Over the past few years, we have excitedly seen a new generation of property developers emerge: younger, digitally-savvy and socially engaged, these unlikely developers are taking the real estate development market by storm. These developers – often in their thirties and forties – are a different breed of developers, frequently driven by a different set of incentives and with a more holistic skillset than their precursors. But how can we lenders support this new generation of property developers? How can we work with them to tackle the housing crisis and solve one of the most critical challenges of our time? In a four-episode series, Yann Murciano, Blend Network CEO, assesses four real challenges and proposes concrete solutions to how lenders like us can support the next generation of developers.
Building a Property Power Team
The first episode of this four-episode series focuses on the challenge of building a powerful network, a property power team, so to speak. As any property developer attending property networking events or being part of property focus groups will know, one of the best kept secrets to successful property developing is having a great team of people around you who can help you achieve your goals. This is often referred to as the Property Power Team. The idea behind it is that the right group of individuals and companies will help you achieve far more than you could possibly achieve on your own, they will help you avoid costly mistakes and extract value on matters that you might have otherwise wholly missed. When I first started attending such property networking events, I could feel in the room the thirst for information, the desire for knowledge, and genuine wish for collaboration among attendees. As most property developers know, building a property power team is one of the first things you should be doing, before even looking for development opportunities. Otherwise, it’s no good finding an amazing deal and then missing out on it just because you can’t move fast enough.
But while the benefits of building a property power team are quite obvious, the reality is that doing so is not an easy task. Who should be on the power team? How should the power team be constructed? What exactly should be expected from each member of the power team? These are all pertinent questions aspiring property developers should be asking themselves.
How lenders can support developers build their property power team
I believe that lenders have a key role to play in supporting emerging property developers with a view to help them build enough ‘muscle’ so they can make a positive change towards building the homes that the country so desperately needs. In particular, lenders can support emerging property developers build their property power team because lenders sit at the crossroad between several property professionals with whom they will have developed long-standing partnerships over the years. For example, lenders like us at Blend regularly work with property lawyers and solicitors, architects, valuers, quantity surveyors, planning consultants, accountants, tax experts, and even other lenders who can provide mezzanine debt if needed. So, an obvious way lenders like us at Blend can support, and do support, the next generation of property developers build their own property power team is by simply opening up our network and making it available to our clients. We do so by creating a safe space where all those within our network can connect, interact, and do business together. This is what we are building at Blend, an exclusive by-invitation-only property network where our developers can access information, obtain data and research, build contacts, seek mentorship, and perhaps most importantly unlock the funding they need for their deals.
If you are a developer and would like to join the waiting list for our exclusive property network, email us at enquiries@blendnetwork.com and ask to be added to the waiting list.
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