Development site acquisition, tested against a feasibility before it's tested against your capital.
A development site is only worth what it can feasibly deliver, and that number depends on zoning, yield, infrastructure charges and holding costs interacting correctly, not on the asking price the vendor has attached to it. We act for developers, builders and private buyers acquiring land for development across Brisbane and Queensland.
We do not sell development sites and we hold no relationship with vendors that could compromise the feasibility work we provide to a buyer.
Development sites are priced on optimistic assumptions that a buyer inherits if they are not tested.
Vendors and their agents often market a site against a yield that assumes a favourable planning outcome, minimal infrastructure charges and a construction cost base that may already be out of date. A buyer who accepts that yield at face value is effectively underwriting someone else's assumptions.
The gap between an indicative yield and an achievable, feasible yield can be the difference between a viable project and a site that sits unbuilt while holding costs accumulate. Infrastructure charges alone can vary materially between local government areas and even between precincts within the same council.
We build an independent feasibility before a price is agreed, so the number you are negotiating against reflects what the site can actually deliver.
A disciplined process, applied to every mandate.
Zoning and planning scheme review
We confirm the site's zoning, overlays and any code or performance requirements that affect achievable yield.
Yield testing
We test realistic dwelling or built form yield against the planning scheme, not the vendor's indicative concept plan.
Infrastructure charge analysis
We estimate infrastructure charges specific to the local government area and land use, a figure that materially affects feasibility.
Feasibility modelling
We build a residual land value feasibility incorporating construction costs, holding costs, contingency and target margin.
Negotiation and due diligence
We negotiate on the basis of the tested feasibility and manage title, contamination and servicing due diligence through to settlement.
What we assess on every development site.
Feasibility discipline applied before capital is committed.
Development site acquisition sits closer to project appraisal than conventional property purchase. We apply a residual land value approach, working back from realistic sale or rental outcomes through construction cost, infrastructure charges and holding costs, to arrive at what the site is genuinely worth to a developer targeting a defined margin.
This work draws on planning scheme analysis and infrastructure charge schedules specific to each Queensland local government area, since assumptions that hold in one council area frequently do not transfer to another.
When the concept plan overstates the yield.
A worked example of our methodology, not a claimed outcome.
A site is marketed with an indicative concept plan showing twelve townhouse lots, used to justify the asking price. Our review of the planning scheme identifies a site cover and setback requirement the concept plan does not comply with, reducing the realistically achievable yield to nine lots.
We rebuild the feasibility on nine lots, incorporating current construction cost estimates and the specific council's infrastructure charge schedule, and arrive at a residual land value materially below the asking price.
That feasibility becomes the basis for negotiation. The buyer either secures the site at a price that supports a viable project, or avoids committing capital to a site that could not deliver the assumed return.
Questions buyers ask us.
- Do you provide town planning advice directly?
- We work alongside town planners and, where required, engage specialist consultants for formal planning advice. Our role is to test feasibility and coordinate the right specialist input before a purchase decision.
- Can you assess sites for a specific dwelling typology?
- Yes. We tailor yield and feasibility testing to the buyer's intended product, whether that is townhouses, dual occupancy, small lot housing or a broader master-planned outcome.
- How accurate are your infrastructure charge estimates?
- We base estimates on the relevant council's current charges resolution and schedule of works, though final charges are confirmed through the formal development application process.
- Do you act on sites requiring rezoning?
- We can, though rezoning introduces additional risk and timeframe that we assess and communicate clearly before recommending a buyer proceed on that basis.
- What if I've already identified a site and just need due diligence?
- This is a common engagement. We run feasibility testing and due diligence on sites clients have already found, as a discrete piece of work.
- Do you cover sites outside Brisbane?
- Yes, across Queensland, with feasibility work adjusted for the relevant local government area's charges and planning scheme.
Test the feasibility before you commit to the site.
We act for buyers exclusively. No listings, no seller commissions and no conflicted advice.