Find real estate agent that you are comfortable working with - share your wants/needs with him/her and let the agent do the ground work of finding several listings for you to go view.

If you already have a builder that you'd like to use, you can discuss the issue with the builder and ask for leads he/she may have.

Liked our lot...

But not our house.

In other words, don't restrict your search to "lots"!

But it looks like the house has a great connection to the outdoors.

First you find the general area you want to live in.

Then find a realtor that has a proven record in that area. I looked at closed listing over the previous 3 years and could see who was the selling and buying agent for all those transactions. We picked the guy who was the major player in that area (and still is years later).

Went to look at different communities with the agent.

Found a lot and made an offer.

The realtor recommended a local builder and we got another recommendation from someone on this forum. We interviewed both builders.

We used an architect (which we picked) to design our home and then had the builder bid on those plans.

What others said: to find and buy a lot, you start with someone who is in the business of finding and selling lots. A realtor.

the online aps realtor.com or zillow will allow you to pick and area and search for land / lots. Driving around also works - that's how we found ours.

We did both--asked realtors and builders. We started out by looking at houses with a realtor, then when we didn't find any that we liked, we changed our focus to lots. But we were looking in an area with a lot of lots (!) Depends on the area.

A friend of ours had recently built a house and we contacted their builder, who was able to point us to a number of open lots on the market. We eventually chose of those and he built the house for us.

Put the zipcode for the area you like in Zillow. You can limit the search to land. You can also change the search to 'Sold' property to see some history. Zillow allows you to see the lot and other property around it with the value of those properties under Neighborhood. You can scroll that map Check what utilities are available at the lot.

Take the address and put it into Google Maps. Use the yellow man icon to place yourself on the street at the property. Move around the neighborhood. Use the minus tab to back out until the view turns to overhead 3D. Move around. Now you can drive around the area if you like the location.

Ask your architect. Some architects have a good handle on the real estate in their practice area. I have helped a few clients obtain property for their build.

The lot you want may have a house on it. Teardowns are common here in Sarasota, FL, and builders are tearing them down.

Most towns have people who broker real estate.

I wonder if this is a BOT?

Knowledge chatbots are highly intelligent and can converse naturally. You be the judge.

Unmasked!

I am not sure what this is a bot? I know the "Building a Home" discussions are not very active. Maybe people realize design by internet is a poor way to design. Personal integrity is lost and they may as well rely on AI to fulfill their empty lives. Deep social ramifications. Me, I draw by hand.

they may as well rely on AI

My friend, AI, is already designing homes from scratch. (Essentially copycatting what human minds have allegedly wrought.)

We started out looking at houses in a certain area with a realtor. We were not finding what we wanted. One of the houses we looked at was really beautiful as well as the neithborhood but the house was too big for us. We learned that there were lots for sale in this neighborhood. Our realtor hooked us up with the salesman and he took us around to various lots. We ended up buying a lot.

There were several builders that were building in the neighborhood. The salesman took us to several houses built by the various builders. We talked with the homeowners. We narrowed down the builder pretty quickly. One homeowner was very reluctant to talk. My husband was able to get him talking and that builder was ruled out very quickly. Good thing because that builder and his wife ended up in jail. He took off with peoples money. The people were left with half built houses. The quality of another builder was not good. The builder we ended up with took the time to walk our lot with us. Took us through a house he was currently building and allowed us to walk the whole house and answered all our questions. He also gave us the lock box codes for 2 other houses that were being completed.

Totally depends where you live of course. We bought and built near Vancouver so we took a bought tear down and built on the lot.

To find a lot for a custom home with more space, start by searching online real estate platforms like Zillow or LandWatch for vacant land in your desired area—filter for larger lots to avoid those tiny subdivisions. A local real estate agent specializing in land or custom homes can also help you scout properties that fit your privacy needs. Custom builders often know of available lots or can guide you, but it’s smart to do some legwork yourself too. Drive around areas you like, look for “for sale” signs, or even ask locals about land opportunities. You’re not on your own, but the more proactive you are, the better your options!