Developers and Builders are always on the lookout for their next deal, and if you are selling your land you do not want to be passed by. Generate interest by the most active builders in your area by getting decision makers the information they need, and here is how to do it:

Gather Property Data

Zoning

This is first question any builder or developer is going to ask, what’s it zoned? Zoning is crucial to developers because it is going to determine how many houses, units, or square footage (AKA “density”) the developer can build on the tract. Find out how many units per acre and of what type are permitted. You can find most city & county zoning ordinances online at http://www.municode.com, but details vary between municipalities. If you are not sure what your property’s zoning is, take a look at your tax bill. If you are lucky, it will be printed on the bill. If not, jot down your parcel ID number and call your city or county zoning department for this information. And don’t forget to check with them to see if there are any zoning overlays or future land use plans affect your property!

Utilities

Find out what utilities are available to your property, or located nearby. These include water, electricity, phone, gas, and especially sewer. Sewer access is golden, because it usually improves density and thus a developer’s bottom line.

Plat or Survey

Make sure to have a plat or recent survey handy. Builders and developers are going to want to see how the land is shaped in order to get a better idea of how a future development may lay out. If available, surveys with topography plotted are best.

Pictures

Pictures sell property! This goes for land, too. Try to get wide angle shots in good daylight with the sun at your back. If your property has unique features such as a lake, mountain views, a river/creek, etc., make sure to document them.

Maps & Aerials

It’s always good to have a bird’s eye view to put in front of interested parties. At the least include a map depicting the parcel’s location, and how to access it. There are a number of free or low cost aerial imagery applications out there including Google Earth, but high-resolution imagery is usually only available for larger cities and towns. Depending on size and price, you may want to contract an aerial photographer. Most aerial shoots cost between $300 and $600 depending on the work order and location.

Demographics

Can the local populace support a development at the price you have set for your land? Demographic data on a particular area can be used to set price points on a future housing development, and the most important two are population and household income. Try to include a one, three, and five mile radius if possible.

Area Highlights

Put a list together of area attractions, such as recreational lakes, beaches, parks, etc. Also, keep an eye out for favorable economic situations in the area. Anything that will build a job base such as a new plant opening, or corporate relocation is a selling point. More jobs means more housing demand, which means better development opportunities.

Make a Property Brochure

With the above information, you should be able to put together a professional brochure, which you can get in the hands of developers and builders that are active in your area. Make sure to produce a document that is printable and available in electronic format. Adobe PDF works best for property brochures, but MS Word should work fine too. Make sure to highlight the most desirable aspects of the property on the front page as well as the price. The cover should draw a reader in for further study, and if the property is priced correctly, you should not have to hide it. When printing, make sure to use a high quality inkjet printer or go to a local printing shop, the brochure must appear professional.

Develop a Mailing List

Yes, there are still some viable uses for snail mail. Most executives at best delete promotional email, and at worst may never receive it. Besides being highly likely that a decision maker will see it, putting a full color brochure in front of them says to them that you are serious, and you have got something that they need to see. First, you must develop a list of developers and builders that are active in your area. Visit or call the local chapter of the National Association of Home Builders, or see if members are listed on their website. Also, check with local business publications. Many of them publish lists of developers ranked by activity and size. A quick call to developer or builder can determine what kind of developments they are involved with (industry term is “product”), and who the point of authority may be. Mention that you are interested in sending a package to them concerning a piece of land, and you may even get that person on the phone! If you can’t determine who that may be, or the secretary is being difficult… send the package directly to president or CEO. Make sure to include a phone number and name that is easy to find, send them out, and be sure to follow up in one to two weeks!

As mentioned in my previous article ‘obtaining development approval for your land’, I discussed the importance of market research in regard to many aspects of the development at the early stages, such as knowing whether you have purchased the land at the right price, knowing the number of ‘units’ you can ‘grow’ on the land, knowing the correct zoning and height regulations for the land just to name a few! I have written this article because I want to reinforce the importance of market research to you before you go and buy the land and before you go about throwing your money away!

Most of us do this because we are passionate about real estate development, but we also do it to make a profit!!!!! And as the old saying goes ‘you don’t go broke making a profit’. And that is what developing is about. I am getting a little of track here, but I also want to reinforce the important point that you do want to make a profit, but you must also guarantee your team (eg BUILDER) is happy and makes a profit! So, getting back to market research, this is the time where you do some work. You spend some money on gas/petrol and throw on the boots and get out and about in your ‘patch’, the area you are making your own! This is another story, and something very important to your success also. That is, choosing the right patch. I will help you with that later.

