Build a cabin in Alaska
 

Alright.. I visited Alaska in June and now I want to have a summer cabin there! Is it possible to purchase... long distance? We are looking at some lots near Soldotna, Homer and Clam Gulch. Does anyone know much about Clam Gulch? I don't hear about it much and didn't go there when in Alaska. It looks like it is near the Cook Inlet. Would this be a good place to build a cabin? The lots look beautiful. Is insurance cost higher near the ocean and do you have to carry flood insurance? Any thoughts?
Thanks!!
Tammy

Are any of my Alaskan friends available?

My immediate thought is a comment made by a woman who was building a cabin near Denali in Alaska - and working for the state government in Juneau for most of the year. Over Thanksgiving dinner in Juneau she was happilly reliving a summer's memory and shared that it got warm enough to wear short sleeves for TWO WEEKS!

Do you really want to spend that kind of money for such a long commute? Why not rent for a summer or two to see what you like - and why. Alaska's awfully big :-)

tammy63~ yes, quite possible.. Clam Gulch has hundreds of miles of trails for off road recreational vehicles, summer and winter.. very popular to own a cabin in that area.

You can google realtors on the Kenai Peninsula, and they can send you some real estate magazines too. Hope you find your getaway cabin or land to build one. I was raised in a log cabin for the first five years of my life. J.:)

Thanks friends for your comments! I hope that in the area that I'm looking at I would be able to wear short sleaves for a little longer than 2 weeks. Hopefully! Correct me if I'm wrong. I was there for a week and wore a tank top and shorts one day and got hot! (I was in Anchorage running a marathon though!)

J. - I'm glad to hear that the Clam Gulch area is nice. The trails could be for jogging in the summer too couldn't they be? That is one thing that I didn't get to do while there was check trails out.

Thanks!
Tammy

Friends of ours built north of Anchorage in Knik and had trouble getting a well that would provide enough water. After several wells and carrying water for a few years they finally engineered a storage system so water could be slowly pumped into the tank and then the reserved water would be enough for showering, etc. It doesn't matter where you build, you can run into all sorts of problems that can blow a budget. I agree, renting for a few seasons would be a good way to see how you like it. Don't forget, you probably also need earthquake insurance.
If you aren't used to living in a rural area, check into what services will be available and what won't be, costs of running electricity, etc. A friend's son is living in a yurt near Talkeetna. It was very expensive to bring in electricity and they aren't able to afford a phone line. Also check into the local building codes and regulations. The lots might look beautiful now but if they are small, you might find your future neighbors too close. Will you want someone to check your property during the winter, open it up in the summer, close it up in the fall? I think you really need to know what it's like during every month of the summer and also become familiar with local practices and habits. People get used to using other people's land when there's no one living there. There might be a popular nearby ATV trail that will drive you crazy. Although we do not live in AK, our new property has been popular with hunters for a long time. We have allowed hunting to continue but we no longer allow anyone and everyone to use our driveway and farm roads to get deeper into the woods. We also require the hunters to follow state law and have a signed permission from us to build tree stands, etc.

tammy~ I can verify that during our summers on the Kenai, wearing a sunscreen is just as important and necessary as anywhere else. Our 75-80 degrees feels much more intense for whatever reason.
Visiting friends and relatives are often surpised at how warm it is, May-August, depending on that year's weather systems. Many a sunburn can be seen in the grocery stores and hardward fishing supply places!

Certainly a marine climate is cooler with the wind.. we lived in the Aleutians and the weather is much different than where we are presently.
My husband spent half a summer working in Petersburg, and it was beautiful and dry 95% of the time he spent there.(S.E.)
The areas you expressed an interest in also have year round residents. I know people who housesit during the winters, young teaching couples are often quite reliable and have good references.
Consider all the benefits/options if you are serious. One thing is the land has steadily increased each year due to the popular recreation access available all year.

Good luck, and if I can be of further help, please let me know, J.((F))

Having bult a cabin in Alaska ourselves many years ago, I would strongly suggest you not buy long distance. You need to go and look at the lots, find out all there is to know about water, access roads, electricity, and so on. Orientation to the sun may be very important, as are details about building codes and insurance.

Once again you have provided wonderful information for me and I so appreciate it! I never even thought of earthquake insurance?? Is that standard for most residents or just in the area that I am looking?

Never had e-quake insurance.

Not that common. for instance, allstate dropped Alaska quake coverage in 2006. At that time about 15 percent of the property insurance they sold included optional quake coverage.

