10 Lessons - Part 4 - Project Teams
Hi, and welcome back to part 4 in our 10 part article series on the 10 things I have learnt about property development, while navigating construction and property investing in South Africa.
In this weeks' article we will be talking about the team of professionals that are required to allow a property development project to get out of the ground. Having your power team together when putting together a property deal is a hot topic in investor circles, but the team usually spoken about, only focus on the legality and financial aspects of the deal itself. Once you are ready to move ahead with your project, there is another team that is required in order to make the rest of a development project work properly. Most of the team members mentioned below are required from the due diligence stage of your project and I'm going to give a breakdown of some of the professionals who will form a crucial part of that team:
(that's us) We're the people who are going to help to navigate the murky waters of bringing the development into reality. Developing a property can be a time-consuming and technically detailed process, so having assistance from a professional who has the right knowledge and understanding and can assist in effectively managing the project, to bring it legally, timeously and within budget to completion, is crucial. It would be my function to ensure that the correct professional team is in place and performing their functions; that the building plans are submitted, approved and used correctly; that the appointed contractor is working to code and within budget; and to ensure that at the end of the process a legally built development is handed over for occupation. To note just some of the issues that are managed by the project manager..
They will assist you in understanding the land use rights and current zoning information for the property in question. Remember, I mentioned them in my previous article on zoning. They also assist with preparing and submitting any applications that may be required in terms of land use. If any other studies are required that relate to the land-use, these services will usually be included under this professional, but may be undertaken by other professionals. Such studies could for example be, environmental impact assessments, geotechnical investigations and land surveying, to mention only a few.
I'm sure all of you know this one. The architect will help you to design the building structures and site layout for your development. What I mean by this tip, is that different types of buildings require different components in the design. Commercial and residential buildings are different in how they work, and this is reflected in the design drawings. Some architects will also only provide a concept design, that would be passed by council, however, they do not provide any further design input, such as construction layouts, tiling layouts, door and window schedules or product specifications to achieve the look proposed. To source all of the different products yourself takes up a lot of time and energy.
A quantity surveyor is the person on your team that determines exactly how much your building work is going to cost. They understand building methodology and therefore understand the different activities and products that need to be used to build, for example, for building a foundation, they will understand that you need cement, sand, stone, bricks, shuttering and rebar, etc., and they understand how to calculate the quantity that is required for the work. The quantity surveyor is better to use than a builder when costing a project as they are independent and are able to provide objective, market related pricing, where a builder / contractor may often take the highest priced option or omit items, which could impact the project budget later on.
There you have it, part 4 of the 10 lessons I have learnt about developing property through being a project manager. I hope that you have gained some insight from this article that will help you to make more informed decisions on your next building project.
Be sure and keep an eye out for my next articles on the remaining lessons, and leave a comment with any questions or topics you would most like to hear about next. You can also sign up to our mailing list and receive our articles direct in your inbox so you never have to miss an issue.