Updated
A useful land development loan package lets a reviewer understand the site, remaining work, source of repayment and proposed capital structure without reconstructing the deal from scattered emails. For a subdivision under contract to a builder, organize the agreement, cost-to-complete budget, monthly cash schedule, land records and sponsor experience around one current summary. Jaken Finance Group reviews financing and guarantee requests individually.
Write the first page for a real project decision
Begin with the facts needed to understand the request: city and state, number of lots, current condition, development stage, requested loan and expected exit. State whether the sponsor owns the property or controls it under a purchase agreement. Identify the borrowing entity and the person responsible for the request.
Then describe the proposed structure. List land contribution, available sponsor cash, builder deposit, seller debt remaining and any existing loan to be repaid. Mark the guarantee structure as requested rather than agreed unless it has actually been accepted.
End the first page with two dates: when an initial indication is needed and when the loan must close. Explain the event driving each date. A seller deadline, builder requirement, expiring financing or internal decision can create different priorities.
Keep this summary short. The supporting documents should establish the detail, while the opening page makes the transaction understandable. A financing team should be able to identify the main unanswered questions after reading it.
Use a document index with dates and status
A simple index can list document name, date, responsible party and status. Use clear labels such as executed, draft, ordered or awaiting revision. This helps everyone distinguish an approved civil plan from an earlier design and a signed contract from a proposed amendment.
Keep filenames descriptive. A budget called “Phase 2 remaining budget, November 12” is easier to place than several attachments named “final.” Preserve earlier versions separately when needed, but identify which one controls the current request.
Record material differences between documents. If the builder agreement refers to a different lot count from the latest plat, explain why and identify the planned correction. If the budget assumes a utility scope that is still being negotiated, flag that dependency.
The goal is a reviewable file. Missing information can often be discussed when the gap is specific. Conflicting versions create uncertainty about facts that may already be known by the project team.
Establish site control, title and phase boundaries
Provide the deed or purchase agreement, legal description, survey and ownership chart. If the current phase is part of a larger tract, show its boundaries and the rights needed to construct and sell it. Identify shared roads, utilities, easements and facilities serving other phases.
Explain existing debt and the intended treatment at closing. A loan being repaid requires a current payoff process. A seller note remaining requires its own review. A shared lien across phases may require releases or other documentation before the new financing can close.
Avoid assuming a street address resolves the collateral description. Development projects often involve parcels, planned lots or newly recorded plats that need careful identification. Keep the map used in the project summary consistent with the legal and civil documents.
Use the entitlement and platting guide for the broader sequence. The initial package should make clear what is approved, what is recorded, and what still must happen before lots can transfer.
Show the approvals and delivery conditions
List relevant approvals, permits, utility commitments and outstanding conditions. Include dates and the party responsible for each remaining step. A preliminary approval, final approval and acceptance of completed improvements serve different purposes.
Connect the public requirements to the builder’s requirements. Municipal acceptance may not be the only condition in the lot purchase agreement. The buyer may require tests, certifications, utility service, title endorsements or correction of specific work before closing.
Put these conditions on the schedule. Identify which task controls the next milestone and whether another party must inspect, sign or issue a document. A forecast that allows no time for that process should explain its basis.
For stormwater, the EPA construction overview is a starting reference, while the governing permit and administering authority must be confirmed for the site. Include required site controls and closeout obligations in the scope and budget rather than leaving them as an unpriced note.
Submit the complete builder agreement
Provide the executed agreement, exhibits, amendments and relevant notices. A short summary is useful, but it cannot replace the provisions governing purchases. Identify the legal buyer, the signatory entity and any separate support from a parent or affiliate.
Prepare a table of lot quantities, prices, scheduled purchases and conditions. Add deposit amounts, evidence of funding, where the money is held and how credits apply. Flag termination, extension and assignment provisions for review rather than interpreting them conclusively in the teaser.
If an amendment is being negotiated, show the current executed terms and the proposed change separately. Do not use a revised purchase date in the cash model without explaining that it remains unagreed.
The pre-sold lot financing guide and free builder contract checklist provide a practical framework. Your attorney and financing team will need the actual agreement to evaluate rights and obligations.
Build a cost-to-complete budget
Show the original approved budget, costs incurred, amounts paid, unpaid obligations and remaining work. These categories should reconcile. Work already installed may still create a cash obligation through unpaid invoices or retainage.
Use quantities and unit costs where they help explain the work. Separate site preparation, earthwork, utilities, roads, drainage, testing and other material tasks. Identify off-site obligations and common infrastructure required to make the phase saleable.
List soft costs and financing expenses separately. Explain contingency and whether it is already included in the contractor’s estimate. A summary that adds another allowance on top of an included contingency can misstate the request, just as omitting contingency can conceal risk.
Provide supporting bids, contracts, estimates or supplier quotes for major items. If a number is provisional, identify the pending evidence and expected update date. A reviewer should be able to understand which costs are fixed, estimated or still dependent on design.
Document self-performed labor and equipment
When the sponsor performs site work, identify the construction entity and its relationship to the borrower. Provide the agreement governing the work, including scope, pricing and payment terms. Explain whether the budget includes an affiliate margin or developer fee.
For labor, show crew composition, expected hours, labor burden and supervision. For materials, show quantities, quotes and expected delivery requirements. For equipment, explain ownership, availability and the basis for charges. An internal equipment allocation should be distinguished from a cash rental payment.
