Definition of "Real estate developer"

Tia Ware real estate agent

Written by

Tia Wareelite badge icon

Southern Homes of the Carolinas

A developer is a person that designs or creates something that could be a concept, structure, product or service. An idea can be turned into something real, tangible and the person that does that is called a developer. The process followed by a person in order to create something can be called “development process” and the person is the developer.

As an example, a developer can be an individual that builds software. You might also find them under specific names such as programmers or software developers more. Web developers deal with web design and web development tasks. Content developers are usually individuals that create content fit to be published in a magazine or uploaded on a website.

Developers in real estate

Real estate development is the act of buying land, creating new buildings and selling the property for a profit. The person that coordinates the process is called a real estate developer. A real estate developer coordinates the whole process from the beginning to the end. From the initial project faze up until a building is created, the whole development process is imagined, initiated, orchestrated, and controlled by the real estate developer.

There is a whole process associated with creating a new building: deciding where to put it, borrowing money for the project, buying land, receiving permission for the building, design, build, finding buyers or tenants to occupy it and manage it. While there are many different counterparts that specialize in each individual step the real estate developers coordinate the whole process. Architects, city planners, inspectors, engineers, contractors, lawyers, surveyors, leasing agents are all coordinated by a real estate developer.

Developers in real estate are also risk-takers that invest a considerable amount of money in an attempt to gain a profit if the building is a success. In order for it to succeed, the real estate developer would have to rent out the building/facility or sell for a profit. This ultimately makes the real estate developer the person in charge, a risk manager, a person engaged in a business that can lead to high returns, but it can also cause severe losses.

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Real Estate Terms

(1) Licensed broker employed to represent and match both buyers and sellers. Usually employs several real estate agents in an office. (2) Commission or fee charged to sell real estate or ...

Gets rid of unwanted substances and materials from a residence or office building. Waste includes solids and liquids, hazardous and nonhazardous materials. ...

Opening so that air or gas may enter or leave. For example, an air conditioner has a "vent open" or "vent closed" knob for outside air. The "vent close" switch must be on for air ...

Millennials – also known as Generation Y, because they come after the so-called Generation X - is a term coined for a generational extract of people born at the end of the first ...

Land and any existing tenements that are part of a conveyance. For example, upon closing a real estate sale. The seller deeds the premises to the purchaser. ...

Note having more than one maker, if one or more of the makers default on the note, all makers are sued jointly, rather than just one or all, to make restitution ...

A method of brick construction where the bricks are laid with their sides facing outward. ...

When talking about the open space ratio we are referring to a term that is used in zoning laws and regulations. The open space ratio is a term used to measure open space on a developed land ...

Method to obtaining title to property through open, notorious, adverse, and continuous use of the property for a statutorily prescribed period of time. For example, Jack openly and ...

Popular Real Estate Questions