Is it profitable to build an apartment building for sale? Building houses is a good business idea. Construction materials

Construction of houses for sale is one of the most profitable businesses. But nothing is free, and therefore this business is one of the most expensive. Moreover, large investments are constantly required for each new building. But if you are still driven by the desire to create a large business, building houses for sale can be a source of considerable income for you. We will tell you how to open a construction company and what you need for it in this article. We also recommend that you read the articles: and

How to build a business - building houses for sale

Building homes for sale may seem complicated and a long way off to make a profit. But in fact, it is not that complicated. At the registration stage, in addition to the standard procedure, you will need another one - membership in an SRO. SRO is a self-regulatory organization that will allow you to engage in construction. Without membership, your buildings will be illegal.

• Earth
• Workers
• Technique
• Materials

Where to get land for a construction business?

You can’t just build on empty land; you need to buy it. If you are planning to develop a cottage community, then buying land can be a good investment. After all, after its improvement, its price will skyrocket several times. Moreover, selling a cottage with land will bring more profit. But at the same time, for the construction of an apartment building the required land area is much smaller. A plot comparable to two or three cottages is enough. And land costs will pay off faster.

Also, to begin construction, surveying, measuring the land, and laying out communications will be required. It is logical that for an apartment building this work will be needed much less. Therefore, many construction companies prefer to start with the construction of high-rise buildings.

Wage-earners

In addition to the obvious team of builders, such a company will require other specialists. These are planners, designers, programmers, lawyers, accountants.

The business of building homes for sale has seen some changes compared to past years. Today, hiring builders is approached much more seriously and scrupulously. “Visitors of neighboring countries” without registration and work permits may result in a large fine.

As for lawyers and accountants, you will not need their services on an ongoing basis. Therefore, in order to save money, it would be wiser to hire an incoming specialist or outsource this work.

Machinery and equipment

Many start-up companies use rented equipment. But it’s better to buy out the equipment at the first opportunity, and you can do it gradually. To build houses you will need the following equipment:

• Heavy construction equipment
• Equipment for working with concrete and other solutions
• Equipment for facing works
• Lighting

If your company will also be involved in repairs in finished buildings, then you will also need equipment for repairs.

Heavy construction equipment- This is the most necessary and expensive equipment for buildings. This includes cranes, bulldozers, tractors, drilling rigs, etc. Most often they are purchased on lease.

Equipment for working with concrete It's cheaper, so you can buy it right away. These include concrete mixers, concrete pumps or mixers, pneumatic pumps, a plastering station, a bucket for mortars, etc.

Cladding works carried out using formwork, scaffolding and scaffolding. Sometimes they are replaced with ordinary cranes when it is necessary to carry out work at the very top. Temporary lighting is necessary on a construction site. For this purpose, xenon lamps with white light are most often used, as they are capable of illuminating distant objects.

Construction materials

The materials for each type of house will be different. For multi-story buildings, panels are usually used. Thanks to the large panel area, such a house is “assembled” quite quickly. True, panel houses require additional insulation, otherwise it will be cold inside in winter.

Brick is one of the most expensive and highest quality building materials. Brick houses are in greatest demand. True, the cost of expenses here is much higher than that of panel ones. This is why the final price of housing will be high.

Frame technologies are widely used today for cottage buildings. The cost of building such houses is relatively low.

Conclusion

In order to open your own construction company, it is best to start from the outskirts of the city. Due to the high profitability and age of this business, the competition here is impressive. But still, every time more and more new development organizations appear, which find ways to break out and confidently exist side by side with the “old-time companies”.

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Today, in the Moscow region, houses for sale are being built by hundreds, if not thousands, of private developers.

There are no reliable statistics on “individuals,” but there is reason to believe that the volume of this market is large. “In terms of volume, the market for cottages from private developers is comparable to the market for cottage villages,” says Zhanna Shcherbakova, director of the country real estate department at Miel Real Estate. If this is so, then the total annual turnover of this market segment can be estimated at billions of dollars.

The phenomenon is large-scale, but nothing is known about private developers.

Unlike developers of cottage villages, “individuals” are much smaller players.

They do not strive to create brands and do not have PR and advertising budgets. Moreover, they avoid all publicity. Of the dozen private developers we found, only a third made contact, and only one of them did not hide his last name.

At the same time, “individuals” represent a very serious force. A couple of years ago, one large development structure did not buy a good plot of land north of Moscow for the construction of a village. “Mr. N works there, who has connections with the administration, the best lands, and many started projects,” the company explained. “We will not compete with him.”

