Land Development Insights

Expert guidance on turning raw land into viable, buildable projects.

April 29, 2026

Spotting Development Risks Before You Buy Land

Tags: Discretionary Review, Entitlement Risk, Homebuilders, Lot Due Diligence, Pre-Acquisition Planning, Site Feasibility

Q&A

What entitlement risks should builders check before buying a lot?

Builders and general contractors bring deep expertise in product design and construction costs, but lot selection often introduces a different category of risk that sits outside their core training: entitlements.

A parcel that pencils out on price alone can carry hidden constraints that surface only during the approval process, sometimes adding months of delay or eliminating the project's margin altogether.

Catching these issues before a purchase closes — or before a design package is locked in — is one of the highest-leverage moves a builder can make on a project.

The most common red flags include awkward access geometry that complicates driveway placement and fire department turnarounds, lots too shallow or irregular to accommodate standard floor plans without costly redesign, and parcels where the buildable area falls within mapped flood zones or high fire severity areas.

Utility routing is another frequent surprise; sewer, water, or dry utility extensions can quietly add significant cost when the nearest connection is farther or more constrained than it first appears. Equally important is understanding the review pathway, since a project that qualifies for ministerial or administrative approval moves on a fundamentally different timeline and risk profile than one that triggers discretionary review with public hearings, environmental analysis, or design review board scrutiny.

A planning review at the lot evaluation stage answers the questions that determine whether a deal is actually as good as it looks on paper. Bringing in entitlement expertise before committing to a parcel — or before investing in architectural plans — protects both the acquisition decision and the design budget, and it gives builders a clearer view of total project cost rather than just acquisition cost.

April 27, 2026

AB 2011 and SB 9 Can Unlock More Housing

Tags: AB 2011 & SB 9, California Housing Law, Due Diligence, Entitlements, Residential Development, Streamlined Approvals

Q&A

Could AB 2011 or SB 9 unlock faster approvals or extra units on my site?

AB 2011 and SB 9 are two California laws that can change what's possible on a development site, and in some cases dramatically shorten the path from concept to construction.

SB 9 (2021) requires ministerial approval of housing developments of up to two units in a single-family zone, the subdivision of a single-family parcel into two lots, or both, taking qualifying projects out of discretionary review.

AB 2011 (2022) creates a parallel by-right pathway for specified mixed-income and affordable housing on certain commercially zoned sites, provided the project meets affordability, density, and labor standards. Both laws were designed to move qualifying housing projects out of the lengthy, uncertain entitlement process and into a faster, more predictable lane.

The catch is that neither law applies universally, and the rules have continued to evolve. SB 9 eligibility depends on factors like the parcel's zoning, lot size, location relative to historic districts and environmentally sensitive areas, and whether a proposed lot split meets specific geometric requirements.

AB 2011 requires the site to sit on a qualifying commercial corridor and to satisfy project-level tests for affordability mix, density, prevailing wage, and distance from industrial uses. Recent amendments have continued to refine the landscape — AB 2243 (2024) expanded AB 2011 eligibility for housing on commercially zoned property, AB 893 (2025) extended that reach to parcels within half a mile of a public university, and SB 450 limits how local jurisdictions can apply objective standards to SB 9 projects, treating them no more restrictively than other development in the underlying zone.

Whether either law actually unlocks value on a given site comes down to a parcel-by-parcel review of zoning, location, site conditions, and prior approvals. We evaluate each property against the specific eligibility criteria of these streamlining laws to determine whether they offer a meaningful path to extra units, faster processing, or both — or whether a traditional entitlement strategy remains the right approach. That early analysis can save months of effort and shape every downstream decision about feasibility, design, and financing.

April 24, 2026

Hidden Cost of Park Amenities: How Small Fee Increases Price Families Out of Homeownership

Tags: Development Fees, Entitlements, Fee Strategy, Housing Affordability, Project Feasibility, Value Engineering

Q&A

How do development fees affect housing affordability — and what can be done about it?

More than most people realize. Every fee added to a new home gets passed directly to the buyer or renter. According to the National Association of Home Builders, every $1,000 increase in the price of a home prices out over 600 households who could have afforded it at the previous price point.

With municipal impact and development fees in California averaging $29,000 per unit, the cumulative effect on affordability is significant — and it falls on every project type, including the affordable housing the state most desperately needs.