As a professional developer, you will be doing this at the most fundamental level as it is essential to your success in this business! You will learn about and become very familiar with Qualitative, Quantitative research and market analysis.

You must determine the different locations in your town/city eg ‘richville’, ‘poorsville’, ‘mediocresville’ and so on. You see what I am getting at? This is the start of your market segmentation! Can you put boundaries on this information? What about boundaries on the areas you wish to start your development career in? Do you know how much you should be buying land for in your patch, not an estimate, exact figures? You need to, this is what I will show you how to do. This is what Real Estate Development Market Research is all about!

So basically what I am getting at here is, you need to know the exact price you should be buying your land at!!!!! Not a guess price because Mrs Jones told you that Bob down the road sold for $X so that block your looking at is on the corner so you would have to pay at least $X more! Stuff that is tangible, and also not stuff you have bought from an online real estate marketing site that gives you prices of the latest sales in the area, or what they claim to be the latest sales, that is the problem, because we talk about ‘real time’ market research and in this game that is the ONLY thing that counts. Developers who rely on this information are off the mark and have missed the boat. Markets change and to obtain research that is 3,6, 9 or 12 months old is exactly that, OLD! You need yesterdays prices and today’s prices, I hear you asking how do I get that? Through learning the right way! How do I learn the right way? By learning from someone who has done it over and over again successfully, by choosing the right mentor and following a system that works no questions asked!

As the media continue to push down our necks all the negative garbage that is happening in the property arena, and you see more and more property developers not doing well, you must obviously ask the question, why are they doing so bad? What did they do wrong? The fundamental answer to your question is in the above! If they had done their market research and if they had been vigilant, there would not be so many of them in the predicament they are in now. Eg Florida, their research would have told them that ‘units’ (residential dwellings) were starting to stock pile and developments would have been put on hold. New markets analysed and a lot of money saved! Remember, after expansion always comes recession, and after recession always comes expansion and this will not change! So you ask the question, how then do I know when the change between recession and expansion will start? DO YOUR MARKET RESEARCH HOW I SHOW YOU AND YOU WILL KNOW. You will be ahead of the game!

A lot of people look at the real estate land developer and find themselves a bit flummoxed by what the position actually entails. Certainly, most understand that developers buy and sell real estate. They aren’t, however, clear on what happens before and after a purchase that enables these people to traditionally make a tidy sum in profit. The field is a great deal more complex than it seems.

So, what is involved in land development?

In addition to having the capital to buy and sell property, a land developer also needs to have these skills or a professional staff to back up buys to make a successful go at the effort:

• Market research ability – Successful real estate developers not only purchase land, they also develop the property with buildings or other features. To take a piece of land and “add value” to it and make certain it sells at a profit, developers need to know what a local market lacks. For example, a successful developer would not likely build the 12^th apartment complex in an area where vacancies are high.
• Ability to exercise patience – A land developer does not make a huge profit overnight. In many cases, developers purchase land and hold it for a time before they make a decision on how to proceed. Even if an immediate project is planned, construction and development still takes time.
• Ability to navigate government and legal processes – Real estate development often involves a great deal of government and legal red tape. Once land is purchase, it often needs the proper zoning for development, permitting for construction and so on.
• Ability to oversee construction planning, design and fulfillment – To be a real estate developer, there is a need to actually turn the dirt on property purchased. For real success to happen, developers need to make certain their projects appeal to potential buyers or tenants. They also have to see those projects through the design and construction phase. A real estate land developer must wear many hats or have a company staffed with the right people to take raw land and turn it into a commercial, residential or industrial development.

As Billion dollar property developer Colm Dillon says it.

“If I had a prayer said for me every time I got an email about problems of buying land first, I would have a guaranteed place in heaven.”

Please don’t do that anytime, but particularly if you are new to development. You will hurt yourself financially and it is a deep hold to get out of, OK?

Let me give you some land buying advice now and if I happen to repeat myself in some of my commentary, just use it as a reinforcing tool. Land is only worth what you can do with it.

Now I am not discounting it beauty or its views in making my comment, but remember we are in the development business and buying land is a fundamental cost factor … we just can’t afford to get it wrong.

If when buying land and anticipated subdividing it into ‘X’ lots or building ‘X’ number of units on it, only to find out later that you were not allowed to do that, I don’t think the beauty or views would offer you much solace or gain you much sympathy from the lender.