“I know private developers with an excellent reputation in narrow circles who build 20–25 houses a year,” says Zhanna Shcherbakova. - In certain segments the share of “individuals” is large. For example, in Rublyovka there are no large tracts of land for development, which means it is of little interest to large players. But for private developers, small plots of land for two to four houses are quite enough.”

100 thousand - and welcome!

On paper, the developer’s project looks very simple: “bought land - installed communications - built a house - sold.” Moreover, Rublyovka is not the only place where private developers are building houses. They successfully operate in all segments - from the most elite to economy class.

The minimum entrance ticket to the private development market today is estimated at approximately $100 thousand.

To meet this budget, you can buy 6-8 acres from a gardening partnership (30-40 thousand dollars), install communications (in the cheap version - 10-20 thousand dollars) and for fifty thousand build a house with an area of ​​just over 100 square meters from foam blocks or inexpensive sandwich panels. Such a cottage without decoration can be sold, if the place is more or less decent, for 150 thousand dollars.

Far from Moscow, a new economy class cottage can be purchased from a private developer for 80–100 thousand dollars.

In general, a huge deficit is obvious in the economy segment and any reasonable offer immediately finds a buyer. In the area of ​​forty kilometers from Moscow, one of the private developers recently implemented the following project. A plot of 15 acres was divided into two, and a neat wooden cottage was built on each. The houses were quickly sold for $250,000.

Here is an example from another segment. A small plot of 8 acres with pine trees in a gated community between Rublevskoye and Novorizhskoye highways cost the developer $250,000. Connection of communications and construction of a house (350 sq. m) - more than 300 thousand.

A finished house with turnkey finishing is on sale today for about $1 million.

An entrance ticket to the development market in the zone of maximum glamor - on Rublyovka - also costs at least 1 million. But finished houses here start from 2 million dollars.

None of the private developers plans a profit of less than 40%. “In economy class, the profitability of successful projects can reach 100%; in the elite segment, in exceptional cases, it reaches 200–300%,” says Victory Group CEO Tatyana Zvonareva. - At the same time, the risks and exposure time in the expensive segment are also higher. If cheap objects usually go away in three to four months, then expensive ones can wait for their buyer for a year and a half.”

Serious financial investments in the purchase of land and subsequent construction hold back many potential developers and force them to work in the economy class segment. Today, to finance projects, “individuals” most often use their own funds or attract partners. “I could build a village now, but this would require at least 10 million dollars,” says developer Andrey. - Due to insufficient equity capital, I build only two or three houses a year. There are no project financing options for such options yet. To attract a bank loan, you need to mortgage the property. But they won’t give money for a cottage under construction.”

Cottages vs villagesMost private developers are focused on mass demand: no frills, simple and high quality.

Usually, in the first projects, a certain model of an ideal house is worked out, and then the solution found (facades, layouts, equipment) is replicated. Some individual developers formulate their credo so clearly that developers of cottage villages might envy them. “I build only chalet-style cottages,” Kirill, a developer with ten years of experience, shares the secrets of his craft. - All my projects necessarily have bathrooms with windows, large bedrooms with dressing rooms, floor-to-ceiling French windows, high ceilings, heated floors, a garage for two cars, and a fireplace. Lately I’ve also been installing an electric drive on the gate: it costs only a thousand dollars, and the gate that opens with a key fob has a magical effect on the buyer.”

There are no general rules for the development of country houses. The concept is determined by the location, size and shape of the site, and its surroundings. At the same time, the developer must have a strategic understanding of the market.

“One of the key qualities of a private developer is the ability to realistically assess the capabilities of a site and understand what will be in demand at this location,” says Tatyana Zvonareva. There is always a temptation to build a bigger house and position it in a higher class than it would cost. For example, in some Rublevka village, on a plot of seven acres, build a palace, which “should cost millions just because it is Rublyovka.” You also need to know consumer sentiment well and guess market trends: land is being bought today, but the finished house will have to be sold in a year. For example, if you go too far with its size, you can end up in the category of illiquid assets. It is also necessary to get to the point with a lot of other details - layout, architectural style, level of finishing, and so on. And the tastes of buyers change quite quickly, for example, classic mansions with columns, porches and porticoes no longer cause delight. “Despite the great demand for cottages, there are a lot of ill-conceived and therefore unsaleable things on the market,” shared one of the developers.

Competition with cottage villages is one of the hidden forces behind the development of the market for houses from private developers.

