ASSEMBLING YOUR PROJECT TEAM
A key part of the predevelopment process is building your development or project team. Your project team will be comprised of your organization and partner organizations and consultants who will assist you at different points in the development process, including the predevelopment phase.
Most organizations, even seasoned ones, do not possess all the in-house expertise to develop, own, and operate affordable housing. Development projects, especially those using public resources for affordable housing development, span multiple years to complete, and after completion, they become assets to steward for decades. It’s important to consider if your organization can commit its resources, staff, and time to realize your proposed project, as well as ensure it is managed with care and remains in compliance with funding sources over the long term.
Internal Capacity Assessment
As you are embarking on new housing development, you should assess your organization’s existing capacity for your proposed project to identify your organizational strengths, opportunities to build your organization’s internal capacity for development, and any additional skills that are needed to fully realize your project concept. For further detail on capacity assessment see Capacity Assessment in Visioning.
Partnership Assessment
An internal capacity assessment will highlight gaps you may need to fill by partnering with other organizations or consultants. In addition to determining what types of organizations you need to work with, you will want to ensure your chosen partners can meet the specific needs of your project and possess any necessary up-to-date certifications or licenses.
Beyond expertise and core skills, though, you should also consider what characteristics would make a good partner to your organization throughout the development process and in the long term. You may already have relationships with trusted partners, which adds to the strength of your project team. In other cases, you will need to seek out new partners. Your organization is in the best position to define what makes a good partner. However, if you are looking for a place to start your reflection on this question, the partnership assessment tool in this guide is designed for this purpose.
Instructions: Click a box below and enter the name of the individual or company responsible for that role. When you're done click the Download button to download a PDF copy of your Project Team chart.
KEY PROJECT TEAM AND THEIR POTENTIAL ROLES
The following roles comprise a project team:
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Developer – This role initiates the proposed project and convenes the other partners needed to complete it. Throughout the process, the developer manages all aspects of a project. They are responsible for providing project team members with the resources and information they need to complete their parts of the project; coordinating across project partners or external entities as needed; and creating accountability for the project’s vision and budget.
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Developer Partner – In some cases, a development partner may play a direct role in the development process with you, bringing some unique capacity to the process. In other cases, their role may be less involved and contribute a resource but are not directly involved in the development process. Whatever their role may be, it is important to establish expectations early. Development partners do not have to be traditional development agencies. In fact, many types of organizations can be development partners, such as other developers, public housing authorities, local anchor institutions, school districts, employers, and community advocates.
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Property manager – The property manager serves as the primary steward of the project once it is complete. Some organizations offer in-house property management services, while other contract with third-party property management companies for this role. A property manager needs a wide-ranging skillset, including the ability to coordinate marketing and lease-up, build positive relationships with tenants, and manage maintenance expenses. For properties using public resources that carry compliance requirements, a property manager should have knowledge of these requirements. Compliance related property management tasks include tenant eligibility and screening practices, income verification and recertification procedures, and reporting requirements.
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General contractor – A general contractor carries out the physical construction of the project. They are responsible for the equipment, materials, and labor to complete your project according to your plan’s specifications. They can also serve as an advisor on key aspects of your project, including design and material choices and their impact on total development cost. In most cases, a developer will solicit bids for general contracting services to identify this member of the project them. As you assess general contractors, you should look for those with experience managing a project of similar scope to the extent possible.
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Service Provider – A service provider develops and delivers services to residents living in your completed development. Not all developments include service providers; this role is applicable for projects that incorporate onsite or offsite services, such as healthcare, educational programs, and financial counseling. At applicable projects, this role could be filled by existing service providers serving your community, where the development is providing them space, or by new services offered as part of the development. If you want to provide onsite services or want to be able to reach a specific group, engaging a service provider early in the development process can inform questions about the space (amount, layout and design, feature) needed to deliver services in your project.
The following roles comprise a project team:
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Developer – This role initiates the proposed project and convenes the other partners needed to complete it. Throughout the process, the developer manages all aspects of a project. They are responsible for providing project team members with the resources and information they need to complete their parts of the project; coordinating across project partners or external entities as needed; and creating accountability for the project’s vision and budget.
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Developer Partner – In some cases, a development partner may play a direct role in the development process with you, bringing some unique capacity to the process. In other cases, their role may be less involved and contribute a resource but are not directly involved in the development process. Whatever their role may be, it is important to establish expectations early. Development partners do not have to be traditional development agencies. In fact, many types of organizations can be development partners, such as other developers, public housing authorities, local anchor institutions, school districts, employers, and community advocates.
