Developing property can be risky and not for everyone, there are many things that can go wrong so it is important to really do your due diligence and understand the many facets involved.
I’ve compiled
what I think are the top three things to do first when embarking on a property
development. Here is Tip No. 2.
Tip 2.
Finding a good development site
Once
you have found the area you want to develop in, it then comes down to good site
selection.
When
looking at a development site consider:
-
Location
-
Aspect
-
Slope
-
Frontage
-
Depth
-
What’s on top of the land
-
What’s underneath the land
Location of your development site is obviously important, we all know that being close to community amenities is top priority whether you are planning to keep your new dwellings or sell them, being close to schools and universities, shops, transport and medical facilities is very important. You should check out the neighbours on all sides of the land to make sure there are no dog breeding kennels, chicken coups, car workshops or noisy businesses that may make the location undesirable for tenants. Ask the locals about crime rates and take a drive around the streets to get a ‘feel’ for the area. Trust your gut feel or intuition; we will often get an instant negative feeling if something is not quite right.
Aspect is the
direction the land faces; north, south, east or west. It’s important to have the living areas of
your development as close to facing north as possible to maximise natural
light. Aspect is also very important for
the energy rating of your development.
The
slope of the block is important.
Most people think a dead flat block may be good for developing, whilst it may
be better than a steeply sloping site but you may need to build up the site
with fill and retain it to meet drainage issues. So the ideal block will slope
or fall slightly to the street which will assist with natural stormwater runoff
and drainage.
A
wider frontage or width of the block
is usually desirable particularly if you are looking at a medium density
development as you will be losing some of the width to a driveway to access the
rear dwellings. Some councils have a calculation as to how wide the driveway
needs to be based on the number of dwellings. So make sure you have taken this
into consideration and have a wide enough block.
Depth is important
and will determine how many dwellings you may get onto the land. Be careful with very deep blocks as the
deeper the block, the longer the driveway. A long driveway can add thousands to
your costs. You may also need to run services such as sewer, water, gas and
electricity from the front of the block to the back, depending on where the
connection points for these services are located.
What’s on top
of the land? For a quick assessment,
take a look around to see how many large trees may need to be cleared, a mature
gum tree can cost up to $5,000 to remove, so if there are a few of these, you
will need to allow more for you site clearing costs. Also look out for asbestos
sheds on concrete slabs which are expensive to remove. If there is an existing
house that you plan to keep, check there is good access to the back of the
block for the large site clearing machinery that may be required.
What’s
underneath the land? In some regional areas,
you should check for old mines. If you
know it’s a mining area, then you can apply to the local mine board for a
subsidence report. You can still build
over an old mine, but it adds considerable foundation costs. Is there a natural
water course running under the land? The
soil type is also important. In most cases, you won’t know unless you
commission a geotechnical report which is advisable to have done if after all
your research you are sure this is the correct site. It may cost around $800
but worth every cent if it means you can more easily assess projects
viability. You will also need to know
the location of the sewer line, sewer junctions and sewer manholes as some of
these may be built over but one of them most certainly cannot. You can request the sewer diagram from the
agent or the local water authority. A
detailed survey will show other important things so again, if you are serious
about the site, get a detail/contour survey done as you will need this to have
a builder or architect work on a design for your project.
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