What a development manager does for a multifamily owner

A development manager leads a project for the owner of the land or the capital. The owner keeps the asset, signs the contracts and makes the decisions; the development manager prepares each decision, assembles and directs the team and holds the project to its schedule and its model.

What it prepares

• The read of the site and every pathway the code allows, with a test fit for each.
• The feasibility model that sets the financial envelope of the building.
• The entitlement strategy: the route, the requests and the order of the filings.
• The design brief the licensed team works to, and the cost checks at each milestone.
• The permit path, the clearances and the schedule to a permit ready to issue.

Who it directs

The architect and engineers of record, the site consultants (survey, geotechnical, environmental, traffic, arborist), the code consultants, land use counsel and the cost estimator. The owner contracts each of them directly, so the drawings, reports and approvals belong to the owner.

When an owner uses one

When the owner holds land or capital and wants to build without giving up ownership to a developer partner, or wants a second read of a site, a pathway or a program before committing to it.

Questions

What is the difference between a developer and a development manager?

A developer usually takes an ownership stake in the project; a development manager leads it for the owner, who keeps the asset, the contracts and the decisions.

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