Whats the process to develope a piece of commercial property?

Question

I own 3/4 of an acre of commercial property and have been looking at options to develop the property. I honestly dont know where to start. I own the land outright and its on a major thoroughfare in town. Pretty sure it has all kids of potential.

Just a quick thought of how this is done or a link to something informative would be awesome.

Account Closed · Answer

I would say the first step is a survey, maybe geotech depending on the lot and your area's requirements, and then contact a local architect that you like the work of and feel you would enjoy working with! I don't think you can build commercial without an architect, but it's possible that changes state to state (I am in California). Your Architect should be able to guide you through the rest of the process of design, permits and construction.

Stuart Udis · Answer

Land development is very localized with the zoning/land use and pre-requisites required to break ground largely dependent on the municipality.  You should have completed a Phase 1 and possibly even a Phase 2 before you purchased the property. Assuming that was completed, you should engage a civil engineer to prepare a property boundary survey, topography plan and a geotechnical survey as your next step. A local civil engineer should be able to provide a roadmap of the approval process from there. You will ultimately need to engage an Architect, MEP engineer and a Structural engineer as well.

Kristi Kandel · Answer

1. Yes, start with identifying the zoning and allowed uses. Here is a tool from our local real estate developer course: https://docs.google.com/document/d/100dRzu-iQEIZbR1adxIASdH2...

2. Engage brokers to see their opinion of the highest and best use for the land. They do this for free b/c they want to be your listing broker. Here is a tool from our local real estate developer course to help you find brokers and aks them the right questions: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kWhYL9VZrgcX4qC8q1kO50WCPsF...

Jay Thomas · Answer

Looks like you've got a good spot with that 3/4 acre of land for business on a busy road! But I get it, getting into land development, especially if you're new, can be confusing.First off, let's check a few things:

What's the zoning of your land? This tells you what you're allowed to build. Ask your local planning department.Are there water, sewer, and electricity available? If not, think about how much it'll cost to get them.What businesses are doing well in the area? Do some research to know what people need.How much money are you ready to spend? Developing can get pricey, so be real about your budget.

Now, let's look at your options:Build to suit: Get a developer to build what you want and then lease it to you. Good if you're new to this.Spec development: Build your project and then lease or sell it. More profit but more risk too.Joint venture: Team up with someone to share costs and risks.

Jamie Hora · Answer

That is a very general question, but I would recommend getting an architect or civil engineer involved.

You will need to get permits from the governing agencies.  Generally will require a Site Permit (plans completed and sealed by a civil engineer) and your building permit (plans sealed by the architect).

Once having those professionals selected, its best to have a Predevelopment meeting with the city/county to discuss all requirements for your site. Do you need to plat? Do you need to Rezone? Is detention required?  The min/max parking required? Landscaping requirements?  Additional Approvals from the State? etc. From there, the engineer & architect can get to completing plans & getting your permits before you can begin construction.