Before I say much more, I had better say something to you guys who are not buying land because you already own some land.

If you have owned land for some time as an investment or you inherited some land, then you job is to find out what you can do with it … its capacity.

So you are in the same place as a new person buying land, except you would have bought it at a better price or inherited it with no debt.

Developers talk of a buying land’s capacity. Elsewhere I think I have written about the farmer knowing his/her land’s yield per acre. They could even break it down to the yield for a good weather season versus a poor rain season.

Their land yields so many tons per acre and if the crop sells for ‘$X’ per ton, it is easy to work out the value of the land.

With a developer it is the same. How many ‘lots’ or ‘units’ can I grow on this land? How many dollars can I sell my lots or units for in a good selling market or a poor selling market.

Can you see the analogy in these two situations? Can you also see that the $million dollars you paid for the land anticipation of developing 10 lots or units gives you a base land buying price of $100,000 per lot or units.

However if you found out later that you could only develop five lots or units, the land content has just doubled to $200,000. I don’t know many business that can be successful if their raw costs double, because of a lack of knowledge, do you?

So buying undeveloped land is a ‘work in progress’ situation. In fact what I am leading too, is that you don’t buy land as a first step in your development career at all.

You get control of the land for a sufficient period of time to allow you to actually determine its capacity … in so doing you ‘prove’ the value of the land in today’s market … you ‘prove’ its development financial viability, before you actually buy the land.

So with all these techniques I’ll teach you, I hope you can see how we reduce our ‘commercial risk’ in every development opportunity”.

Whether we realise it or not, managing risk is something we all deal with everyday. For example, the simple process of crossing a street involves a certain degree of risk which we manage without even blinking an eyelid. Imagine for a moment crossing a busy street without looking left and right, without gauging the direction and speed of traffic, and without gauging the distance of the street we are crossing. Thankfully most of us are very good at managing these everyday risks effectively.

But what about managing the risks of something as complex as a property development project? Well, whilst the risks are more numerous and greater in complexity there are still certain measures you can take to manage them effectively. Let’s take a look at some of the more notable risks in performing a property development project and how you can manage them effectively.

Risk #1 – Not Having Enough Knowledge

By far and away the greatest risk in property development is the risk of undertaking a project with insufficient knowledge. I have seen it many times before where individuals undertake their first project with sugar coated expectations of how easy property development is only to find themselves in strife half way down the track because they were not willing to invest in knowledge. Many people will tell you that ignorance is bliss but when it is your money in the deal and your name as guarantor on the loan ignorance can be a very costly thing! So, how can you manage this risk and become more knowledgeable in property development? Well, there are three main options available to you.

Firstly, track down some quality property development books and acquire a comprehensive knowledge of the property development process. Secondly, with this knowledge you should then attend a quality property development workshop to sharpen up the practical application of your knowledge. Thirdly, having read some books and attended a workshop you should then be equipped with the necessary knowledge to undertake your own property development project. For those that lack the necessary confidence to undertake their own project it is possible to team up with an experienced property development manager to manage your first project. This way you can learn ‘on the job’ under the guidance of an experienced property developer and progressively graduate yourself into managing your own projects.

Risk #2 – Paying too Much for Your Development Site

There are few things worse than paying over the odds for a development site and being left with the prospect of bearing all of the risk and performing all of the work necessary to complete the project only to break even or make a tiny profit.

So how do you manage this risk and ensure that you do not pay too much for your development site? Well, it all comes back to the number crunching prior to purchasing the development site. It is absolutely critical that a comprehensive financial feasibility is performed prior to purchasing a development site. Given that a financial feasibility is only as good as the assumptions made in it, it is absolutely critical that you do your homework to ensure the accuracy of your assumptions.

As part of your financial feasibility you can calculate what’s called a residual land value. A residual land value is simply determined by estimating the project’s gross revenue then subtracting the various expenses (excluding the development site) and an adequate profit margin to leave the residual value of the development site. A residual land value will provide you with the maximum amount that you can afford to pay for a development site therefore ensuring you never pay too much.

Risk #3 – Purchasing a Lemon Development Site

Whilst we all understand the risk of purchasing a lemon car, few people realise that it is possible to purchase a lemon development site.

So how do you manage this risk and ensure that you do not purchase a lemon development site. Well, it all comes back to performing a thorough investigation of the development issues of the site, better known as a due diligence analysis. The due diligence analysis may be performed either prior to purchasing the site or as a condition of the contract. Either way, the performance of a thorough due diligence analysis should incorporate each of the following issues:

* environmental and heritage issues (e.g. presence of vegetation protection orders, heritage listed buildings etc.)