Today, cottages from individuals cost on average 30–40% less than their analogues in villages, and buyers appreciate this. The economics of private owners and village developers are also somewhat different. Individuals have a much shorter project implementation period (a year versus two to four) and often have lower costs: village developers are forced to spend a lot of money on connecting the main networks.

However, the market is changing, and the difference in prices plays less and less of a role over time: buyers are actively turning towards centralized villages. “Settlements are crushing private owners. The future, undoubtedly, belongs to villages with a single concept, security, maintenance service, and common infrastructure: buyers want comfort and safety. Everyone wants to live in a civilized manner,” says developer Andrei, who, by the way, himself bought a house in a centralized village.

“My only unsuccessful experience in building a cottage was associated with a chaotic development like Shanghai, even if it was located on Rublyovka, in a prestigious location,” says one of the developers. - There I hardly returned the money spent. Now I will build either in cottage villages where land is sold without a contract, or in old dacha areas. I never set foot in villages, “fields” and “Shanghai” again!”

Typology of developers

Communication with realtors and developers made it possible to identify several groups of private developers with different strategies in the market.

"Local monopolists" specialize in construction in a certain area or even in one locality. Forest old dacha sites such as Malakhovka, Aprelevka or Nemchinovka are often chosen. They usually live there and therefore are well oriented in this limited space, knowing the preferences of the buyers there. “Locals” are the first to know about all the plots for sale and often buy them cheaper than the market.

“They built it for themselves” initially they build a house for themselves, and then it turns out that for some reason it does not suit them. Or the decision to sell is made because it is more profitable to use the proceeds to buy another plot and build a new house there. As a result, money intended for their own housing begins to be transferred with profit from project to project.

There are also "close to the administration" proxies of officials on whom newly withdrawn land plots are registered.

Part of such a land allotment is usually immediately sold off in order to use the proceeds to install communications and begin building houses on the remaining plots. But “free” corrupts - usually this affects both the quality of construction and the thoughtfulness of the concept as a whole. Part of the land allotment sometimes remains undeveloped for a long time: officials do not get their hands on their share.

"Builders" come from technology, owning, for example, wood production. They have a streamlined technological process and decent quality, but they are often built on less than favorable sites, since they do not have direct access to the ground.

Perhaps the most interesting category of developers is "White collars".

These are top managers of large Moscow companies developing their own development projects in the Moscow region. Their strength is the availability of financial resources and good knowledge of customer needs. It’s enough for them to simply build “as if for themselves,” and people in their circle will definitely appreciate it. These are the most creative developers who strive not only to earn money, but also to realize themselves.

One of these developers, while skiing in Europe, fell in love with the Alpine style and was one of the first to build cottage-chalets in the Moscow region. Another is passionate about new technologies: “There are a lot of new products constantly appearing in construction, and I want to try them out. For example, the use of ventilated facades allows them to be built even in winter, which significantly reduces construction time. It’s the same with high-speed wall painting technologies: it’s more expensive, but it saves time. By winning a few months, you can significantly improve the financial performance of the project!”

A place under the sun

It seems that building cottages for sale is a profitable and uncomplicated business. The first thought when you meet him: “I can do this too.” Profitability? Very high. Administrative barriers? Practically no: I bought the land and built it. Compared to projects in the city, where approvals take three years, this is paradise. Special knowledge? It doesn’t seem necessary either: everyone understands construction, just like football.

But it's not that simple. A beginner will inevitably encounter a number of problems that experienced developers have already solved.

One of the main risks of this business is construction. Inviting a construction company sharply reduces the profitability of the project, so teams are mainly hired that cost at least thirty percent less. But in this case, the risks increase, as well as the cost of effort and time to control the quality of construction and costs. “The success of the project largely depends on whether you have a foreman whom you can trust,” says developer Sergei. - So far I have not found such a person. Anything happened: they ran away with the money, and they had to destroy what they had built.”

Even with “his” foreman, the developer must visit his construction site at least twice a week. For people living and working in Moscow, this is a serious burden. “The finishing stage takes up a lot of time,” shares Dmitry. - I buy all the finishing materials, equipment, plumbing myself. In addition, during the finishing work, a lot of questions arise that are better to solve yourself: after all, the builders will not do what is best, but what is more convenient for them. As a result, weekends and two to three mornings during the work week are dedicated to construction.”

“On his first project, a beginner will buy building materials in markets and stores, overpaying at least twenty percent,” says Kirill. - And I have established connections with factories and large wholesalers, where I have discounts. Brick, for example, is brought to me directly from Belarus.”

