This question can be like asking “how long is a ball of string” …. Every subdivision has a different cost associated with it!
Our experience has taught us that, answering this question usually gets determined by one of the following 3 things:
- What type of company you are using, is it a Land Surveying company or Project Management Company
- Has the company a Fixed Price Contract (BEWARE)
- If you are the Project Manager, who is advising you on what you need to do
Two Types of Subdivision
Have you ever noticed that when you are driving through your local area you typically see 2 different types of subdivision! One property will have perfectly compacted land with new fences and retaining walls installed ready to build on. We call this “manicuring the lots”. The 2nd property will have sand
on the ground at different levels, be undesirable to look at, yet it is fully completed with titles issued. We like to call this “rough & ready subdivision”. This will be cheaper and quicker to complete!
Why?
So what is the difference between these 2 and why has one person done it one way and the other person a different way?
Well basically the only difference is, one developer has decided to do more
than the other with the belief that by doing the additional siteworks it will increase the chances of a quick sale.
The bottom lines is this! If you want to spend all your money doing this additional work, then that is your choice. You may very well spend an additional $35,000 on earthworks and retaining whereas the other developer has done none of these things and has still sold each lot in the same timeframe.
Beware
Remember, some companies are invested in you spending more money! If they are project managing the construction of the subdivision, they are more than likely getting a back hander from the company doing the work. This is how all builders work with margins and some land development
companies use the same strategies.
Explore Your Options
Keep in mind that everything you do is going to cost money. Does it not make sense to look at strategies to do less work on your own subdivision? If there was a way not to do earthworks that was going to cost you $20,000, would you not explore this option?
In most cases the typical subdivision can be completed by doing a small amount of work and a lot of the time you will not need to do earthworks as mentioned above.
Engage a Consultant
The key to keeping your costs down is by engaging a reliable subdivision consultant you can trust and who is not invested in anything but trying to get you the best possible outcome by saving you money.
At MySubdivision we look at ways of doing less which leads to you spending less. We have experience in all areas doing subdivision. This experience has allowed us to save our clients hundreds of thousands of $$ over the years.