The Ultimate Guide to Property Development: From Idea to Reality

You’ve landed in the right place if you are looking for the Ultimate Guide to Property Development. Whether you’re looking to transform a block of land into a residential complex or convert an old building into luxurious apartments at Oviss Group our mission is simple: make property education accessible for all and help you navigate your property journey with 100% confidence. In saying this, Oviss Group is here to help guide you along this exciting journey by taking you through the steps below. 

The Idea.
Taking the first leap from Idea to Reality can be the most challenging yet rewarding first step. When you are ready to take the first leap, Oviss Group will be your best point of call. Talking to knowledgeable and experienced property developers and leading industry experts will be your initial first step to turning your idea into a reality. 

The Goal.
What are you looking to achieve with your first Property Development project? It’s important to make sure you engage with specialists and researching is vital. For example, if your goal is to build an apartment block on land, you want to make sure you are buying land which has no restrictions or zoning laws, this will ultimately dictate the type of development permitted in the area. Think about how many apartments can you fit on the land? What is the size of each apartment? Where should the location be of the block of land?

The Plan.
The Plan will bring together your goal and idea for your property development project. Reviewing the costs involved and making sure it’s worthwhile and a profitable project will be key part of moving forward. Creating a business plan, working through your financial situation, and borrowing capacity, include things like the team you will engage with and potential partners/suppliers, council fees, architectures, conveyancers to list a few. Complete a site evaluation, start with which city you will choose, then narrow down to region, streets, and start an off-market search for suitable sites. 

The Purchase.
Once you’ve found your dream site, it’s time to make your purchase. Engaging with experts to help you successfully complete the purchase will be helpful with the negotiation and making sure you aren’t putting an offer in which is too high for the site. Once it’s signed, sealed and delivered the contracts, you will be able to bring the next step – The Design. 

The Design.
Next step is the development design; you will engage with experienced architects and conduct a land survey. The land survey will look for boundaries of the site and evaluation changes, the architecture will then start to create concepts and a town planner will be engaged to prepare and assist in the planning permits required to complete the property development.

The Approval.
Once the development design and town planner paperwork are completed, the next step will be seeking approval. You will need to submit design documents, advise the neighbours, address any objections which arise and once this has been completed make a final submission. After everything has been approved, we move onto the next step: the Permit. 

The Permit.
Congratulations on your approval, your idea is now on the way to become a reality. Next step is seeking Building Permits and completing a Building surveyor and lastly submitting a building permit application. During the permit stage you will also start to engage with builders to quote the approved development design. Exciting!

The Sale.
If you plan on selling your development ahead of building you can commence off the plan advertising and sell ahead of the building commencing. You will need to engage with a conveyancer to prepare contracts of sale ahead of engaging with your preferred Real Estate agency.  

The Construction.
Three more steps to go – The construction can commence; you have approved your builder of choice and your plans have been approved. The construction stage can take anytime from 9-24 months+ pending on the development project. 

The Settlement.
Once your development site has been sold and the building has been completed, it is now a massive milestone day. Settlement day, the new owners will be able to move into your development property. 

The Reality.
New property development is built and complete. You have done it! Your idea has become a reality! 

This is a top-line ultimate guide to property development. There can be a lot of bumps and roadblocks along the way, engaging with an experienced mentor during this time can be a game changer. We hope this guide has given you confidence to make your idea a reality.