And finally, one of the main difficulties of private construction is related to finding the “right” plot of land.

There is a large selection on the secondary market, but upon closer inspection, most sites are unsuitable for commercial construction. “I was looking for a site for my first project for almost two and a half years,” complains the “young” developer Dmitry. - Somewhere there were unfinished documents, somewhere there were difficulties with communications. And also an unfortunate shape of the site, an insufficiently interesting location, an unfavorable neighborhood, a difficult entrance and much more.”

“Often sites are remarkable for a lot of factors, but have, as we say, “hidden mines” that cannot be neutralized later,” says another builder. - So, recently I liked a site in a beautiful clearing near Istra. Things were going towards a deal, but then I learned through friends that people had not been able to build on this site for five years. It turned out that the local authorities live in the neighboring cottage community and do not want the view to be spoiled. They torpedo any attempts at development.”

Experienced developers know the ins and outs of many sites and, as a rule, have access to promising land.

The peculiarity of the current moment lies in the fact that recently small plots of land in the Moscow region have risen sharply in price - by no less than 30–40% in a year. As a result, today it is very difficult to find a plot of land suitable for the price-quality ratio. One experienced developer even postponed new projects for a while: “Everything is getting so expensive, and I don’t yet understand the new economy and what needs to be built in it.” So if earlier, in a fast-growing market, only serious mistakes could prevent a private developer from making a good profit, now entering the market for new players is not so easy. Especially if we take into account the ever-increasing pressure from cottage settlements.

Construction of a private house is a very responsible and expensive undertaking. Many people today have a question: “Should I start building housing or wait until better times?” Moreover, in times of economic instability, when not only the level of your income in the near future is in question, but also the very availability of income. As you know, the crisis primarily hits the financial and construction sectors of the economy. So, the answer to the question seems obvious: it is not worth undertaking such a long-term and expensive undertaking as construction during a crisis. However, it is not for nothing that in Chinese the character “crisis” also means “opportunity”. So, you should not miss the chance - you should take full advantage of all the opportunities provided by times of crisis.

Advantages of construction during a crisis

The main advantage in this case is the reduction in land prices. Even in the Moscow region, with its consistently high demand for land, the cost of plots from the end of 2014 to the beginning of 2016 fell by 10–15% (minus inflation). However, purchasing a plot for private construction can only be profitable if you use personal savings in the form of capital investment. If you decide to take out a bank loan to buy a cheap plot of land, then higher interest rates can “eat up” all the benefits in price, and even make the purchase more expensive than before the crisis.

Another advantage is the reduction in the cost of construction company services. As a result of economic problems and declining incomes of the majority of the population, the demand for construction services has dropped significantly. This problem has affected both large construction corporations engaged in the construction of residential complexes and small firms building private houses on individual orders. As a result, a large number of construction specialists, from engineers to ordinary workers, found themselves without work. Because of this, competition in the construction market has sharply increased - construction companies, fighting for clients, are willing to significantly reduce the cost of their services.

Prices for foreign-made building materials, due to the depreciation of the domestic currency, have increased significantly, but for the same reason, the price of domestic materials - bricks, boards, lumber - have decreased slightly (if we compare prices taking into account inflation).

How to choose a good contractor?

One of the conditions for profitable construction is the correct choice of developer and designer. In times of crisis, many construction organizations significantly reduce prices for their services. But at the same time, as facts show, the quality of construction often decreases. Firms strive to save on the price of the material and its quality by purchasing the cheapest one. It is also possible that construction technologies are not followed in order to reduce the cost of work - it is quite clear that such a reduction in cost will only benefit an unscrupulous contractor. For the customer, such a “reduction in price” can only result in additional costs for finishing and redoing poorly performed work. It is in this case that the proverb “The miser pays twice” becomes relevant.

However, this is mostly done by companies that do not particularly care about their reputation. Serious construction organizations, even in times of crisis, do not commit such obvious deception (there are no other words to choose here) of the customer who entrusted them with the construction of a house. If you are unlucky and choose such a company, then you can forget about all the benefits of construction during a crisis. In order not to make a mistake and not fall on the hook of such scammers, you need to take the choice of a contractor with complete seriousness.

Recommendations. First of all, you need to interview friends and relatives who at one time used the services of certain construction organizations, find out their opinion, listen to advice and recommendations. If you don’t have such acquaintances, you can read reviews on relevant forums and chat with clients of a particular company.

Familiarize yourself with the organization’s website, find out about prices, promotions, and additional services.