* flood issues (e.g. presence of a flood regulation line)

* geotechnical issues (e.g. presence of acid sulphate soil, contaminated soil, underground rocks, underground water, unstable fill etc.)

* mining issues (e.g. impact of mining subsidence)

* service issues (e.g. proximity of services to site, capacity of services for the proposed development etc.)

* stormwater issues (is there a legal point of discharge, if not are adjoining owners amenable etc.)

* title related issues (e.g. presence of caveats, covenants, easements, encumbrances, interest details, administrative advices, unregistered dealings etc.)

* zoning issues (compatibility of current zoning to the proposed use)

Whilst a development site with the necessary local authority permits in place will have overcome most of these issues, it is nonetheless advisable to investigate the various issues as a matter of course. A thorough due diligence analysis can be a rather time consuming process but given the cost involved in getting it wrong it is time very well spent!

Risk #4 – Construction Costs Blow Out

Construction costs are generally the greatest expense component in a property development project. As such, it only takes a slight proportional change in its cost to have a significant impact on the projects bottom line.

So how do you manage this risk and ensure that a blow out in construction costs does not destroy your bottom line? Well, the best way is to ensure that you use a lump sum fixed price contract. A lump sum fixed price contract is a contract where the price is determined by the building contractor which includes all associated costs such as materials, labour and profit margin. As the name suggests, the contract price is fixed from the day the contract is signed. The only things that will vary the price are variations to the contract or fluctuations in provisional or prime cost items. As such you should try to limit the number of variations made to the contract, and whilst nothing can be done to control fluctuations in provisional or prime cost items, it is possible to keep these items to a bare minimum when detailing the contract.

Risk #5 – Building Contractor Goes Bust

Perhaps every developer’s worst nightmare! By this point in a project most of the hard work has been done and you could certainly be forgiven for having your eyes fixed on completing construction and banking the settlement funds. However, all of this can change in an instant if your building contractor hits financial difficulty and cannot proceed with the works.

So how do you manage a risk such as this? Well, whilst circumstances can change quickly in the construction industry there is certainly a lot to be said for using a building contractor with a good reputation and a proven track record. As a developer you should feel free to make enquiries into the building contractor’s project history and financials. After all it is your money in the deal and your name as guarantor on the loan so there should be no reason to feel shy about asking for this sort of information.

Whilst there is no substitute for using a proven reputable building contractor, we are fortunate in Australia in that it is a requirement for building contractors to take out warranty insurance. During construction warranty insurance covers against the building contractor becoming bankrupt or placed into liquidation and against the building contractor failing to complete the works under the contract. After construction it covers against the building contractor failing to fix any defects and against the building suffering from the effects of subsidence or settlement. It is usual practice for building surveyors or local authorities not to issue a building permit until evidence that the building contractor has taken out warranty insurance is provided. Nonetheless, it is prudent that you ensure for yourself that warranty insurance has been taken out.

Risk #6 – Shoddy Construction Work

We have all seen the stories on ‘A Current Affair’ where the hard working Australian family put all of their money into building their dream home only to arrive on handover to something that is not only displeasing to the eye, but a danger to live in. Whilst these stories are very extremist they do demonstrate a very significant risk that if left unmanaged can be potentially disastrous.

So how do you manage this risk and ensure that you are not met at handover with shoddy construction work? Well, once again there is no substitute for using a proven reputable building contractor. For all of the work that goes into a property development project it is the quality of the construction on which your reputation as a developer can live or die. It is therefore absolutely critical that you do your homework on your building contractor. Always insist on getting the building contractor’s project history including contact details for referees from previous projects. This way you can visit the projects and make contact with the previous developers to satisfy yourself as to the whether or not their workmanship meets your standards.

Whilst engaging a proven reputable builder can mitigate this risk to a large extent, you should not simply sit back on your laurels waiting for a phone call when construction is finished. I’m sure you would agree that it is better knowing if something is progressively going wrong and be able to rectify it than to find out at the end that it is beyond rectification. This same rationale applies to construction work and the process of performing regular building inspections.

Throughout the course of a property development project a number of inspections should be performed by various individuals. The structural engineer will need to perform inspections at a few key stages of construction (e.g. footings, slab, framing etc.) to ensure that the approved plans and building regulations are being followed. It is also advisable that you engage your architect or building designer to perform regular inspections to ensure that the works are being performed in accordance with the plans. Once practical completion has been reached you will need to perform a final inspection. By this point, the final inspection will be concerned with minor defects that will be covered under the defects liability period. Generally, the developer and either the development manager, architect or building designer will perform the final inspection.

