Property development can be daunting so I’ve put together some
FAQs to help address some of the important questions that will arise as you
start your development.
This has been broken down to a three part series;
1.
Getting Started (as seen last Thursday)
2.
Design, Planning and Approvals
3.
Construction Time
2. Design,
Planning and Approvals
Winston Churchill
famously once said “He who fails to plan, plans to fail”.
The design and
planning phase of your property development will directly impact your end
result. So this is a very important
stage. Don’t rush it, take time to think
about what you want to achieve and ensure you are happy with each milestone
before proceeding on, as it can be costly to turn back and start again.
Who do I need in my team for this phase of
my project?
You’ll need a
surveyor, architect or draftsperson, builder, town planning consultant (not
always necessary), the local council, perhaps a private certifier and a
development project manager such as Property Bloom if you are time poor or
inexperienced. Also your accountant can play an important role in helping you
run your feasibility studies.
Where do I start?
You must start
with clear concept of what you want to achieve.
Here are some questions to ask yourself...
How many dwellings
do you want to get onto the land?
How much equity do
I want to create by developing this land?
What does the DCP
(development control plan) allow?
Design single or
double story dwellings – what does the market want?
Are you building
to hold or sell?
Who is the target
market – tenants or owner occupiers?
If holding, what
do tenants look for in rental properties?
What is the demand
for the number of bedrooms?
What do I need to
do to differentiate my development in the market?
How much can you
finance? It’s extremely important to
have a preapproval on your development finance so you know you can complete
your project.
What is the best
structure to purchase and develop in?
This is a good question for your accountant.
What do I do once I’ve found some land to
develop?
The first thing
you’ll need to do is to have a surveyor completed a contour and detailed
survey. Contour and detail surveys give a
true representation of the shape, features and services of a site. They
normally include manmade improvements, trees and, if required, adjoining
property information. Once you have this
survey, you can pass it onto your architect, draftsperson or builder. They need this to start on the concept plan.
Another important investigation tool is a
geotechnical report. This will classify the site, soil and wind affecting your
site. This information is important to
consider when starting on the design and critical for the engineering plans.
Do I need to
use an architect to design my project?
This will depend on your goal and the area you
are developing in. Sometimes it’s not necessary to use an architect if you know
what you’ll be building is fairly basic. But if you are looking to create
something a little different or need some expert advice on a tricky site then
engage an architect. Property Bloom has a great relationship with our builder
and we use their in-house drafting service to save our clients money. We will
use our architect for more high end developments.
Steps in the design phase include:
-
Concept plan. This
will be the first concept of what can be achieved and you can make changes to
this. You can use this plan to show the council town planner to ensure you are
designing within their guidelines. It’s easier to make any changes now then
after you’ve submitted the DA to council.
-
DA plans. Once
you’ve approved the concept plan, then you’ll move to the full Development
Application plans which are more detailed and may include other documents such
as Statement of Environmental Effects and Basix reports that need to be
submitted to council with the DA plans.
-
CC plans. Construction Certificate plans are require
after your DA has been approved. They will include engineer’s stormwater and
slab design.
How long will my DA take in council?
What a great
question and one that has many different answers. It will depend on the
complexity of your project and your council.
A single dwelling will be processed quicker than a medium density
project for instance. You may be doing a
Complying Development and not even need to lodge with council. Speak to your council to get an idea of their
processing times so you can plan this into your timeline.
Should I use a private certifier?
Property Bloom
always uses a private certifier once we’ve received our DA consent. We find it
is much quicker to obtain the Construction Certificate consent and the
inspection process during the build phase is usually also speeded up when using
a private certifier. To us this is well worth the small additional cost as time
is money.
What is a Project Schedule?
At Property Bloom
we prepare an initial project schedule that shows our clients the estimated
timeline for the project. We use this tool to cross check each phase and gauge
how we are progressing. Each project is
different and will take different amounts of times over each phase, but our job
is to keep the project moving forward as efficiently as possible. so using the
services of a project manager can really assist especially if it’s your fist
project as you’ll learn so much from being guided through the often complex
process of property developing.
How do I complete a Feasibility Study?
It’s important you
undertake a detailed feasibility analysis before you decide to proceed with
your development. There are various
software around you can use, but you’ll need to know what estimates to include,
that’s the tricky bit. At Property Bloom
we base our analysis on recent and similar projects we have completed. As we’ve
project managed over 50 developments in the Hunter Region of NSW, we have a
very good idea on the costs involved and are able to make quite accurate
estimates. From your analysis, you need
to calculate the expected cost of the project and likely profit or equity that
you can create from it and gross yields if you are planning to hold. Once you’ve completed your feaso, keep
updating it with the actual costs as you proceed through the project to keep
track of the viability your development.
“Planning is bringing
the future into the present so that you can do something about it now” Alan
Lakein. That’s what I love about
property development....bringing the future into the present. You really can’t spend too much time on the
design and planning phase of your development, but try not to get overwhelmed
by all the detail. Whilst, this is the
most time consuming phase, remember to step back and visualise the ‘big
picture’ to ensure you keep moving forward towards your end goal.
