Property development is shrouded in risk. Conception to project completion usually spans several years. Developers have to combat bureaucratic inertia and political posturing at the municipal level, public antipathy as part of the planning approval process, fiscal frugality when seeking financing, hostile weather, industrial action and material shortages during construction and finally when the project is complete, an economy that refuses to rise to the occasion. We reduce the systemic risk inherent in development.
Purchaser Representation
Our Brokerage Division acts as the developer’s agent locating properties suitable for development, or redevelopment, that meet the developer’s acquisition criteria. We advise on their market value and negotiate the acquisition on the most advantageous terms for the developer. Since we act as the purchaser’s agent we are legally and morally obligated to act in the best interest of the purchaser: however our broker’s fee is usually recovered from the vendor. Our Brokerage Division is able to draw on the advice of our Planning and Valuation Divisions and resources such as CompuVal®, our leading edge information technology platform. CompuVal® acquires and combines property listing, sales, revenue and expense data from multiple sources, and then processes and analyses it to give us a unique insight into the Atlantic Region's marketplaces. It also give us access to property details and ownerships on every piece of real estate in the Maritime Provinces. We also subscribe to the on-line property services in all four provinces. We have online access to high resolution satellite and three dimensional photography for the entire region. CompuVal® is proprietary to Turner Drake. Our Brokerage staff are the product of our own seven year training program which, in concert with the University of British Columbia’s Diploma in Urban Land Economics (DULE) and Bachelor of Business in Real Estate (BBRE) degree, provides developers the assurance they are dealing with trained real estate professionals. The program includes negotiation as a defined skill set.
Landlord Representation
Our Brokerage Division provides developers with advice on rental rates, vacancy, operating expenses and market acceptability for their proposed space, acting as a sounding board during the conceptual stages of the project. They can draw on the resources of our Economic Intelligence Unit and the market surveys they conduct throughout the Atlantic Provinces. Once the development is finalised our Brokerage Division markets the space, locates and qualifies suitable tenants, and then negotiates the most advantageous terms for the developer.
Research
Our Economic Intelligence Unit conducts market surveys, site selection, trade area analysis, supply and demand analysis and demographic studies through Atlantic Canada. They provide developers with advice on the type, size, mix, quality and amenities that best meet market demand having regard to the neighbourhood’s demographic, psychographic and fiscal profile before the developer embarks on the costly exercise of developing architectural plans.
Counselling
Our Counselling Division provides Feasibility Studies to developers to (1) test whether a proposed development is financially feasible; (2) determine which one of several mutually exclusive developments is the optimal project; (3) identify the type and size of development that will maximise the return on investment.
Valuation
Our Valuation Division assists the developer finance the project by providing valuation reports that meet the breadth, depth and quality requirements demanded by the financial institutions. All of our valuation assignments are conducted in accordance with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyor’s Valuation Standards [RICS Red Book]. They comply with the International Valuation Standards (IVS), the American Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP), and the Canadian Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (CUSPAP).
Property Tax
Property taxes are usually the largest single expense after the mortgage payments. Control of the property tax liability is critical to the financial success of the project. Our Property Tax Division provides developers with an estimate of the property assessment, and projected realty taxes, before construction commencement. After project completion the property can be enrolled in our PAMS® Property Tax Manager program to automatically protect it against rapacious municipal taxes. The program saves clients throughout Canada millions of dollars every year … year after year.
Planning
Our Planning Divisions assists developers before they embark on the costly exercise of developing architectural plans by conducting inexpensive Regulatory Reviews to determine what development options are available and what processes are required to receive project approval. That review can be combined with a Development Analysis to help determine which option best meets the developer’s objectives. Once the project proposal is finalised we can take it through the required planning processes, liaise with stakeholders and the approval authorities and secure Development Approval.
Lasercad® Space Measurement
Lasercad® is a property measurement service whose output can be used both for (1) leasing purposes and, (2) as an asset management tool. Our Lasercad® Division certifies Usable and Rental areas for office, retail, industrial, mixed-use and residential space to the appropriate BOMA, SIOR, CREA, Standard Method of Measurement to aid in lease negotiations and avoid landlord/tenant disputes.