Whilst the before mentioned risks are by no means an exhaustive list, it should however give you a feel for the more notable risks in property development and how you can manage them effectively. Given the high stakes involved in property development any mismanagement of these risks can prove very costly indeed. If you are not experienced in managing property development projects and do not want to learn the hard way than engage an experienced development manager to act on your behalf. This way you can reap the rewards of being a property developer without becoming another causality to poor risk management.

By Luke Andersen

Partner of Positive Property Strategies and co-author of ‘Residential Real Estate Development: A Practical Guide For Beginners To Experts.’

Though open VB net developer positions are easy to find, there are some things you need to consider before applying to be hired by a company and make a decent salary. Many companies need developers to create Window and Office applications and apps for company websites, therefore these developer positions are always high in demand. Developer jobs can bring in a lot of money. Those who know program or web designing can easily move into being a VB net developer and make quite a lucrative living by landing the job they were aspiring to.

Those still in school should be advised to take technology and computer science courses if they want to someday become a VB net developer. Those who have a higher education degree such as their bachelor’s or associates degree have a leg up on those without a college degree as many development companies prefer a an individual who has earned their degree. Yet there are still many companies out there who are looking for someone who has the natural ability to create problem solving business applications and would hire them over someone with just a degree and no natural innate ability.

You will need to attain a certain degree of experience in the field before applying to be a professional developer for a reputable company. At least one year spent as a developer for general software working with CSS, JavaScript, DHTML or SQL design will help to get into VB developer jobs.

Though experience is very important, it is also necessary to be well researched on the subject, which will give your skills an enhancement. A book with good programming syntax instructions with practical scenarios will help you. There are numerous books of this type today available as a hard copy or even e-book. Another wise move is to subscribe to specialty newsgroup on VB net development.

The internet is a good choice to search for VB net developer jobs. Companies advertise for available positions on this site. You should consider writing to a good amount of employers you would like to work for, include your contact information and your resume. Monster.com is also a great place to post ones resume.

As previously stated, most net developer jobs pay quite well. However, exactly what you will be paid depends on the hiring company and your experience in the subject. Obviously, VB net developer with years of working experience at hand will have a higher salary than someone who are just getting out of school and assuming their first position as a developer.

Do you have a large property that you are sure could be upgraded for great wealth but have no idea how to develop it? Are you close to retiring and want to move into a smaller property but get the most value out of your existing property? Property Developing could be the answer you are looking for…

As with all projects taken on in life there is a system for everything. Property developing is just the same. There are seven key steps for property development:

The critical steps are:

Find a site (if you are not sitting on one right now)

Site analysis

Feasibility

Planning Permission

Finance

Construction

Sales

Finding a site is quite easy just look in the real estate section of the newspaper. Look on real estate websites. You are looking for a property that can be divided up or could have more built than what currently is on the property now; or value added.

If you already own a piece of land that you have a feeling could be developed to create much more value for yourself; finding a site is not required.

Site analysis and feasibility is the step that can be critical for a project. It basically requires researching a site to see if it is profitable. Property developing can hold hidden costs. To find out what cost are required it pays to call professionals to find out costs. Call your local council for all required costs required to have all utilities connected/upgraded for your project. Architects are excellent source for determining costs like council approval costs including drawing required. Construction cost can be very important as many projects where new buildings will be built the construction costs are a large part of a project. The last important piece of information is sale price because if you can not sell your product for enough (or it sits on the market for a long time) the project will not be infeasible.

Planning permission this can sometimes be done for you already if you property and it is advertised that it has approval you will not require this. If you own a property that does not have this on it, you will need professional help. Architects can be invaluable here or someone who is a property developer themselves or a property developing company offering Project management can help. Using a professional can take the pain and stress away from you making it a much better experience.

Finance is one of the most fun topics to deal with. As we all know talking to banks can be difficult to get finance for homes. And the same if not more difficult for projects and a good financial package is required as all banks will have requirements including profit margin. Banks will not lend on a project with a lower than 20% profit margin.

Construction can be one of the most exciting and scary steps. Obviously most people won’t do the building themselves it will be done by a builder. Construction is quite simple when you have a building approval you allow the builder on to start building. When paying for building as it continues through the project the builder will require funds for work completed. Paying the builder can become a bit tricky because obviously if you end up paying for construction before it is complete then the project might go undone. Have a contract in place, the contract will list all required steps and funds can be distributed to the builder in stages of development. You may pay a professional to monitor these steps to keep the builder honest at all times.

