A new real estate development project is an opportunity to start fresh. You get to review your existing systems and vendors to see which of them are up to the task of your new project. You also get to upgrade those that are lacking to maximize your efficiency and profitability on the new development.
Give your project an edge with these 5 tips and set yourself up for success before even breaking ground.
1. Use Big Data to Inform Your Land Acquisition Decision
With more parcel data available online than ever before, developers are able to make better-informed decisions about where to build.
For a deal on your land acquisition, consider smart search tools that allow you to filter by the factors that are most important to you. You’ll spend less time analyzing parcels, which is particularly critical in a fast market. These tools may even allow you to filter by distressed property status. This can help you find parcels with motivated sellers, giving you additional leverage to negotiate a profitable deal.
2. Evaluate Existing Vendor Relationships
Before you line up your existing vendors for the new development project, take a moment to review their performance. Are they still meeting your expectations? Are they reliable? Do they provide quality products and services at reasonable price points?
If not, it may be time to reconsider your relationship. You might want to renegotiate terms with your existing vendors if you’re going to continue working with them on this new real estate development. Or, it may be time to part ways so you can work with new vendors who will be a better fit for this project.
3. Establish a Clear Scope and Time Frame
Nearly every project falls victim to some level of scope creep. But, when your original scope is ambiguous, you’re more likely to encounter damaging scope creep that sends your new development project over budget and past your deadline.
Today’s commercial real estate management software tools can help you document a clear scope and create a well-organized timeline. Having a Gantt chart to give an overview of the time frame, the tasks to be completed, and the dependency of one task on another will help keep the team focussed and on pace to meet the deadline.
4. Make Sure Your Accounting Software Is Suitable for the New Project
Many developers underestimate their accounting software. They use Excel or Quickbooks because they’ve “always done it that way.” And they don’t realize how much time, money, and frustration these outdated systems are costing their business.
Make sure your accounting software works with your development project instead of slowing you down. Next-gen commercial real estate management software, like Budgetrac, is designed specifically for real estate developers. With a smart developer-focused accounting system, you can:
- Manage multiple developments in a single, intuitive system.
- View and share reports in real-time rather than waiting to close the accounting month.
- Handle vendors by tracking contracts, commitments, draw requests, payments, change orders, and retention.
- Prepare loan draw requests, track multiple loans, record cash receipts, and create automatic general ledger entries.
- Get a complete overview of your project on a single report.
5. Give Your Team the Tools to Collaborate Remotely
Whether your team members are on-site, in the office, or working from home, everyone needs to be on the same page. Before starting your new real estate development project, make sure you have a system in place that allows your team to collaborate from wherever they might be.
Today’s project management software solutions allow you to track team members’ tasks, hours, and productivity, as well as the progress made on the project in real-time.
Plan for Tomorrow’s Success Today
With today’s smart tech solutions, you can set your new development project up for success. Sign up for a complimentary demo of Budgetrac’s commercial real estate management software, and see how it can transform your business.