Interesting figure: Some 54 companies offered earthquake insurance in 2004, taking in premiums totaling $12.3 million and paying out $36,000.

Heckuva deal ... if you're an insurance company.

We purchased land in Soldotna through a land auction, sight unseen. Of course we were familiar with the general area but not each specific lot. Our lot ended up being okay but some of the lots are significantly sloped, marshy, etc. I'd recommend whenever possible you look at what you're buying. Why not take another trip to Alaska, since you plan to be a "regular" anyway and take the time to look around. It'd be fun. Also, keep in mind that cabin aren't mobile. I've known some that wish they were in an RV and mobile versus stationed in a cabin.

I have contacted a realator and she seems to be very helpful.. of course! Anyway, she mentioned "ground quality" which I never even thought of or heard of until then. Is that maybe refering to some land being "marshy"? Does that mean that the land holds water?

So what did you do with the land you bought near Soldotna and how did you do a land auction without being there???

Thanks!!

Visit at the end of May to go land shopping. You will see the fresh results of the winter's snow melt, which is what causes the "marshy" clumps in the lot. We purchased land after our 5th trip to AK. We will be building our cedar home in 2 more years when we retire to Homer.

Building a cabin in Alaska, how good does that sound? I would loveit.

In response: Yes, as the others said some of the land can be very "soft", wet, like a marsh. Not good for building a property on.

There are periodic auctions. We bid on the land sight unseen as mentioned. Each parcel went to the highest bidder. It was a risk of course but sometimes the land can be purchased at a less expensive price that way. I am sorry, I don't even remember how we heard about the land auction.

We didn't do anything with the land for years but recently we turned it into our own mini campground. There are places for 4 RV's (for family and friends), Barbecue table, fire pit, and outhouse. We left as many trees as possible to provide privacy from the road and between camp sites.

There doesn't appear to be any type of rules for the land so "neighbors" have done a variety of things. There just a few year round homes, a few cabins, a few places where people use tents/RV's, weather shelters, a whole variety of uses we've seen for the different lots.

Well.. we did it! We bought some land and are hoping that it is all we hope it is. We will make a trip in June to "see" it. Thanks everyone for you tips!! You all are FABULOUS!

How exciting! I hope you love what you see in June.

Just a suggestion: Don't ask Perry Edward Smith for help.

Who is that?

UPDATE! Well, the time is drawing near! We are so very excited. We will be leaving May 28th taking my parents with us for their first visit to Alaska. They are in their early 70's and they don't know what to think. They are very nervous they are going to be COLD! They are so funny. I can't wait for them to see the beauty of Alaska. I hope we aren't taking them too early so they won't be so cold. We will only be there a week and fly home. We will be doing the "touristy" thing with them. Including Anchorage, Seward and Homer. We will also get to go view our purchase that we made in November in Clam Gulch. That is the scariest part for us. We will fly home on June 4th. AND THEN... the party begins.. LOL! My husband and I bought a small fifth wheel and when we get home.. you guessed it.. we are hitting the road for an adventurous road trip to Alaska! We aren't sure how long it will take but we are going to take our time. My husband is retired and I am a teacher so will be off from school. I do have a summer job that I need to get back to though. We are guessing it will take us about a week to ten days to make our final destination in Clam Gulch. We plan to drive up to Fairbanks and Denali on our way since we haven't been there before. We will stay at RV places all along the way I guess! Has any of you done this? Are we crazy??? When we reach our destination of Clam Gulch we hope to park the RV on the land and hopefully start looking at builders to see what we can do. We really won't know until we get there. I will stay with hubby about a week and then will fly home by my lonesome! (SAD FACE).. but I have to work. He is planning to stay until near the end of August to see how much he loves it.. that lucky duck! Our son-in-law is planning on flying up early August and making the drive back with him. Any suggestions or comments?? Sorry so long but am VERY EXCITED!!!

You might try a google search. I think I've seen a website for newcomers to Alaska who exchange tips and advice. The realtor might be a good place to start for names of builders. Also the Home Depot in Soldotna/Kenai. A relative who used to live in that area (rented) bought a flat bed trailer from someone who would drive up a load of expensive lumber every year then sell the lumber and the trailer. When you visit you might compare the prices of some key items such as plumbing fixtures with back home. If you are planning to drive up again, it might be worth your while to bring some building materials with you. A bathtub might be too big but certain tools, electrical supplies etc might be worth toting. Shipping to AK is expensive. But the price of fuel is expensive now, too.
Best wishes!