Visit the company office in person- this will allow you to form a more accurate opinion about a particular company. Only in personal communication with managers, engineers, foremen, you will be able to form the most reliable opinion about the organization - how reliable and serious it is. Here you can read the company's resume and reviews from famous customers. There you can also get the addresses of objects that have already been commissioned and contact numbers of clients from whom you can personally inquire about their opinion about the specialists of this company.

Among such companies that value their reputation and understand that the crisis will pass sooner or later, but we need to continue to work, is our company.

• We are pleased to offer our clients - from finishing to finishing work.
• The cost of the work is clearly fixed in the contract. By concluding a contract with our company, you do not have to worry about changes in prices for building materials and workers’ services, thus protecting yourself from any surprises that the economic crisis may present to you.
• Our organization provides a five-year guarantee on all work performed - from pouring the foundation to interior finishing.

Only the right choice of contractor can help you take full advantage of the opportunities that the economic crisis provides you. By choosing our company, you can invest your funds in the construction of a private country house with maximum effect.

A very profitable business is building houses for sale, especially for those entrepreneurs who have decent capital to invest.

At the same time, you don’t have to be a professional builder; your enthusiasm and serious approach to business are enough. Such a business can bring you good profits and become a reliable source of income. Our recommendations and advice will help you implement this business idea.

Decide what exactly you will build. Whether it will be a cottage community, an apartment building, a townhouse or a separate country house - decide for yourself. But do not forget that the popularity of cottages is not falling. There are quite a lot of people who want to buy such a house. Therefore, the best idea is to build country cottages.

Site, project, communications

We are purchasing a plot of land for construction. Ideal if you already have one. Select a site in a popular direction, in a crowded area and with established communications. Buyers will not be satisfied with an inconvenient and uninteresting place, so pay attention to the surrounding landscape and estimate the location of the house. Contact a realtor you know so that he can help you choose a site and suggest the approximate cost of houses in the area. It is a good idea to purchase a plot of land through an auction, but this requires an increased investment of money.

Contact a geodetic service to conduct a soil analysis. This must be done in order to be sure of the reliability of the ground under the foundation.

The next stage is design documentation. Order a preliminary design and a package of documents from specialists. When ready, submit it to the regulatory authorities for approval. All this takes time and money. After approval, you will receive specifications (technical conditions) for connecting to electrical networks, as well as to sewerage and water supply, if you are building within the city.

Let's bring up communications. This work must be carried out by special organizations, to which you pay for the work itself, as well as the cable and pipes that are laid to your connection point. All connections to utility networks must be done efficiently. Agree, it’s a good idea to also connect a telephone line and the Internet to the house.

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Home construction

We are looking for a team of builders who will complete the necessary work efficiently and on time. Make sure that the team knows the techniques of masonry, cladding, and pouring the foundation. Inviting a construction company for this business is a bad idea. It's not profitable. She will “swallow” all the profits. A hired team will cost much less, but you will need strict control and frequent visits to the construction site.

If you are a qualified builder yourself and the house project is not complicated, then you can carry out the construction yourself, involving assistants. Or perform some individual construction stages in which you are a master yourself. This will help you maintain high project profitability.

By purchasing building materials from large wholesalers or directly from factories, bypassing stores and markets, you save about 20% of money. You should never skimp on the quality and reliability of building materials.

It is best to start construction in early spring, so that by autumn you will make a profit. But to do this, work needs to be done at a fast pace, without missing deadlines. If construction is accelerated, the house can be sold within 2 months. In order for this business idea to generate maximum profit, it is better to build several houses at once. You need to decide on the finishing option: rough finishing or final finishing. There are buyers who want to get a turnkey house right away. But someone may not like how you decorated the room.

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Calculation and sale

Let's talk about the most difficult thing - cash payments. This business requires funds to buy land, building materials, pay for design documentation and the work of contractors. If you plan to attract investors, you will need a business plan with detailed calculations in the financial section. After construction, calculate the entire process to determine the market value of the house. Of course, the cost of houses in different regions of Russia varies. For example, 1 sq. m of construction in the middle zone of our country costs about 20 thousand rubles (in large cities up to 40 thousand). Having spent 2 million rubles on building a house and selling it for 3 million, you will receive a profit of 1 million rubles.

The house has been built, now it needs to be sold. You can search for a buyer yourself or pay a realtor. Economy class homes sell faster than luxury ones. Place advertisements in the media. Keep in mind that most buyers will come from the Internet. Great idea - shields and guy wires.