A small residential development feasibility worksheet

Write the project definition at the top

Identify the parcel, intended residential scope, proposed number and type of units, assumed delivery sequence, and evaluation date. Distinguish a permitted project from a conceptual scenario. Record who supplied the planning, design, cost, and market inputs and what they actually verified.

This is an educational framework for a conversation with qualified development, legal, design, lending, tax, and market professionals. It is not an investment recommendation, financing commitment, or statement that FL Pro Builders offers development management or entitlement services.

Separate uses of funds from funding sources

List uses: land acquisition and transaction costs, investigations, professional services, approvals, site infrastructure, buildings, common works where applicable, financing costs, insurance, carrying costs, sales or leasing costs, and contingency. Identify inclusions so infrastructure or fees are not counted twice.

List sources separately: owner funds, any documented loan commitment, and other specifically supported funding. Do not treat hoped-for sales proceeds or an unapproved loan as cash already available. Ask the financing adviser to model the actual loan terms and funding conditions.

• Amount, basis, date, and source for each assumption
• Whether the line is quoted, contracted, estimated, or unpriced
• Month or phase when the money is needed
• Person responsible for closing the evidence gap

Model timing as well as totals

Prepare a period-by-period cash schedule showing expenditures and the timing of available funds. A project can appear to balance in total while experiencing a funding gap before expected receipts arrive. Include the professionals' assumptions for construction sequencing, approval timing, and sales or leasing pace.

Keep asking prices, achieved sale prices, and net proceeds distinct. Ask a qualified local market professional to support comparable-property and absorption assumptions. Avoid valuing every proposed square foot at a nearby entire property's headline price per square foot.

Test what could change the conclusion

Run a base scenario and clearly labeled downside scenarios using evidence-supported ranges where available. Test slower approvals, higher site costs, higher building costs, delayed completions, lower proceeds, and slower sales or leasing. Also test combinations that could plausibly occur together.

Show which assumptions create the largest funding gap or change the result. Define the evidence needed before the next commitment: a survey, provider response, professional estimate, agency determination, or market assessment. The worksheet's value is in exposing unresolved decisions. A positive result built on unknown infrastructure costs or assumed approvals is a prompt for more investigation, not a finding that the project is feasible.