July 2006 - We've bought land!

So, once we'd made up our minds to do this - the first step was to buy land. We chose Big Bear Lake, CA for several reasons. It is in Southern CA near much of our friends and family and we've always enjoyed going there for vacation. It's the closest ski mountain/lake destination for Southern CA residents, hopefully making it a good investment. There are downsides though including; land is expensive, nice buildable lots are increasingly hard to find, and CA is known for having more red tape than other states. Between searching online and taking many trips to Big Bear, we looked at about 100 pieces of land.

We'd considered a few other less expensive plots and spent too much time looking at "good deals" that were low priced for reason (mostly too steep or small to be buildable). Our rule of thumb became if you have to climb on your hands and knees to get up the property, its too steep. But, we had our hearts set on a property with a view where our beautiful log home with big windows would look out proudly. So, we settled on a piece of land about a 2/3 an acre (big for CA) with awesome lake views, boulders, and backing to the national forest for extra space and privacy. We didn't have to use our hands to climb, but it is steep in front, which makes a driveway difficult and getting materials to the house site a challenge. But, we were expecting a challenge and the feeling we got when we stood at the house site was worth it. So, we have the land, now to learn how to build a log home!