Promoting and enhancing best practice and technical expertise

Land Assembly: Bringing land forward and maximising its value

This course will consider practical issues surrounding land assembly, how land can be most effectively brought forward to meet the UK's housing needs, covering established principles as well as addressing new and emerging issues and current thinking.

The programme is aimed at practitioners involved in land assembly, property development and compulsory purchase, and will be highly relevant to developers, finance institutions, surveyors and lawyers.

Start Date Venue Price  
22 February 2017 Strand Palace Hotel, London    

Note: All prices are to be paid in GBP and are subject to VAT at the prevailing rate

Event duration: Day Event, 6 hours CPD (Lunch included).
Registration from: 9.00. Event starts at: 9.20. Event finishes at: 16.00.

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Land assembly involves joining contiguous plots to make one larger parcel of developable land. Whilst it may be attractive to develop on the urban fringes, there are impediments. Equally, it can be challenging assembling land in an urban environment, though working in private/public ventures can facilitate assembly and unlock schemes and sites.

This conference will address;

  • What land should be assembled and what viability appraisal needs to be carried out?
  • What forms of structuring and development finance is there available?
  • What are the various routes available for acquisition and what are the pros and cons: whether by compulsion (CPO) or private agreement?
  • What public procurement issues are there and how can freedom of information requests be managed?
  • What forms of structuring and development finance is there available for land parcels?
  • What is the political thinking behind this regeneration agenda and can the public sector assist by releasing land for development?
  • What are developers doing now to bring forward such schemes, including garden cities and large urban developments?

The theme of the day will be a practical focus on how to address the questions that frustrate and create inertia to such projects coming forward.

This programme is aimed at practitioners involved in advice on land assembly, property development and compulsory purchase and will be highly relevant to developers, finance institutions, surveyors and lawyers. It will cover established principles as well as addressing new and emerging issues and current thinking.

Speakers

Programme

What do I do with the land? Development Appraisal

  • Development Plan
  • Development value
  • Viability considerations
    • Contract costs
    • End users and value
    • Managing and disposing of the project as an Investment
    • Project finance and funding
  • Is CPO a consideration?
  • Ransom potential from neighbouring land
  • Town and Village Greens
  • A consideration of gaining planning approval
  • Managing expectations and opponents to a scheme

Acquiring Land and Property: negotiation v compulsion strategies

CPO as the route to acquisition

  • Can I, and should I, use CPO powers?
  • DCO where it can go wrong and create ransom strips
  • CPO reforms – does it make it easier for private entities to use such powers?
  • How things are being progressed with transport and energy projects;
  • Impact of working with an acquiring authority to make use of such powers?
  • The costs, benefits. Risk.
  • Obligations and requirements
  • Intangible issues to consider – media, lobby groups and , political will,
  • When and how to use, when to serve

By agreement

  • What to negotiate
  • Dealing with freehold, leases, options to buy, and joint ventures
  • Tactics when dealing with businesses –v- investors –v- general public
  • Consultation
  • Are statutory authorities hampered by best value

Public procurement issues in the planning and regeneration context

  • Case law update
  • Procurement procedures and other obligations
  • Things to look out for

Forms of structuring and development finance

  • “Funding gap” equity and debt sources
  • what structure to use ?
  • Development Agreements
  • Development obligations
  • Finance Agreements
  • Tax implications for Development Agreements
  • Grant Funding and alternative sources of funding

Freedom of Information Requests and Environment Information Regulations

A practical review of how to manage

  • Cases
  • How they frustrate
  • What can be released
  • Open book policies
  • Can this create inertia?
  • Minimising the mischief
  • What can developers do?
  • Case examples

Regeneration strategies and the release of public sector assets

  • Understanding the regeneration agenda, where to look and who to speak to
  • The rise and rise of the Director of Place
  • One Public Estate – can we unpack the “too difficult” box?
  • ‘Outcomes’ vs Best Value
  • Securing the triple bottom line
  • Preparing for partnerships

Panel debate: Land Assembly and Regeneration Strategies in action

Alternative delivery models and practical case examples

  • Contracts and partnerships with public sector, joint ventures vehicles with private sector: motivation and risk; the pros and cons
  • Mayoral Development Corporations
  • Practical case examples