, so we could explore the possibilities without spending $10k (likely more) and ending up with a set of plans we couldn't afford to build.

"IF I know the floor plan we mostly like, do I hire a drafter to create and tweak the plan...and use that to get quotes?"

Work with an architect to create a plan you totally like and fits your site. The architect should work for you, and not be a "sub" to the builder or anyone else. If the architect does not have a handle on construction costs, pay a competent builder to estimate the cost of the design at the schematic design, design development, and construction drawing stages of the project. If you select the builder prior to biding, they can provide cost estimates during the design process. A good architect will be able to advise you through the entire process.

"UNFORTUNATELY, they are BOOKED 4+ years out and not even adding people to the waitlist."

Maybe great builders, but very poor businesspersons. They aren't charging nearly enough and that diserves their customers.

If they're not adding to the wait list ask if they can suggest others to check with.

@Mark Bischak, Architect I agree the architect should work for me...just as the builder works for me. I took the comment of @Joseph Corlett, LLC as the builder has a relationship with the architect like a sub...they both work together to design, create, and implent & often I will will work with both to create MY product.

The builder's relationship with the architect is nothing like a subcontractor (sub). The architect designs the building, the contractor builds it. When that relationship gets blurred the architecture suffers, which may be part of the reason we see the junk built over the past several years.

If you do not get the architect involved first, to lead you through the minefield of all of the paperwork and restrictions involved with the design parameters, *before* the design begins, then the compliance failure of all of that, rests on you. It’s a full time job multi year job to educate yourself enough to navigate a complicated build. No ”preselected” plan can even get close to what needs to occur for this build.

You might as well sell the lot if the needed front end experts won’t be hired. You’ve got 2+years and 100K in expenses before you turn a spade of soil.

Thomas in a custom build everyone ultimately works for you.

The architect should communicate directly with you and the builder when needed.

The builder with you and include architect when needed.

Neither the builder nor architect are above one another in the pecking order. They both work for you together to make your house a reality. This needs to be a good working relationship all around. Anyone in isolation won’t work. There are too many stories of builder plans gone wrong because appropriate design skipped or not done. Equally as many beautiful architect design plans tossed because too expensive to build or not close to homeowner budget. Build a team that gets your dream, your budget, and communicates. Work together to make this a reality allow the architect and builder to show their strengths and collaborate.

If you have exceptional ability and a great deal of luck you may be able to pull this off.

My very strong recommendation would be to hire a pro, watch them closely and learn all you can, and then try to be your own GC on your *next* build.

@strategery I am taking yours and all the other recommendations.

Hire 2 PROs to Start

An Architect & a Builder.

The 3 of us are going to work together to design, plan, and make it happen

The architect takes the lead in designing a home with you, the builder advises in constructibility and costs.

We just finished a total renovation of an old family cottage on a lake in NW Michigan. I would second kevin9408. Talk to the zoning administrator for the township or village government unit to whom you will pay taxes. Speaking from experience, you will have to deal with soil erosion and set back issues AND neighboring property owners. You might want to get an idea of which contractors “get along” with local government and know how to adjust plans. Lake lots are pretty precious — the fact that you found one makes me wonder why it wasn’t already built on — there may be something more difficult to maneuver in the design of your home. We had a very good contractor who was good friends with the township supervisor (small towns are like that) and it helped with adjusting the zoning to accommodate our needs. Despite all of that, they managed to site it so that one corner is in the road right-of-way (one lane dirt road classified as a county highway — ridiculous). Don’t go anywhere with the architect until you know what local zoning will demand.

A local architect will be familiar with local zoning ordinances and will be able to help you navigate through zoning requirements.

N - Without invading your privacy, which northern Michigan small town did you build in/near? My practice is mostly from Ludington to Petoskey.

We’re in the neighborhood for sure. There are good architects and there are . . . others as you likely know. And zoning ordinances and existing boundaries in historic lake communities in Michigan/Wisconsin are not the easiest to work around — road ends, roads that were there and aren’t anymore, etc. We have a very old cottage and are in the midst of working through the garage siting glitch so I’d rather not be more specific. Architects, builders, and even zoning and planning involving the township board can still collaborate to create a new problem when dealing with old property and odd right-of-ways. A cousin inherited a cottage down the road whose driveway for the past 50 years is technically a road end for a road that was platted back in the day but never built. She’s been advised it will cost nearly $50,000 to change that designation so they can build a proper garage and expand their cottage. It’s all crazy and not for the faint of heart.

I (unfortunately) totally understand.

Her “road end” would go straight into a bluff in 50 feet. The one lane dirt road that’s our problem goes up a steep hill with a 30 foot drop off on our side of the road and a bluff up on the other side. Ain’t no way it’s ever going to be wider than a 1-lane road (just a couple of other home up the hill before it dead ends), but the road commission magically says it’s 35 feet wide (on their drawings) hence the corner of our carefully contemplated and sited carriage house corner is less than 1 foot into the technical right-of-way affecting the rest of the real estate. Waterfront property is special.