Identify competing demands on the crew and machinery. If the same team is completing an earlier phase, show when it becomes available and what happens if that work runs late. A statement that equipment is owned does not establish that it will be on this site when needed.
Describe progress verification. Who measures completed quantities, approves invoices and provides inspection support? If a lender requires third-party review, identify how that process fits the schedule. Clear documentation can make a self-performed budget easier to assess without treating the sponsor’s estimate as independently verified.
Explain the draw process and working cash
The budget and draw schedule should tell the same story. Show what work is expected to be completed before each draw, which records support reimbursement and how long the project expects to carry costs before funds arrive.
Include retainage, unpaid suppliers and any conditions that can delay reimbursement. A draw request is not cash received. If the project relies on the next draw to meet payroll, identify the timing and available buffer rather than assuming immediate approval.
Provide a monthly cash forecast with loan advances, builder receipts, interest, operating carry and debt repayments. For particularly tight periods, a weekly schedule may be more useful. The takedown calculator can identify months that deserve closer examination.
Keep the cash plan separate from the land-equity calculation. A substantial land contribution may support the proposed capital structure while leaving the developer responsible for funding the interval between paying for work and receiving reimbursement.
Present sponsor experience with verifiable roles
Prepare a representative project list containing location, asset type, size, dates, role, budget and outcome. Identify whether the principal owned the project, guaranteed debt, managed construction or worked in an employed capacity. Relevant experience should be described fully without merging those roles into one ownership claim.
For an earlier phase on the same site, provide specific evidence: completed improvements, lot sales, budget performance and remaining obligations. Explain which infrastructure and lessons carry forward to the new phase and which conditions differ.
List the current project team and responsibilities. Include the civil engineer, field manager, contractor or internal construction company, attorney and other key parties. If a principal’s historical projects relied on a different team, explain how the current team provides the needed capabilities.
Avoid using a large aggregate number as the only evidence of experience. A few clearly documented comparable projects can make the relevant responsibilities easier to understand than a broad claim with no supporting schedule.
Reconcile available capital and guarantees
Provide land acquisition records and explain the proposed contribution. List existing debt, seller financing, deposits and cash available to the phase. Separate funds already available from money dependent on a future sale, refinance or contribution.
State the requested guarantee structure and identify the proposed signatories. If the sponsor seeks non-recourse treatment with completion support and carve-outs, explain that request directly. Include any partnership restrictions relevant to who may sign, while recognizing that the capital source must evaluate the proposal.
The land equity guide explains the capital categories, and the non-recourse guide separates the guarantee questions. Those guides can help you organize the request before detailed document review.
Do not send sensitive personal account information through the initial website form. Start with the project summary. Jaken Finance Group can discuss the appropriate method for collecting financial statements and confidential records if the request proceeds.
PREPARE YOUR PROJECT
See what your initial package still needs.
Check the items you have assembled. The remaining list updates as you work. Completion means you have gathered the items, not that financing is approved.
Items still to assemble
Your choices stay on this page. Download the checklist or print your list to keep a copy.
Plan backward from closing
List the items that must be resolved before money can be advanced. Depending on the transaction, that may include valuation, title, environmental review, budget verification, insurance, entity documentation, contract assignments, intercreditor terms and final approvals. The actual requirements come from the proposed financing.
Assign an owner and expected completion date to each open item. Identify dependencies. An appraisal may need the current civil set and budget. An intercreditor agreement may require discussion among the senior lender, seller and builder. A funding date cannot be evaluated independently of these tasks.
Avoid treating a preliminary conversation as a guaranteed closing timetable. Give the financing team the actual deadline and ask which steps remain feasible within it. If a contract extension is needed, address that process with the appropriate parties while the financing review continues.
Keep a separate date for the initial indication. A sponsor may need a preliminary view for a decision before full diligence is complete. Label that stage clearly so every party understands what has and has not been approved.
Explain changes promptly during review
When a material assumption changes, send a concise update identifying the previous figure, revised figure, reason and effect on the request. Examples include a higher utility cost, a delayed acceptance date, a revised deposit condition or a change in the proposed seller payoff.
Update the supporting schedule at the same time. A revised budget without a revised cash forecast can leave the financing team assessing two different versions of the project. Keep the current summary, model and document index aligned.
If a change improves the request, explain the evidence as carefully as you would for an adverse change. A proposed additional deposit, earlier takedown or reduced cost should be identified as agreed, funded or still under discussion. A favorable possibility is useful context, but it should not replace the current documented position.
This habit makes the review more efficient and gives the eventual closing team a consistent starting file.
Start with a focused inquiry
The online A&D project review form asks for the location, requested amount, lot count, stage, contract status and deadline before optional details about the structure. It also lets you identify yourself as the developer, sponsor team or broker so the inquiry can be understood in context.
You can choose to include saved calculator assumptions. The tool does not automatically transmit your working figures just because you used it or downloaded a workbook. Keep a dated copy of the scenario you actually submit.
Use the free project submission checklist to organize the initial documents. The editable development workbook includes a project-summary area and a monthly cash model for continued preparation. Submitting the inquiry starts a case-by-case review; availability, terms, required guarantees and closing conditions remain subject to assessment and final documentation.