Development
The knowledge and network to execute
Whether you are the head of real estate for an international chain or an individual seeking a fee development partner, PDF has the knowledge, experience, relationships, and resources required to successfully navigate your commercial real estate development needs.
Four decades of entitlements, zoning, and approvals
Commercial real estate development has its share of hurdles. Entitlements such as use permits, zoning regulations, and an endless stream of approvals can slow your project unless you work with seasoned professionals who know how to navigate the complex landscape. PDF has spent nearly 40 years processing and securing all types of government entitlements, uniting a team of experts to bring development projects to market expeditiously and efficiently.
From raw site to finished project
Development is a long sequence where early mistakes get expensive. This is the order we work in.
Test the site
Before anything else, we look at what the land can actually support: zoning, utilities, access, topography, environmental conditions, and the approvals your use will require.
Model the numbers
Land cost, hard and soft costs, carrying costs, timeline, and realistic exit value or stabilized rent. If the pro forma does not work at this stage, it does not work later.
Move through entitlements
Applications, staff review, hearings, conditions of approval, and the agency coordination that determines whether a project moves in months or years.
Build and stabilize
Contractor and consultant coordination through construction, then leasing or disposition so the project reaches the outcome the model assumed.
What determines whether a project pencils
Development risk concentrates in a handful of variables. These are the ones we work through first.
Zoning and entitlements
Current designation, the use you want, what approvals are required, and a realistic read on the political and procedural timeline.
Utilities and infrastructure
Water, sewer, power, and storm capacity at the site, who pays to extend them, and how that lands on the budget.
Site conditions
Topography, soils, drainage, floodplain, easements, and environmental history that can quietly reshape a construction budget.
Cost and timeline
Hard and soft costs against a build schedule, with carrying cost through a permitting period that rarely goes faster than planned.
Market demand
Whether the finished product has real absorption at the rents or prices the model needs, not just at today's comps.
Exit strategy
Hold and stabilize, sell at completion, or build to suit, decided at the front end because it changes what you build.
Questions we get on development projects
How long does entitlement usually take?
It varies widely by jurisdiction and by use. A by-right project in a cooperative city can move quickly; anything requiring a use permit, rezone, or environmental review takes considerably longer. We give you the realistic range for your specific site and agency.
Can you help if I already own the land?
Yes. Owning the site is a common starting point. We evaluate what it can support, model the outcomes, and help you decide between developing, entitling and selling, or selling as is.
What does representation cost?
Every engagement is different, so compensation is discussed openly and agreed in writing before any work begins. There are no surprise fees and nothing is owed based on a conversation. We will explain exactly how it would work for your situation, in plain terms, before you commit to anything.
Do you only work in the Sacramento region?
Greater Sacramento is our home market and where our relationships run deepest. Through our eXp affiliation we can also support clients well beyond the region, bringing in local expertise wherever your plans take you.
Have a project in mind?
Bring us your vision and we'll help you navigate entitlements, financing, and execution.
Discuss Your Project