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

The substitution of one person or business for another when the substituted person or business has the same rights and obligations as the original party. An insurance company can surogate ...

(1) Methods that involve discounting the future cash flows generated by an income property. These techniques are used primarily for valuation. (2) Methods of selecting and ranking ...

Tax-free exchange that allows a seller two years after escrow closes on his former principal personal residence to buy like-kind property and defer taxes. Profits from the sale of a ...

Title granted to those having expertise in valuing homes by the American Institute of Real Estate Appraisers. ...

See historic structure. ...

An interest rate charged on a loan that exceeds the legal maximum interest rate within the state. It is illegal to do so. The maximum interest rate may depend on the type of lender and ...

An interest in property with the right o possession being postponed into the future until a certain even occurs. There are several possibilities where a future interest in property could ...

Highest bid to buy and the lowest offer to sell a parcel of real estate in a particular market at a specified time. ...

Residential or office structure adjacent to water such as a lake. Such property has a higher value because of the greater demand for it. ...

Popular Real Estate Questions