Property Development starts with clear and detailed knowledge of what the market wants to buy.

Real Estate Developers need to know how what buyers want to buy, at what price, and  for what size, quality and design.

Some Real Estate Developers buy land freehold, but buying an option is quite common. The advantage to buying an option is that it is cheaper, and gives the investor what he wants: a legal contract giving him to buy the land at a given price at some point in the future.

This is when the Developer checks all the costs to see if the development is a financially viable proposition.

This may be completed by your Design Consultants, your Architect or even your Builder, if it is a smaller development. It is important the design allow the developer to get the best financial return on the investment, however, it must be reasonable as the Preliminary Design Plans may be in part the basis of financing arrangements.

Real Estate Development Financing

The Development Project will need to be financed, if the developer cannot finance the work. The banker will expect to have all the paper work in place before financing can be considered to be arranged.

Real Estate Development Feasibility Study

Development cost and potential sales figures have to be a lot more 'real' but still have a degree of financial flexibility. These figures will be accurate enough to prepare a cash flow and, will allow the banker or other investors to analyse the figures.

Most Property Developers like to be sure of what they can actually develop on the land; and this means that it must have planning permission. However, the really big gains can come from buying land without Planning Permission. The latter is a more speculative approach. However, if the Real Estate Developer can take afford to wait, say, ten years, it can be easier to predict where Planning Permission will be granted and where it might be refused.

Development Finance Application

This is the process of getting the banker or another investor to loan the money to finance the Development Project. The Finance Application is a business plan geared to the needs of the lender, so it needs to address the fundamental questions: how can the loan be repaid and at what rate of return.

Detailed Construction Design Plans Drawn

Once the finance is in place, it is necessary to get detailed design plans drawn so that your builders can put together exact pricing of building costs, and the cash flow implications.

Building Costs & Estimates

The Development Plan will be a mixture of what is know and what is likely. Costing needs to be accurate. However, as with all business, time is money, so costs will change depending upon the time the development project takes.

Feasibility Study Recalculation

This is an ongoing process throughout the life of the Property Development. It must be based on a real builder's construction cost as it should be a dynamic and ongoing cash flow.

Development Marketing Promotion & Selling

The Property Developer needs to be able to tell the world all about the development. This is usually undertaken by a local estate agent. The contracts need to go through the solicitors. The terms of sale need to be clearly set out so that both seller and buyer know what he transaction is, when it will occur, and for how much, to ensure that both Developer and buyer are happy.