Why take a property development course?

Why take a property development course? Becoming a property developer can have a multitude of benefits, and with the UK in desperate need of more homes, now could be the perfect time to start a property development business. This article will highlight some things to consider when planning your successful future career in property development and provides information relating to property development courses.

What is Property Development?

The basic definition of a property developer is simple: A real estate developer or property developer adds value to land or property to then sell on for a profit. Increasing the value of a property, and making building improvements in a time and cost-effective manner is, in a nutshell, the focal point of property development activities. Whether this comes in the form of building new structures (houses, flats, apartments, office buildings, or shopping centres), converting houses into flats, or simply making better use of existing space.

Overview of Property Development

Although Property developers tend to focus either on residential development or commercial development, there can often be significant overlap between the two. Projects coordinated by property developers can include anything from building projects, landscaping to renovation.

The main strategies in property development are

• 1. Buying residential property to renovate for sale or rental
• 2. Buying land for a ground-up development
• 3. Buying commercial property and converting to residential
• 4. Building a second home or commercial premises
• 5. Investing in land, securing planning permission then selling to another developer

Key Skills Required to Succeed as a Property Developer

The first step for becoming a real estate developer is to determine if this career path is a good fit for your skills, interests, professional ambitions and life goals. Whether you are looking to become a property developer purely as a hobby, to build up a nest egg for retirement, to establish a part-time or full-time job for yourself, or to create a formal business, you have to learn the process and ultimately hone your skills by actually developing a project.

Nobody is born a property developer. That said, there are some attributes that certainly make the task easier and more effective. Here are 7 character traits guaranteed to give you a head start and boost your chances at success.

Property Development Skills

Multitasking – Flexibility and the ability to work on a range of different projects certainly helps in property development. This can include everything from site finding, planning, valuation, development appraisals, financing, construction methods, marketing, and property law.

• Keep calm – Do you worry or get stressed easily? Patience to wait for the right opportunity and discipline to keep a level head in high pressure environments is essential.

• Do the maths – An understanding and solid grasp of numbers and financial information. Being able to control your finances, keep to budget and produce various financial reports on expenses to the relevant parties are skills required from any property development professional.

• Technical knowledge. You will need to be able to complete applications for planning permissions and obtain relevant licences.

• Sales and Marketing- You will needs basic sales and marketing skills because ultimately you will need to sell or rent properties to achieve exit strategies. The end goal of the development process being to yield a profit through either the sale or lease of the property.

• Entrepreneurial – You will need to demonstrate an entrepreneurial flair, as well as some business savvy and a basic understanding of the economic market too.

• Project management- Some level of experience in managing projects will help. You will need to communicate with a number of people throughout the property development process and so excellent team work and managerial skills are important.

Prepare yourself to be patient and to work hard both in the office and on-site. A lot of time will be spent studying the market, visiting various locations around the UK (and possibly further afield, depending on your role) and discussing valuations with surveyors and architects. If you decide a property development career is right for you, start off small with your first project, and move on to bigger projects as you gain experience and confidence.

How property development courses help improve your skills

Changing your career, and becoming a property developer is not without its risks. It involves putting up a large amount of money, possibly taking on an intimidating amount of debt, and making an endless series of difficult choices.

Indeed, without the right knowledge, skills or planning it can be and as a result, property developers often seek to reduce their risk in as many ways as possible to ensure that important matters are not overlooked. While the property developer may not understand the specifics of each profession, he or she will need to have a high-level understanding of each discipline to orchestrate & facilitate the entire property development process from its inception to delivery.

If you are thinking getting into property development, there are a number of things that could work against you, including interest rate changes, building cost increases, legal disputes, new regulations, changes in the property market or wider economy, and simply making mistakes (from buying at the wrong price to spending money on renovating areas of the property that won’t increase value). Property development is an industry that requires you to use a combination of your property knowledge, an entrepreneurial mindset and strategic abilities to achieve success.

What is a property development course?

So what is a property development course? While there may not be any prerequisite qualifications or specific educational path needed to attend a property development course or to become a property developer, there are a number of similar skillsets that could aid you in your career such as construction project manager, urban planning, real estate agent or other property related occupations.

However, if you are entirely new to property development, or for those seeking to build their own property portfolio, enrolling in property development courses to upskill their Continuing Professional Development can be invaluable for both novices and seasoned professionals alike to put their knowledge to the test before diving head first into the industry.

Where can I find Property Development Courses UK?

Property developers and real estate professionals have the freedom to choose from a diverse range of professional property development courses in order to find training that best suits your own personal work schedule, budget and level of experience. Property development courses UK will typically be accessed online or by enrolling on to a classroom style training course. They can vary in time duration and study method, with many offering tutor support and Continuing Professional Development points/hours or qualifications.

Don’t just limit your training to property development courses. You can also learn surveying, land management and building skills that help further knowledge and enhance understanding of the subject as a whole.

Training providers with The CPD Certification Service offer a wide range of Continuing Professional Development courses in a variety of subject areas. For property development courses you can visit the CPD Course Catalogue or review the range of property CPD provider here relevant to your field of study.

We hope this article was helpful. For more information on Continuing Professional Development please visit our CPD Explained page. If you are a training provider currently offering property development courses that may be suitable for CPD certification, please find out more on how to become a CPD provider.