Hindsight is twenty-twenty, as they say, so to finish off this series we’ve decided to write a post working backwards from the very end of a commercial development project, identifying any problems along the way, and showing their solutions.
So, starting off with the sale of your product, here is a list of solutions to the common pitfalls of your projects.
From planning to post-occupancy is our series for developers to learn strategies that will carry them through the four stages of a commercial development project: planning, design, construction, and closeout. If you are a developer on the North Gulf Coast, you may find the rest of our series of use as well.
Follow the shortcuts:
Part 1 – Planning a Successful Commercial Development Project on the North Gulf Coast
Part 2 – Planning for a Better Yield on a North Gulf Coast Development Project
Part 3 – How Design Affects a Commercial Development Project on the North Gulf Coast
Part 4 – The Stages of Design for a Successful Commercial Development Project around the Pensacola area
Part 5 – Best Practices for Constructing a Commercial Development Project around Pensacola
Part 6 – Integrating Design and Construction in a Commercial Development Project in the Pensacola area
Part 7 – The Closeout of a Commercial Development Project on the North Gulf Coast
Part 8 – Perfecting the Commercial Development Process on the North Gulf Coast
The sale itself
Pretty straight forward, problems with the sale most likely have to do with either an underfunded marketing program or a structure that does not fit in with its surroundings or demographics. Marketing can be funded throughout the entirety of the project, and your target market should be identified during the planning stage and worked with alongside the design team.
Surpassing the schedule or budget
Budgeting, scheduling, and all-around problems with the comprehensive roadmap can be traced back through every step, but the most common reasons for these issues are: issues with construction, unrealistic expectations of budget, errors in permit acquisition, and not matching design to the site’s restrictions.
Issues during construction
Aside from a few exceptional circumstances, most of the problems that arise during the construction phase can have been anticipated with a solid product delivery system and a roadmap to development order. If the problem continued from the design phase, then the anticipated budget and schedule were either miscalculated, or there were problems with permits and implementation.
Including contingency strategies with your initial calculations is a good way to buffer losses through this phase, gauge whether or not your budget is adequate, and give warning signs to if the structure’s cost per square foot is rising higher than you would like.
Planning and design
The greatest problems that come along with the early stages of a development project are either problems that were not realized or that were under recognized until it was too late. Mistakes and problems, however costly they may be to fix, are almost always worth fixing before they get blown up by the passing of time and added investments.
This last section may seem simplistic, and if it does – well done, you’re probably the type to solve your problems as they arise. We’d be glad to do business with you, and if this series is anything to go by, we’re glad to help as early and as long as is required.
For the earliest problem of all time, a mistake in the foundation of your pro forma and economic models or a misrepresentation of funds is one of the first aspects that ought to be covered in any review of the plans, and if this caused problems for you, we hope that it never occurs again.
A common problem is applying even design documents and getting met with massive delays due to local site-related infractions.
In conclusion
Anticipating problems and implementing quality design to increase yield is the end-game strategy for any developer, and we hope that this series has offered some information for you to achieve this.