Where are you starting your travels from? Clam Gulch is roughly 3+ hours from Anchorage on a good day. Denali to Anchorage is 6-8 hours on a good day as well. With that in mind, it will take at least 2 days to get from the Canadian border to Clam Gulch. Just an FYI, you can buy building supplies in Soldotna and it will not cost too much more than the lower 48. While you are there, you might want to get your land perc tested to see if you will be able to get water and whether or not a waste system can be installed on your land. We are 2 years away from completing our build and making the trip via RV from the East Coast, so I know your excitement.

Hello! Homer will be a beautiful place for you to retire! I am excited for you too.

Who do we get to do a "land perc" test and will it tell both whether water and septic will be able to take? We will be very disappointed if that is a problem. Both the realator and the seller knows that our intentions are to build so I hope they have an idea. Do you think they would just .."know" or would the test be the only way to tell?

The place that we bought is in a newly developed sub-division. The cult-a-sac road isn't even in yet. The terms in the contract are that the electric has to be brought up to our lot line and the road down to our property off of sterling highway be done by December '08. We talked to the seller yesterday and he said that the road is started but has a ways to go. We will meet him when we go the end of May so that he can show us the lot lines.

My husband talked to a builder the other day and he said that he was really booked this summer. We would really like to have someone put the "shell" up and have my husband finish out the inside.

Are you all planning to build your own?

We are driving from Oklahoma. Please gas prices DON'T RISE ANY MORE!!!

Know you know why I say 2 years till we plan move. We learned that to have a house built, you must schedule the build a season ahead as the snow does not melt till mid June and starts to fall again in September. If you purchased the land as part of a sub division, there have been a perc test completed as part of the subdivision. Check with your realtor. p.s. you don't want to know what the local price of gasoline is outside of Anchorage is currently. Just remember, this is a priceless journey you have begun.

Yes, you are right, if there is a will there is a way and it will be worth every penny. Have you made the drive before or do you always fly?

Yes, I understand that we may not be able to start the building process until next summer and that is ok too.

I'm assuming you already have your parcels purchased?? How large will your lots be and how many square feet are you planning for your house? Will you be slightly out of town or in town? Are you visiting this summer?

We have almost 2 acres.We are not "downtown" as the locals refer, rather up on the hill. We have not made the trip but son & daughter in law made the trip twice once from the middle of the country and the other from Oregon. They tell us, it's the section thru Canada that gets trying and if we survive that section, the rest will be fine. They tried to limit the driving to 8-9 hours a day. We normally fly to Anchorage and adventure from there.
We have been to Alaska in the spring, summer and the dead of winter. We wanted to visit during all seasons to make sure we could handle the climate changes. Just an FYI, winter is more beautiful than summer if you can imagine.

Please, please don't take offense at this - I really wish you the very best luck in building a dream cabin in Alaska, and I have no reason to suspect that it will turn out to be anything but an enjoyable experience for you.

However, I've built a lot of housing in the bush and in reading your more recent posts I have to tell you my hairs are sort of standing up.

You bought undeveloped property sight unseen in <i>November?</i> And you're asking <i>now</i> about perc tests? Eesh.

Hopefully the land developer is reputable and before the Borough approved the subdivision plan they insured that the developer had conducted adequate soils tests to guarantee that the lots that were created are capable of supporting on-site water and sewage disposal. If you're going to be relying on an on-site well for your water, and an on-site septic tank and drain field for sewage disposal, the soil needs to be capable of absorbing the wastewater in a not-too-fast, not-too-slow manner (requiring &quot;percolation&quot; tests to determine) to make sure the waste water doesn't contaminate the well water. Two acres is often enough to ensure no conflict, but it's entirely based on specific tests on your parcel, not on any other nearby parcels' tests.

Buying in November offers no help to anybody in land sales - everything's frozen and under snow so you can't see from the types of vegetation present if it looks like swamp (poor drainage) or well-drained soils. It's really a gamble most people would not take.

Hopefully you have some fallback provisions in your sales contract - in case the site doesn't perc, etc. If not, you should probably look around for an attorney who can help resolve these problems, which unfortunately are rather common in rural Alaska.

If things appear okay, any surveying firm or soils consultant can help arrange the tests and septic/well designs that will allow you to build.

All the best to you and best of luck.