The park fee question is a good example of where this gets fixable. When a community already has access to a regional or large community park nearby, does a smaller neighborhood park really need every bell and whistle? That kind of value engineering at the fee and amenity level — applied systematically across a project — can meaningfully move the needle on home prices without compromising quality of life.

The same discipline needs to apply more broadly. Fee structures should reflect actual infrastructure impact, not function as a growth management tool. Waivers, reductions, and deferrals can meaningfully improve project feasibility — and engaging early with jurisdictions on fee nexus studies and master fee schedules often reveals more flexibility than development teams assume.

April 22, 2026

Before You Build: Check Your Land Survey

Tags: Construction Risk, Due Diligence, Land Survey, Risk Management, Site Constraints, Subdivision & Mapping

Q&A

How old is too old when it comes to my land survey?

If your survey is more than two years old, treat it as a risk item — especially if you're heading into design, entitlements, or final mapping.

A land survey doesn't technically expire, but its validity depends on how much has changed since it was conducted. And more changes than most people expect. Property pins move. Fences creep. Utilities get added. Counties and cities regularly re-plat or widen roads, install utilities, or update easements — and an older survey may not show new rights-of-way or recorded easements that affect your property.

For development projects, the stakes are higher. Lenders, attorneys, and title companies often require a current boundary or ALTA survey — typically less than five years old — to confirm that property lines, easements, and improvements are still accurate. For subdivisions, entitlements, or anything near a boundary, cities will often require current data before they'll accept your application.

The real risk is timing. Designing on an outdated survey means you may not discover the problem until you're in construction or at final mapping — when fixing it is expensive and disruptive.

The practical rule: always ask how old your survey is and whether it still reflects site reality. If the answer is uncertain, a survey refresh is almost always cheaper than the boundary dispute, redesign, or permitting delay it prevents.

April 20, 2026

Turning Rural Land Into Smart Growth Communities

Tags: Entitlements, General Plan Consistency, Open Space Preservation, Preserve-Adjacent Sites, Rural Land Development, Smart Growth

Q&A

How do I develop rural or preserve-adjacent land without fighting the general plan?

The difference between a project that moves forward and one that stalls usually comes down to one thing: whether your development vision aligns with what the jurisdiction already wants to see on that land — or fights it.

General plans on rural and preserve-adjacent properties typically call for compact development, meaningful open space, and infrastructure that doesn't overextend public services. The winning strategy is designing a project that delivers on those expectations, not one that asks for exceptions to them.

In practice, that usually means cluster development — concentrating the built footprint on the least sensitive portions of the site while permanently preserving the remainder as open space. It also means demonstrating that you can serve the project with infrastructure without harming natural resources, and incorporating Smart Growth elements like walkable streets, parks, and connectivity that agencies are looking for.

Environmental work is not optional on these sites — and doing it early actually helps you. Biological surveys and wetland delineations completed upfront inform your site plan, reduce surprises at entitlement, and signal to the lead agency that resource protection is built into your approach.

The goal is to position your project as helping the jurisdiction implement its own plan. That's a fundamentally different — and more approvable — conversation.

April 17, 2026

New Homebuyers in Sacramento Pay $109,000 in Development Fees: Breaking Down the Costs

Tags: Fee Study, Housing Costs, Impact Fees, Market Feasibility, Residential Development, Sacramento Region

Q&A

How Much Do Development Impact Fees Add to the Cost of a New Home?

A regional fee study — conducted for the first time in five years — examined the full scope of development impact fees and infrastructure costs across typical residential home types in the region. The findings offer a revealing look at how these costs have grown and what they mean for homebuyers today.

New homebuyers are paying an average of $109,000 per door for a low-density residential unit — a 25% increase compared to five years ago, when that figure sat at roughly $75,000.

Regional home prices have risen 34% since 2019, outpacing inflation by 8%. When measured against total housing costs, development impact fees represent approximately 15% of the price of a larger, low-density home (averaging ~2,400 sq ft) and 17% of the price of a smaller, medium-density home (averaging ~1,700 sq ft).

Industry best practice suggests that fees should remain below 15% of a home's overall cost. While fees have risen substantially, they have largely kept pace with rising housing prices — though medium-density figures are beginning to edge past that preferred threshold.

Development impact fees are a meaningful and growing cost driver in new home pricing, and understanding them is essential for developers and prospective buyers navigating today's market.

April 13, 2026

How CEQA Reform Impacts Your Development Strategy

Tags: California Law, CEQA Reform, Entitlements, Infill Housing, Permitting Timeline, Project Strategy

Q&A

How will California's CEQA reforms affect my project timeline and approvals?