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Property Manager – The property manager serves as the primary steward of the project once it is complete. Some organizations offer in-house property management services, while others contract with third-party property management companies for this role. A property manager needs a wide-ranging skillset, including the ability to coordinate marketing and lease-up, build positive relationships with tenants, and manage maintenance expenses. For properties using public resources that carry compliance requirements, a property manager should have knowledge of these requirements. Compliance related property management tasks include tenant eligibility and screening practices, income verification and recertification procedures, and reporting requirements.
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General Contractor – A general contractor carries out the physical construction of the project. They are responsible for the equipment, materials, and labor to complete your project according to your plan’s specifications. They can also serve as an advisor on key aspects of your project, including design and material choices and their impact on total development cost. In most cases, a developer will solicit bids for general contracting services to identify this member of the project them. As you assess general contractors, you should look for those with experience managing a project of similar scope to the extent possible.
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Service Provider – A service provider develops and delivers services to residents living in your completed development. Not all developments include service providers; this role is applicable for projects that incorporate onsite or offsite services, such as healthcare, educational programs, and financial counseling. At applicable projects, this role could be filled by existing service providers serving your community, where the development is providing them space, or by new services offered as part of the development. If you want to provide onsite services or want to be able to reach a specific group, engaging a service provider early in the development process can inform questions about the space (amount, layout and design, feature) needed to deliver services in your project.
CONSULTANT OR CONTRACTED SERVICES
Some project needs can be filled by contracting for professional services for specific tasks. Common professional services include:
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Architect – An architect will assist with schematic drawings and building plans, which will be important to determine if your site can accommodate the number, configuration, and features of homes envisioned. It is important that the architect you select has experience with Native architectural styles and building materials.
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Engineers – Engineers can help you understand the physical and environmental challenges associated with your site. They can also support planning for infrastructure upgrades on the site.
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Market or real-estate analyst – A market or real-estate analyst will conduct a market study, which informs demand for your development. If you are applying for housing tax credits, you must submit a Market Study that has been completed by an analyst. The analyst must be approved by the Nevada Housing Division, completely unaffiliated with the Applicant/Co-Applicants and all Project Participants and have no financial interest in the proposed project.
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Attorney – At various points in the development process, you will need legal review of agreements and contracts. Depending on your project needs and location, a lawyer can advise on local land use regulations; assist with navigating different local, state, and federal regulatory processes; and support pursuing a leasehold.
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Environmental analyst – An environmental analyst will complete any needed environmental reviews. They should have familiarity with environment review requirements and processes. An environmental analyst may also be able to help you identify ways to streamline your environmental reviews.
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Housing finance adviser – A housing finance adviser can help identify and apply for housing financing, as well as help you structure your development deal. This adviser should have familiarity and experience with LIHTC (Low-Income Housing Tax Credits); rural housing development programs; and various private-sector financing products.
Working with Consultants
Successful development projects often draw their success from a wide variety of strong community partners. However, if you are new to partnering on development projects, the task of building successful partnerships may seem daunting. You should approach partnership development as an opportunity to set mutual expectations and goals for how to provide more and better housing for your community. They are also an opportunity to share risks, costs, and rewards.
It is important to outline these expectations at the earliest stages possible, before entering into a partnership agreement and beginning the project. Each team should be heavily involved in the drafting of partnership agreements to ensure a shared understanding of what the partnership entails. You should also ensure that you have regular check-ins and consistent channels of open communication with all partners.
Documenting processes, expectations, timelines, and other important information helps create continuity throughout the development process. Affordable Housing developments can take many years and administrative turnover is common. To avoid delays, make sure multiple members of your team understand the processes and relationships.
Identifying Architects
Architecture services (including landscape architects) will be necessary to help you design your development and translate your needs, the conditions of the site, and the local building and land use regulations into a plan that your general contractor can use to make your development a reality. An architect can also be involved throughout construction to help address issues that arise and ensure that there is alignment between design and construction.
Be sure to consider your timeline and budget when selecting an architect partner. Ideally, architects should be engaged early on in the project, but their rate is often high, so be sure all parties understand what costs will be paid in pre-development and what costs will be deferred until the project is fully capitalized.
It may be helpful to have your architect participate in conversations with the community related to the design concept. If that is not possible, be sure they are aware of the conversations you have had with the surrounding community and what feedback has come out of the community engagement process.
Here are some items you may want to discuss/keep in mind when selecting an architect:
- Expected budget and timeline for construction.
- The design team’s ability to incorporate less expensive materials or other design components to save on costs.
- Specific design items to keep in mind to best serve a specific population (i.e. accessibility, secure entry).
- What uses you expect for interior spaces and how you want those to relate to one another. For example, if you are planning to have on-site services in addition to affordable housing, how can the architect help design for the types of spaces will these services require.
- Does the architect have experience developing affordable housing? Ask if there are similar developments that you may visit and partners that may provide references.
- What experience does the architect have in energy efficient or clean energy design?