Good luck. There's a high % you will need it. I agree with the previous poster. I'm surrounded by former farm land that has been divided into 5 acre lots. Not a &quot;subdivision&quot;. Each lot faces a country road. 1 out of the 20 lots does not &quot;perc&quot;. The owner will never be able to build there. I have no idea what he plans to do with that land. He can't build. He has a tractor stored there and periodically someone comes out and cuts the grass - not for hay, but to just cut it. There's always that chance. If you can't live there, I can't imagine building there in short yearly segments. Good luck.

Gardyloo,
No offense for sure. I appreciate your thoughts and concerns and am hoping for the best as well. We are very trusting people.. which hopefully doesn't turn out to stab us in the back. I would hope that noone would knowingly try to hurt us but am sure that it could happen. We will go find out and hopefully our bubble won't be burst. We will keep you updated. We purchased to parcels which totals 3.9 acres if that helps any??? We are supposed to have a view of Mt. Redoubt.. the pictures look great of course. The property is about a mile from the cook inlet so don't know whether that is good or bad concerning &quot;perc&quot;. Thanks again!

bdawk,
I bet you will have an amazing view there in Homer up on the hill! You lucky thing! I am so glad to hear that the winter is great too. There certainly will be less tourism then. Is the &quot;freezing&quot; cold more tolerable in such beauty?? I BET!!! It probably feels different too.

Hi Tammy

Although I live quite a ways from the area you propose to build,(SE Alaska), I think I can give you some helpful info. We also recently bought a parcel trough closed bid auction from Alaska Mental Health trust.
I think first thing, you need to make sure who owns the surrounding property. If it is state owned, chances are that future development is not likely. If it is Mental health trust, you might have a couple of too close neighbors too soon, kinda spoiling the idea of a secluded cabin.
Please realize that there is a lot of things regarding building that people from the lower forty eight take for granted. You will most likely not have access to any utilities (even though it is a subdivision - our house is going to be 500 yards from the highway. currently there is no road or utilities leading up to it). You will most likely be responsible for building all access roads to your property. This could easily become more costly than actually building your cabin.
Luckily for us in SE, we do not have water issues-simply put up a 3500 or 5000 gallon plastic water tank and you are good to go. Since my husband is in the water/wastewater supply industry, I will not make specific recommendations.
And as other people mentioned, drainage is incredibly important.

Otherwise, congratulations!

<i>Luckily for us in SE, we do not have water issues</i>

Aah, AKGal, you are obviously someone who sees the cistern half full :)

<i>Luckily for us in SE, we do not have water issues...</i>

Understatement of the decade. ;)

Hi Repete.
I'm not quite following you.

Gal:
A cistern (or glass) half full person would say SE &quot;doesn't have water issues.&quot;

A cistern (or glass) half empty person would note that folks who live there have web feet ...

That's a good one! I grew up in a very dry country so I don't mind the rain at all. I'm still getting used to the idea that people collect rain water for household use.

As I am an avid builder developer/lodge owner I would suggest this......

Do not let them Know you are from out of state if you do plan on building thru a local contractor, nothing against them but prices do go up....

If you are dead serious about having a cabin, do make note that you should know the land before you purchase it and MORE important meet your neighbors, becuase this will definantly help....

Knowing someone to watch over your place while you are not here is an important factor or after a long long winter of being absent you may find the cabin emptied...... :)

Homer is wonderful yet spendy, clam gulch is a nice area and located not to far from soldotna for groceries, river property in soldotna is exspensive, but also very nice.. Another place to look down towards clam gulch area is the south end of kalifornski beach road it has some nice ocean view properties..... Good luck and see you in the neighborhood.

Man, this is thread is why I love this place. So much helpful info. ((y))
Tammy you're certainly living my dream, you lucky lady you. :) I wish you the best in this complicated endeavour.

Hello ImAlaskan! Thanks for your helpful information. The original property owner is going to meet us when we get there and hopefully guide us in the right direction. My husband is a great carpenter himself but can't handle a job like this himself. It would take him too long. He will probably want to do all of the finish work inside. He will just need help with the frame .. I guess that's what you call it..??..

Tzarinna.. thanks for your kind words and encouragement! If you have a dream.. make it happen! look forward to your future. Start planning now on how to achieve your dream.. ok??

Ha,thanks, Tammy. :)

Well.. got another update for all of my helpful friends! I LOVE IT! I just returned from a one month stay including the 10 day trip up. My husband is still up there clearing trees. We will start the building next summer. Thanks for all of your help!!