Service 03 of 07 — Property Development Management Services Development Management
Acting as your in-house development team — managing feasibility, funding milestones, consultants and delivery to protect the investment case.
Overview
The development expertise you need without the overhead
Most organisations that develop property do so infrequently. The skills required — viability modelling, planning strategy, funder liaison, consultant management, programme control — are specialist, and the cost of carrying them in-house can’t be justified between projects.
October Project provides that capability on demand. We embed within your organisation as an extension of your team, taking full accountability for the development process while you retain control of the investment decision. From the first site appraisal through to practical completion and receipt of sale proceeds, we manage every workstream on your behalf.
Our development managers have run projects for private landowners, institutional investors, housing associations, local authorities and corporate occupiers. We understand that development management means protecting the business case — not just delivering a building — and every decision we make is tested against the investment return.
Scope of Services
What we do
Our development management service covers the full lifecycle — from pre-acquisition appraisal through planning, funding, delivery and disposal.
Feasibility & Viability
Thorough site appraisals and development viability models — GDV assessment, development cost build-up, residual land value analysis and sensitivity testing — to establish whether a scheme is worth pursuing before any commitment is made.
Planning Strategy & Management
Assembling and leading the planning team, managing pre-application engagement with the local authority, steering the design through policy requirements and representing the client’s interests through the consent process and any appeal.
Funding & Finance Management
Preparing investment committee submissions, managing development finance drawdown, producing funder monitoring reports and maintaining the relationship with debt and equity providers throughout the development period.
Consultant Team Management
Scoping, appointing and managing the full professional team — architect, structural and MEP engineers, planning consultant, cost manager, solicitors and specialist advisors — with clear accountability structures and information management protocols.
Programme & Milestone Control
Building and maintaining the development programme across all workstreams — planning, funding, procurement and construction — with milestone tracking aligned to funding drawdown conditions, planning obligations and forward sale agreements.
Sales, Leasing & Handover
Coordinating sales and leasing agents, managing the marketing programme, overseeing purchaser legal completions and administering the handover process — ensuring the investment case is realised through to the final disposal.
Our Approach
How we take a development from appraisal to completion
Site Appraisal & Acquisition Support
We assess sites and opportunities before any financial commitment — running the development appraisal, identifying planning risk, stress-testing the programme assumptions and advising on the acquisition structure. Our analysis gives the client a clear basis for the investment decision rather than a set of aspirational projections.
Planning Strategy & Concept
We assemble the planning and design team, manage pre-application discussions with the local authority and steer the concept design towards a scheme that’s both commercially optimised and approvable. We maintain a live planning risk register and advise on the consent strategy — including reserved matters, phasing and S106 negotiation.
Consent & Conditions
We manage the planning application process from submission through to resolution of all pre-commencement conditions. This is a critical programme path — delays here cascade into funding and construction — and we track every condition discharge, legal agreement and technical approval to maintain the timeline.
Funding, Procurement & Mobilisation
We coordinate the funding package alongside construction procurement — ensuring drawdown conditions are aligned with the contract programme, that the contractor is appointed on terms that protect the client, and that the development is ready to start on a date that’s defensible to funders and forward purchasers.
Construction & Development Delivery
On-site, we act as the client’s representative — attending progress meetings, reviewing the contractor’s programme, signing off on key milestones and managing the reporting obligations to funders and purchasers. The investment case doesn’t stop at financial close; we continue to protect it through every month of the build period.
Completion, Sales & Disposal
We manage the transition from construction to occupation and sale — coordinating legal completions, managing the marketing and sales agent relationship, overseeing the handover process and administering any forward fund or lease obligations. The project isn’t closed until the investment is realised.
Why October Projects
What sets our development management consultancy apart
The business case, not just the building
Most development problems originate in decisions that looked reasonable in isolation but ignored their effect on the investment return. Our development managers understand viability, and every programme decision, design change and procurement choice is tested against its impact on GDV, cost and return.
In-house capability, without the overhead
We provide senior development management expertise for the duration of a project, at a fraction of the cost of a permanent in-house team. When the project ends, so does the cost. For organisations that develop intermittently, this is the rational model — experienced resource deployed exactly when it’s needed.
Funder-facing from day one
Development finance providers require regular, credible reporting. We have long-standing relationships with development lenders, housing associations and institutional investors, and we produce the monitoring reports, drawdown certificates and programme updates that keep funding relationships healthy throughout the development period.
See the sectors we work in and meet the team who will manage your project. Acting for a lender or funder? See our Monitoring Surveyor services.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What is a development manager?
A development manager acts as your in-house development team: managing feasibility, appraisals, funding milestones, consultants and delivery, so the scheme is delivered in line with your investment case.
Who is this service for?
Developers, landowners, investors, funders and public bodies, particularly those without their own in-house development team, or who need additional senior capacity.
Can you help with site appraisals and feasibility?
Yes. We assess sites and schemes at the earliest stage, covering development potential, costs, programme and key risks, so you can decide with confidence whether, and how, to proceed.
Do you provide fund monitoring for lenders?
Yes. We provide independent monitoring for funders, reviewing costs, programme and progress at each stage and reporting clearly on risk before funds are released.
How do you protect the investment case?
By keeping cost, programme and design decisions aligned with your appraisal throughout, and flagging any change that affects returns early, while there’s still time to act.
Start a Project
Tell us about
your opportunity.
We’ll bring the development expertise, the funder relationships and the delivery discipline. Get in touch to discuss your project.