If you are concerned about a large project hire a quantity surveyor to follow the project. They will report on what has been completed and what should be paid for. Quantity Surveyors are professionals at this and take the risk out of construction. One other advantage is if you have a quantity surveyor you can also get them to create a depreciation schedule to help sales.

Sales is an interesting topic. We all know that you can use a real estate agent to sell products. This can be very helpful as these people are professionals in the property selling business. Another option is going to a promoter (or Marketer) who will actually sell the product for you to a list of customers they have (database of clients looking for investments). This can cost more but if you need pre-sales they can be extremely helpful in getting fast sales.

If you have a property and would like to get developed it into something much more or know of someone who is in need. However, if you are still unsure as to the first person to contact to get started.

Due diligence drives the land development transaction because it supplies you with information you will need about a whole range of issues. These can include details about the zoning, location of public utility lines, soil classifications and prior subdivisions of the property. This need for information arises in your very first contact with the land parcel and continues as long as you are pursuing it or are involved with it by contract. In fact, your need to know different things about the property exists until you: (a) decide not to buy it; (b) put it under contract and subsequently bail out of the deal; or (c) sell the land or assign the contract to someone else.

While location may be the most important characteristic of a real estate parcel, thorough due diligence is critical to determining if the potential land development deal is viable. The information you obtain through your investigation is focused on your bottom-line question: do I want to buy this land parcel?

When you’re doing your research, you should remember a couple of basic principles. Effective, thorough investigation usually must be hand’s on. It will be time consuming to do and there are usually no short cuts. For every piece of data, there is a primary source. The primary source is likeliest to be the most accurate and current source of information. For instance, the primary source for real estate documents that are recorded (such as deeds, liens, easements, mortgages and subdivision plans) is the actual record of filings maintained by the applicable governmental department as well as the documents themselves that show the recording information on them. These are usually kept at the courthouse for the county in which the property is located.

Your local government or municipality is the primary source for zoning, subdivision and other ordinances because they originate and enact these local laws. The governmental body (local, county or otherwise) that is empowered to issue land development approvals is the source if you need to verify what conditions and restrictions may have been imposed when the parcel was subdivided. FEMA is the primary source for flood mapping and information because it is the repository and publisher of this data.

You might wonder if you could save time by doing the research online. After all, why should you go look at the actual document if you can obtain the information by using a database? The short answer is that you can’t be sure that what you’re getting online is accurate and up to date. In short, databases are great tools as long as you remember that they should never be used as a substitute for hands-on research at the primary source.

At best, these online collections of data (including those maintained by governmental agencies or departments) are secondary or tertiary sources, not primary ones. (The governmental database, however, may be the next best thing to the primary source depending on the manner in which it was created and the frequency with which it is updated.) In the case of third-party sources for information (such as subscription services for ordinances, mapping and real estate sales or other data), vendors have purchased from the primary sources the right to charge people a fee for accessing this data.

For several reasons, the farther you move away from the primary source of information, the greater the likelihood that the information may not be current and accurate. There is the time factor. The information has to pass from the primary source down the line through other people or organizations. Data, documents or mapping can easily change or become outdated over even a short period of time. In addition, there is the “garbage in, garbage out” principle. The integrity of any database or compilation, governmental or not, hangs on the thoroughness and competence of the people responsible for compiling and maintaining it.

Databases, however, can save you a tremendous amount of time and effort. You can use them most effectively as screening tools and to gather preliminary information subject to confirmation and further research if the situation or property warrants it. In addition, they can be invaluable in identifying specific contacts if you have questions and need additional details or clarification.

There are many reasons why you would consider joining with another person to undertake a development project in Joint Venture.

Usually the most basis reason reveolves around something you don’t have.

Some of them may be:

1. I own land … have capital & capacity to borrow … but no experience.

2. I have capital & capacity to borrow … partner has land … both have no experience.

3. I am ‘time poor’ … work full time and can’t be personally involved …

Let’s suppose you want to find a land owner who will put their land
into the Joint Venture, (JV) and their land will be their major contribution to the deal, plus some borrowings.

Let’s consider the implications of entering into a JV in the first place.

After all, in a JV you have to take into account another persons attitude, decision making process, (or inability to make a decision), whether they have a logical and sensible mind … the list goes on.

