Maybe you’re finally about to embark on your lifelong dream of building your very own home. There’s just one problem: your plot is packed with trees, rocks, and mountains of dirt! If that’s the case, you likely won’t be building a thing until you schedule land clearing; it’s not a project that you can handle yourself without a lot of hassle.
Typically, land clearing will require heavy machinery like bulldozers and wood chippers. You’ll also need a crew licensed to operate that equipment and provide a keen knowledge of local permits, hidden utility lines, and potential soil erosion countermeasures. While it’s easiest to hire someone to handle all that heavy lifting and land-clearing administration for you, you’ll want the best people, and cost is a concern, too.
Just how much can you expect to pay to clear an acre of land, anyway? This guide from B&B Land Clearing shares more.
Cost Factors in Your Land Clearing Endeavor
On average, you’ll pay from $1,500 to $5,000 for professionals to clear one acre of land. Why the big price range?
Type of Vegetation
Is your land dotted with dozens of mature hardwood trees? Is it more akin to a barren plain with not much more than grass and brush? The type and density of vegetation play a big part in the overall cost of land clearing.
As you might expect, land clearing will cost less for plots with sparse and easily manageable vegetation. For densely forested areas with thick underbrush, the land clearers will have to break out their heavy-duty machinery, and that will naturally cost more.
Remember, land clearing for heavily wooded areas typically requires excavators, chippers, and bulldozers.
Land Accessibility and Terrain
How easy is it for a land-clearing crew to access your project site? Is your lot just a few miles from the city and already featuring ready-made roads? If so, you won’t pay nearly as much as for a hard-to-access acreage.
Expect a higher rate if workers need to cut through the wilderness to reach your building site. The type of terrain to clear also greatly impacts the cost of land clearing. It will cost a lot less for relatively flat terrain and soil that’s easily workable compared to more challenging work.
Permits Required for Land Clearing
No matter where you’re planning to build, a place like Mississippi will almost certainly need a permit (or more than one permit) to allow your land clearing to go ahead. You’ll find most counties throughout the state require permits to minimize the impact of soil erosion and protect vegetation, particularly threatened tree species.
The more permits your project requires, the longer it will take before the experts can begin work, which can increase the cost of land clearing.
Consider What Land-Clearing Services You Will Need
The type of land-clearing services significantly affects the project cost. You may need just one of these services or all of them:
- Tree removal: Many landowners call because they need trees removed before they can build. Some land-clearing companies charge by tree and others by acre, and some tree-removal methods cost more than others. If a tree is leaning or in a hard-to-reach spot, the special equipment required to fell it will cost more, too.
- Stump grinding and removal: After removing trees, you must decide what to do with the stumps. Your first option is stump grinding, which is grinding a stump down to a few inches below soil level and filling the hole with wood chips or mulch. Stump removal is a completely blank slate – roots and all – but be aware that full removal can cost significantly more than grinding.
- Soil grading and leveling: If your soil isn’t perfectly level, you’ll need to hire a crew for leveling before you can build there. This process involves shaping the soil to create slopes. It’s important to keep water away from your house if you plan to build on a floodplain.
How To Save Money on a Land-Clearing Project
Want to save money on your land-clearing project?
- Know your goals for the project ahead of time.
- Research local zoning regulations for land clearing.
- Consider handling some of the work yourself (mowing grass or picking up twigs).
You should also hire an experienced land-clearing crew, like B&B Land Clearing.
Schedule Land Excavation and Vegetation Removal Today
Still unsure how much your land reclamation project will cost? Reach out to B&B Land Clearing at (662) 715-3931 to get a quote for land clearing and other services today!
