our process

The first step is to confirm if development will be both practical and profitable

Initial Site Analysis

• Confirm the site is sufficiently large and adequately shaped for buildings which meet statutory standards.

• Confirm there is separate access from the Highway.

• Understand the local context to determine appropriate scale and constraints, especially number of stories.

• Review the type of properties available in the local market and their demand and values.

The above is used to generate a basic footprint of the project, which is then multiplied by the number of stories to give an indicative total floor area of the new building. The costs of building this massing and it's sale value are bench-marked against similar projects in the area to indicate if the site is profitable enough to warrant further investigation.

Planning Review

• Analyse the council specific planning policy and local plan for guidance.

• Review the local planning constraints that may affect the site.

• Check for spatial designation and current use class.

• Ensure there would be National Planning Policy compliance.

• Check planning history of the site and reasons given for any rejections.

The above is used to confirm if the initial massing is likely to be consented or if there will be any other constraints or cost items.

Market Review

• Firstly we review local market demand to see what product would be most successful.

• We then research sales data from similar properties to our proposal.

• Using recently sold house price data we work out what our proposals would be worth and compare proposals based on the relative values of family houses compared flats for example.

• We also confirm there are enough of the right kind of comparables for a Developer buyer to be able to provide evidence for their predictions to banks. Without these developers will will struggle to get development finance for the site and consequently pay less.

Local sale values must be sufficiently high to provide a profit after covering build costs. For tight infill sites this usually means similar houses in the area must be selling for a minimum of £350/sq.ft.

Build Cost

We then work out how much it would cost to deliver each proposal based on:

• The scale and complexity of the project.

• The standard of finishes required by local market.

• Professional fees, taxes, debt interest and all other non-construction costs.

At an outline stage a bench marked cost per square foot is used to estimate the above, but a full cash flow model will be produced for the project life cycle before a contract is signed.

Due Diligence & Legal Searches

If the project is feasible in outline, then we conduct a more detailed analysis of potential sources of risk, including:

• Tenure and leases

• Neighboring Rights of Light and Ransom Strips.

• Easements, Covenants, Rights of Way and charges over the property.

• Detrimental nearby uses or planning consents.

• Party walls

• Statutory neighbors including Network Rail.

• Riparian obligations.

• Contamination, subsurface utilities, asbestos, ecology or archaeology.

Mitigation measures are costed and the likelihood evaluated. The risk adjusted costs are then added to the overall build cost and it is confirmed that the project remains profitable.

Decision

If local land values are high enough and it appears feasible to get a consent that would be profitable enough to build, we then progress to the next stage.

Our discussion with the Landowner is formalised as a Promotion Agreement contract customised to reflect any special circumstances of the project.

The landowner isn't required to do anything, the contract is only to give us security that the Landowner won't intentionally cause us to have wasted our expertise, time and money working on a site.

Under the agreement, landowners will promise:

• Not to sell their land for a reasonable period (c. 1 year) , to allow us time to get planning permission.

• Once planning consent is achieved and the land is sold, to give us an agreed minority share of the sale proceeds as compensation for all of our work.

We pay the legal drafting and solicitors fees.

Further information on Promotion Agreements 'in plain English' is available here.

Decision

Once this is agreed, we progress to the next stage.

At this stage we instruct specialists to collect any information required by either the design team or the local authority planners. The surveys required will differ between sites but typically include any of the following:

• Measured Building Survey.

• Topographical Survey.

• Services and Drainage Survey.

• Flood Risk Assessment.

• Arboricultural Report.

• Tree Protection Survey.

• Transport Assessment.

• Heritage Assessment .

In special cases, construction related surveys will also be required at this stage, these include:

• Geotechnical Investigations.

• Structural Survey.

The biggest risk to the project is that we get a planning permission no-one wants to buy.

We use focus groups of local developer-land buyers to make sure we get exactly the consent the market is looking for.

To make sure we get the correct focus for each site we find active buyers in that sub market via:

• 1. Commercial land agents.

  2. Auction records.

  3. Land Registry .

  4. Companies House records of similar developments.

  5. Our network and the networks of our affiliated developers, contractors and design professionals.

With this group we review our proposal and opportunities for increasing the value or decreasing costs by altering the design.

Typically Developers value a site more highly if consent is:

• For more floor space.

• A more valuable types of floor space.

• For unit sizes and designs which are designed to suit local demand.

• Easier or cheaper for the developer to construct.

• Of higher design quality.

• Allow phased construction and handover.

• Are easily comparable for raising development finance against.

Precise optimisations will differ significantly between site.

Decision

When we reach the most valuable proposal possible, we move onto the next stage.

We pay for an independent surveyor to confirm the current value of the land, before planning consent.

This is to give the Landowner peace of mind that they will get their full existing land value, when the land is sold, and we are only compensated a piece of the uplift we have directly created.

The valuers report will contain all reasoning and evidence for reaching their estimate of value.

Decision

When both parties confirm they are happy with the report's estimate of value we move to the next step.

The design stage represents the longest period of the process.

Based on the site, planning and market research above the design is developed to sufficient detail for planning consent.

Based on focus group insight we may be producing information to the level of detail required for consent that is:

• 'Outline',

• 'Reserved Matters', or

• 'Detailed'.

Typically we will require a Design and Access Statement, CIL calculations and other reports to satisfy the local authority submission requirements.

In some circumstances we may also carry out a:

• Pre-Application consultation with the local authority.

• Public consultation with neighboring residents.

Throughout this process we continue to value engineer the proposal as it becomes more precise and ensure all reports and documents produced:

• are complete and meet submission requirements.

• Correspond to our consent strategy.

• Provide the best possible opportunity for approval.

Next Step

When the pack is ready for submission we move onto the next stage.

In line with local authority guidance we:

• Present the application information to the Council.

• Accompany any site visits.

• Appear at hearings.

• provide supplementary information as required.

Typically it takes 8 weeks for a decision.

We pay all associated fees and expenses.

In the case of a rejection we:

• prepare and submit an appeal, or

• Alter the design and resubmit in response to the decision notice's comments.

So far Devmax have a 100% planning consent success rate, but it should be noted that planning can never be guaranteed.

Next Step

When we have a satisfactory planning consent we move onto the next stage.

Once planning has been achieved, the property is put up for sale.

We manage this process to ensure the best possible price is achieved.

As part of this we:

• Prepare attractive marketing materials supplying all of the project information.

• Present the opportunity in person to all interested Developers and Contractors.

Marketing Strategy

Depending on the scale of the project, a better price may sometimes be achieved by limiting the number of bidders. This is because it can take considerable analytical effort for a developer to work out the price they are willing to pay for a site (its 'Residual Land Value'). If a complex scheme is advertised too widely, many developers will not be prepared to invest the effort required for a detailed appraisal, so will instead use a greater risk contingency in their bid prices. This is why it sometimes makes sense to employ a specialist agent instead of a simple auction or online advert. In more straightforward cases it is often preferable to avoid incurring specialist agent fees.

Transaction

We carry out the negotiation of any special terms, in support of the landowner and provide information required for the legal aspects of the sale.

Profits Realised

Once the sale is completed, the Landowner receives:

• 100% of the initial land value, and

• the majority of the planning uplift we have created for them.