WHAT WE DO
Development Feasibility
Maximise your Site’s Potential with our Expert Options Analysis
At Cato Bolam, we specialise in Development Feasibility Reports offering swift and cost-effective design optioneering and comprehensive project costings, help you assess project feasibility and reduce risks before you buy or begin development.
Undertaking a development project requires a comprehensive understanding of your site’s opportunities, constraints, and overall feasibility. At Cato Bolam, our Development Feasibility Reports are a vital part of the due diligence process, offering expert insights to evaluate your site’s potential, address challenges, and identify opportunities to maximise value.
Engaging our multidisciplinary team early ensures you have expert input on Zoning Regulations, Utility Service Availability, Development Opportunities, Resource Consent Requirements, Costings and Design Concepts. Whether you’re subdividing land or developing residential or commercial properties, our multidisciplinary team outline practical solutions, helping to guide you seamlessly from concept to completion.
We Can Assist With:
- New / Changed Land Uses
- Existing Use Rights
- Private Plan Changes
From first-time developers to seasoned investors managing large-scale projects, we with you to ensure your development achieves its full potential.
If you are purchasing land for development and want confidence in your due diligence decision getting a cost-effective options analysis is key.
Our Development Feasibility Services include an Initial Consultation and customised Development Advice with a quick 3-5 day turnaround. Whether you’re planning a dream home, adding a minor dwelling, subdividing land, or undertaking a large-scale development, a feasibility report will provide confidence in your investment.
What We Cover During the Initial Consultation
- Property details – aerial photograph, site size and dimensions, legal description and certificate of title number.
- Zoning and Rules applying to the property – this gives a basic understanding of development possibilities.
- Any servicing or flooding issues – we consult Council databases and use our own engineering knowledge to provide this advice.
- An outline of the process involved in establishing the development, including consultant and Council fees.
Development Advice
We believe it is important that we understand each client’s project purpose and background from the outset. That’s why we start by asking questions and listening. We utilise the initial consultation advice and our extensive land development experience in collaboration with your vision to determine the potential development yield for the property. This may be a simple site subdivision or may be a more complex building development followed by subdivision.
We prepare a design concept taking into account your wishes, the regulations that apply and any constraints applying to the land. We will identify information the Council will likely require for the consenting processes. For instance, reports on traffic implications, geotechnical analysis and land contamination are often required.
Our team of experts can also provide estimates of development costs for the consenting and the completions phases as required.
This advice will give confidence about what form of development is likely to achieve Resource Consent.
Find out what opportunities exist for your property.
Book a free discovery call today
Benefit from 50+ Years of Land Development Expertise
Our process generally begins with a development feasibility and concept option analysis. This is one of the most important phases of work as it tests the potential of the site, assesses available options and most importantly helps you determine if a development is likely to be feasible.
All going well, the feasibility work sets the direction of the project through to completion. Or, if too many hurdles are identified this phase may determine that the project is not feasible and another site should be looked at.
Our experienced team will collaborate with you to explore the best options for your property, delivering honest and practical advice to help you make informed decisions. With over 50 years of expertise and a proven track record of successful projects throughout Waikato, Auckland, and Northland, we provide the insights and guidance you need to confidently begin your next development project.
FREQUENTLY ASKED
Development Feasibility Questions
What is the Auckland Unitary Plan?
The Auckland Unitary Plan is a comprehensive (and large!) document that sets out clearly what you can and cannot do with your land. If you can do something, the AUP also outlines how you need to go about it - this is often through a resource consent process. One of our skills is to know about the AUP and advise you on how it applies to your property.
How much will it cost to develop my land?
It depends on what you want to do. We can discuss that with you and once we have a basic undertsanding of where you may wish to go - including some options - we can cost it out for you.
Can I develop/subdivide my land/property?
Quite possibly! If you contact us with your property address we shoud be able to provide you with a quick initial answer.
How do I maximise my property’s potential?
Our initial assessment of your property and Council's district plan and other requirements will identify what the possibilities are. We can then advise on the design, consenting and construction costs, and estimated timeframes. This will enable you to see how you can maximise the property's potential, and enable an analysis of the potential return on investment.
Does it cost money to check my properties potential?
A desktop assessment of your property's development potential can be undertaken with one of our development experts free of charge. Additional stages of feasibility reports for funding purposes or due diligence reports to clarify specific development point will incur a fee based on hourly rate. We will give you an estimate if this seems the best course of action to take.
How do I check the potential of my property?
The first step in understanding your property's potential for development is to contact one of our Directors who can let you know about Council and planning requirements, any issues that we can readily identify, the practicality of achieving subdivision or building development and the economics of any physical construction required on site. Most of this can be given in an email as a desktop exercise, however we will sometimes suggest that there is a need for further invesigation, including a site visit.