Recent California legislation — including AB 130 and SB 131 — represents a meaningful shift in how the state approaches environmental review. The goal is to streamline CEQA without eliminating it, and for many projects, that translates into real, practical benefits:

Clearer timelines — Reforms reduce ambiguity in the review process, making it easier to forecast how long approvals will take.
More exemptions and carve-outs — Some project types may qualify to bypass certain review steps entirely, saving time and cost.
Less duplication — Redundant review requirements are being reduced, simplifying the overall approval path.

However, CEQA is still very much in effect. You are still required to document environmental impacts and identify mitigations — the reforms don't eliminate that obligation.
The most important takeaway is that not every reform applies to every project. The right strategy is understanding exactly how — or whether — these changes apply to your specific project type, so you can choose the most appropriate CEQA path. Going too far (over-shooting) wastes time and money. Not going far enough (under-shooting) creates compliance risk.

April 10, 2026

Housing Costs & Development Fees in Sacramento

Tags: California Housing, Cost Drivers, Development Fees, Housing Affordability, Project Feasibility, Residential Development

Q&A

Why Are Rising Development Fees Pricing Buyers Out of the Housing Market?

Rising development fees are a major—often underappreciated—driver of housing affordability challenges. These fees are built into the cost of constructing new homes and are ultimately passed on to buyers, increasing home prices and reducing the number of people who can afford to purchase.

In many California regions, development impact fees now average over $100,000 per home, accounting for roughly 15–20% of the total home price. Over the past five years, these costs have risen by about 25%, adding significant pressure to already high housing prices.

Even relatively small increases in cost can have substantial consequences. Housing affordability is extremely sensitive to price changes, and research shows that for every $1,000 increase in the price of a home, hundreds of households are priced out of the market . This means incremental fee increases can quickly shrink the pool of eligible buyers.

These fees fund a wide range of necessary components, including infrastructure like water, sewer, and roads, as well as public services such as schools and emergency response. They also often cover community amenities like parks, trails, and libraries, along with environmental mitigation and affordable housing programs. While many of these are essential, the expanding scope and expectations—particularly around amenities—have driven total costs higher.

At the same time, development fees are layered on top of other rising expenses, including construction materials, labor, environmental compliance, and financing. Together, these compounding costs push home prices beyond what many buyers can reasonably afford.

As prices increase, the impact is twofold. Buyers are priced out of the market, reducing demand, while developers face tighter margins that can make projects financially unfeasible. In some cases, if projected returns are too low, developers and investors may choose not to build at all, further limiting housing supply.

Additionally, many of the improvements funded by these fees come with ongoing service taxes or assessments, increasing the monthly cost of homeownership and placing further strain on affordability.

Ultimately, rising development fees directly increase the cost of housing, reduce access to homeownership, and can slow the pace of new development. Addressing housing affordability therefore requires not only building more homes, but also carefully managing the fee structures that significantly influence the final price of each one.

April 8, 2026

The SPEED Act Could Accelerate Your Land Development

Tags: Environmental Review Strategy, Federal Funding, NEPA, Permitting Pathways, SPEED Act, Timeline & Risk

Q&A

Can the SPEED Act actually speed up my development project?

Yes—but only in specific situations.

The SPEED Act can help speed up your development timeline by streamlining the federal environmental review process under NEPA (the National Environmental Policy Act). However, it’s not a universal shortcut, and it won’t apply to most purely local or privately funded projects.

It becomes relevant when your project involves some form of federal participation, such as federal grants, loans, or agency approvals. In those cases, the Act can lead to shorter NEPA review timelines, better coordination between agencies, and a reduced risk of litigation.

That said, if your project has no federal involvement, the SPEED Act won’t come into play. It also does not replace or modify CEQA, so projects in California still need to go through the standard state environmental review process where applicable.

The real value of the SPEED Act is in identifying early whether your project qualifies. That determination directly affects your schedule, your risk profile, and how you plan and sequence your approvals. In short, the Act can accelerate your project, but only if federal involvement puts you on that faster NEPA pathway.

This page features videos that break down the critical steps of the land development process, from early due diligence and feasibility analysis to entitlements, environmental considerations, and final project execution. Topics include biological and wetlands constraints, CEQA and NEPA compliance, land use strategy, engineering and design, and market demand analysis. You’ll also find real-world project updates and case studies that show how these pieces come together to move projects forward.