So, getting into a JV must have a good payback for you. Whatever you lack is usually the reason for entering into a JV.

I have noticed over the years that JV’s have a prime motivator, the driver of the deal (you), and the other person is along for the ride.

For example: the other party may have a wonderful property (site) and wants to develop it, but does not have the knowledge. You “love” the site and know that you could make it a very successful and profitable real estate development. You approched the land owner.

Another example: maybe two individuals who have saved their capital, however individually it is inadaquate to undertake a project. Combining their capital and borrowing capacity will allow they to proceed.

I prefer a JV where both parties are equally motivated, have different skill bases, but each regards the other as contributing equally.

You know the feelings that can occur, “I’m working harder that you …
all you do is the phone and number crunching work … I’m always out
and about on site dealing with the real work.”

Don’t forget why you got together in the first place.

So there are many reasons for JV’s. However, you must be clear as to why you are doing it, and it must be secured by a legally prepared JV Agreement.

A lot of ‘practical people’ hate legal documents … a JV Agreement is a legal document and both parties must understand what it says. If one of you is a bit slack on this point, it is up to the other to sit them down and go through it … it’s important!

Why?

Suppose the JV deal hits a rough patch and your partner says, “I didn’t know that … why didn’t you tell me … I left all that legal garbage to you … blah, blah.” Got It, have the arguments at the beginning of the deal … not later.

A JV Agreement sets out what each party will contribute, both money and effort, and sets out each parties obligations. It also sets out what happens if the parties ‘fall-out’ with each other as well as the division of profits or losses.

There is a lot more at stake if you JV with your rother-in-Law, other relatives etc … the term ‘on-going-nightmare’ is a phrase that readily comes to mind.

And if one of those family JV’s brake down, it doesn’t matter how many pages are in the JV Agreement, or what the words say to prove that you are “RIGHT,” … as far as YOUR Brother-in-Law is concerned, you are a ‘expletive deleted.’

Just thought I’d get that out of the way!! OK?

One more thing … doing a JV with a rich person, when you are many levels poorer then them, is also not smart.

Why?

Well, in simple terms, when ‘push comes to shove’ money rules …
The golden rule says, He who has the GOLD, RULES.

Also, if the rich guy tell you not to bother with a JV Agreement … he appears to be saving you money … tempting eh? … what he’s really doing is taking away your legal rights.

Yep, you’ll have less rights than an employee. If that’s the deal … better to be an employee!

In my my ebook I emphasise the importance of getting the Structure Work of the business organised – you will build a much better development business from a secure foundation.

When you are doing your interviewing of the associated professionals, try to see if they, personally, have any entrepreneutial tendencies.

They may have land, houses, houses for renovation etc but don’t have the ‘TIME’ or ‘SKILLS’ to do the work themselves.

Don’t come out and ask them straight away … follow my ebook, do the work you want to do; that is assessing them … but keep your antenna out for any signs of a common interest.

OK, back to getting hold of some land.

Get to know the local real estate agents; I mean know them well.
Remember what I say in the ebook.

Call in and buy them a cup of coffee, take them out of their work place;
what about dinner after work; really spread yourself around.

Invest your Time in finding good, well informed, dedicated agents. Believe me they are in your business community … it’s your job to find them.

Appreciate that Agents are essentially self-employed, irrespective of whether they work in a Real Estate Agency … their ‘mind set’ is independent.

They back themselves and their abilities to provide a sales service at a
level that “consistently” provides them with a ‘good income.

That ‘good income’ by the way, will leave most of their ‘client’s’ income
looking a little anaemic.

The ‘good agents’ are busy; their ‘time’ is money; literally. So don’t mess them around.

Don’t talk to them as though you are the Aga Kahn! You’re Not. There’s always a guy richer than you … maybe the Agent!

Why am I making such a big point about agents.

I believe “people” get the agents “they deserve.”

I have heard people talk to Agents as though they were some grubby leech on society and are doing them an honor even to talk to them.

To be a successful agent these days you have to be very good. Many are highly educated and choose real estate as a career for the freedom,
individual reward and great returns.

What comes out of your mouth + body language tells an agent a great deal about you. They then wonder why the Agent never calls then … Dong!!!

Keep your ‘ego’ under control. Their sales success rests on their ability at ‘reading people.’ Remember what I say in my ebook!

When you are in the development business, you are in the business of:

Getting People To Do … What You Want Them To Do
Within The ‘TIME’ AND ‘Costs’You Set.

That means that you have to be in control of ‘How You Treat People.’
Agents know a lot of people … maybe, they even know those people who want to JV with you.

While you are doing this “work” don’t forget to do what my ebook tell you
to do about research.

Last idea for finding JV people – talk to your friends – put an advert in the local newspaper seeking expressions of interest from people interested in doing what you want.

OK, you’ve found a partner who has the land and you are comfortable with the relationship after several meetings.

Important question! What value does your prospective partner put on his land that will be put into the JV?

Just throwing a few figures around to give you an example.

Let’s say that market value for his land right now is $300,000. But he wants to put into the JV at $400,000. So if your JV Agreement involves you gaining a share of the profit, your share will be $100,000 less. Got It?

Now let’s say that part of your skills contribution to the JV includes a
rezoning of the land to a higher level and you achieve that for the JV.
That rezoning may take the land from a single unit (house) dwelling zone to a six dwelling unit zone.

Your efforts have increased the land value significantly … no, not six times, as house properties are valued differently to multiple unit properties. But it may have increased by 3 or more times, depending on your market.

Once again the $100,000 will come off your share. Now that may be OK by you, because you are just starting out on your first development … it is always better to KNOW what you are agreeing too.

I hope this information helps you in your consideration of entering a JV.
but please remember, don’t just read my eBook … study it … take notes in a special hard cover Development Copy Book that you will buy.

Writing things down is an aid to learning and remembering.

My LAST DON’T … Don’t start any of this JV stuff until you know my eBook
inside out. You must not just be able to ‘talk the talk’ – you must know what you are talking about.

What I am all about, is helping you to do residential development with the RISK reduced.

If it takes four years study to get a basic Degree and say another five years to get some experience, why would you think that you can enter the development business with little study — no experience and expect to be profitable?

The first thing one comes against when buying a real estate property, or constructing a building is purchasing the land. The first step in a successful business is a good investment in a commercial land. In order to be able to buy a significant amount of land, from a financial point of view, the investor uses either his personal finances or loans (such as mortgages).

Today, computing a mortgage rate, is no longer difficult. You can use a mortgage calculator on real estate specialized sites. Why Develop Commercial Lands? These kind of lands , in some cases have a huge advantage over residential lands. First of all a commercial land is rapidly appreciated in value. Their value is most of the time influenced by the presence of business activities and infrastructure. Moreover, a land like this is available for rent, which can be a source of income for the owner, covering the loan assumed for its purchase. If the area enjoys supplementary conditions such as hazard free zone, peaceful neighbourhood, strategic position as far as economical activities are concerned, the value of the land can become twice its original price. However, real estate business it’s not just about having money, it also takes courage and intuition. There are a lot of cases when investors had bought lands which were not paid attention, and in couple of years, the area had had a remarkably development, becoming the arena for big commercial investments and business, so they had sold the land triple his original price.

Commercial lands, among the entire real estate business can be considered priceless possessions as any building hosted by them. If you happen to be a such land owner and you are intending to sell it your greatest dilemma is how to make sure you correctly estimate its value? Unfortunately there is not a standard method to follow, but there are some advices yous should keep in mind. First of all, if you do not have any clue about setting the selling price contact a Realtor, or real estate agent, or even an architect. Then try getting to some real estate auctions, where the discussed lands are exactly like yours: commercial lands. Notice the conditions of the exposed lands and the prices that are being discussed during the auction. Try comparing those lands with yours, and make an estimation between the lowest price and the highest one, keeping in mind all the time what does your land have and the others don’t ,or the other way around. In addition, as an investor try getting you lands placed in strategic positions such as: in the center of big cities, or near them, and places which show great potential even if for now, they do not seem to have a bright future. Analyse the real estate market all the time and try to adapt the conditions of your owned land to the client’s desire.

Selling a land, or making any real estate investment is like fishing. You need a lot of patience and documentation before making the big step. Never make a sell to the first agent who offers you a price. First make sure his price is fair, and does not undervalue your land. Then also be advise to consider your land’s potential. Try taking a picture of the next 10 years. Never think and act under the present state of the land. Try to anticipate the next economical investments and infrastructure development, and balance the idea weather your land may be included in those plans or not. If so, do not speed up the selling process. Wait and it may gain a bigger value, and you may sell it twice, or triple than the original price. Meanwhile try renting it in order to get some income and cover your loan. Moreover, due to the actual economic crisis , pay extra attention to any kind of transaction, because you may wake up next day and realize that even if you had sold your land at the right price, money points out that you have sold it at half of its value.