Property development courses are on the rise as increasing numbers of people look to the sector as a way of building wealth. But what's on offer? And what do participants actually learn?
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If you go back in time a few years, there was no such thing as professional education for property developers. People tended to fall into the profession, with the main prerequisite for entry being access to plenty of capital. The whole sector tended to be regarded with suspicion by the wider the community who often saw property developers as unscrupulous.
Fast forward to today and society’s view of property developers – and the career channels for becoming one – have changed dramatically. With urban consolidation a necessity in many cities due to growing populations, there is newfound respect for the role developers play in creating and improving housing stock. Television shows such as The Block have inspired countless people to try their hand at developing, and a number of schools have sprung up to help teach the skills needed to succeed.
The DG Institute is a leading provider of financial and wealth creation education and has been providing training around property investment for more than a decade. It offers a range of property development courses that give novices their first taste of a career in development and provide more committed individuals with the tools they need to become successful developers.
But what do participants in each course actually get? Who are the various courses aimed at? And are they worth the time? Here’s a look at the three most popular DGI property development courses.
Course name: Property Development Masterclass
Aimed at: People curious about the profession
Duration: 2 hours
Take-aways: Understanding of the three most popular ways to develop
Type: Free
Our Property Development Masterclass is a free online, interactive property development course which occurs once per month. At this event, you’ll be able to interact with other attendees of the event, speak with our team via a live chat function, and hear from our team of experts about the A-Z of property development & strategies you’ll need to employ in order to succeed as a property developer.
Course name: Property Development Webinar
Aimed at: People serious about developing/perhaps with some experience
Duration: 2 hours
Take-aways: The skills, knowledge and contacts you’ll need to get developing
Type: Free
Our Property Development Webinar is a free online property development course which can be viewed at any time. This webinar will provide you with all of the basic tools & information that you’ll need in order to get started on the right foot as a property developer in Australia, as well as the strategies you should employ in order to succeed.
Course name: Property Development Program
Aimed at: People serious about developing/perhaps with some experience
Duration: 1 full day
Take-aways: The skills, knowledge and contacts you’ll need to get developing
Type: Paid
Our Property Development Program is an online program that gives property developers all of the tools and data that they’ll need in order to achieve success as a property developer. Members of this program will gain access to a learning portal, informational packs from CoreLogic, APRAO and Resitrends, access to our legal and finance teams, as well as a one-day interactive event alongside other property development students where we will give you the latest tips, tools and insights into the Australian property market and what you’ll need to know as a developer.
Location: WOOLOOWIN AVENUE, QLD
Purchase Price: $980,000
Strategy: Lynn’s strategy was to keep the main property and build two townhouses at the back of the lot using prefab concrete panels.
Result: Once the townhouses have been installed, Lynn plans to sell all three properties, with the original property expected to sell for $1.2 million and the two townhouses expected to sell for $1.9 million together.
Lynn then expects to walk away with a profit of $588,658 once all three properties are sold.
Location: RACEVIEW, QLD
Purchase Price: $1,250,000
Strategy: Anita bought this large property with the intentions of renovating the existing house on the land as well as subdividing the remaining land.
Result: Anita expects to sell the renovated property and subdivided land for $4.98 million, which will give her profits of $1.4 million after expenses.
Location: BROULEE, NSW
Purchase Price: $600,000
Strategy: Danny plans to knock down the existing 2-bedroom property and install two dual-occupancy properties on the land.
Result: Danny expects to sell all of the newly-developed properties for a total of $1.7 million, giving him a projected profit of $281,500.
Location: KARALEE, QLD
Purchase Price: $920,000
Strategy: Sally plans to do some simple cosmetic uplifts on the property, including a paint job, new carpeting, installing an air conditioner, and some new light fitting. The land will then be subdivided into three separate lots with a shared access road to be built.
Result: The renovated property and all three lots are expected to sell for $1.5 million, giving Sally a tidy profit of $188K on her first deal.
Location: CHERMSIDE, QLD
Purchase Price: $815,000
Strategy: Karine purchased two properties with plans to subdivide the land into three lots. Karine plans to sell one lot, and develop 8 three-story townhouses on the additional lot. The third level of each townhouse is expected to get ocean views.
Result: Karine purchased the properties for $1.52 million, and expects to sell all of the properties for a total of $5.54 million. After expenses and construction costs, this will yield Karine a conservative estimate of $997,000.
Location: CROYDON, NSW
Purchase Price: $1,685,000
Strategy: Su Sen plans to demolish the purchased property and develop 6 townhouses on the land, with a shared driveway.
Result: Su Sen expects the properties to sell for a total of $5.58 million, which will give her a profit of $514,000.
Location: REDLAND BAY, QLD
Purchase Price: $2,727,000
Strategy: Gary planned to demolish the property and realign the boundaries of the existing 3 separate lots.
Result: Gary has demolished the property and removed the trees surrounding it and moved the boundaries. He expects to net $1.2 million in profits after expenses over just three months.
Location: CLEVELAND, QLD
Purchase Price: $1,095,000
Strategy: After purchasing the property, Gary will begin the process of a DA Uplift, either selling for a smaller amount over the immediate future, or a larger amount if Gary begins the demolition process on the property.
Result: If Gary goes through with the demolition, he is looking to net $749,000 after expenses.
Location: KURRI KURRI, NSW
Purchase Price: $286,000
Strategy: The initial plan was to renovate the existing home and sell but because of the size of the land, Kay recognised an opportunity to subdivide the property and develop another house on it for additional profits.
Result: The land was subdivided and a prefab house was installed on the corner of the property. Kay then sold the initial house for $410,000 and the newly built home for $422,000, which yielded her a profit of $117,000.
Location: ABERDARE, NSW
Purchase Price: $360,000
Strategy: The owner subdivided the land to be able to build a house behind the back to be leased out, whilst renovating the existing home to be sold.
Result: The existing house was sold for $80,000 in profit and the new house was kept and leased out for $450 p/w in rental cash flow.
Location: NSW
Purchase Price: $286K
Strategy: DGI Graduate bought derelict hail damaged house with asbestos on sub-divisible block. To subdivide, the DA requirement for Dual Occupancy was to build on the subdivided block – i.e. she could not subdivide the block to sell as vacant land.
Result: She renovated the derelict house and moved into it so she is close to project of building on the back block. She will sell reno’d house for $400K and build the other one for $450K, looking at a projected profit of $170K.
Location: KURRI KURRI, NSW
Purchase Price: $185,000
Strategy: Kay was approached by a neighbour after a recent renovation to see if she would help to renovate a dilapidated property for her neighbour.
Result: Kay helped to style one of the houses on the block, and renovate the dilapidated house for $108,000, which was then sold for $127,000 in profits to be split 50/50 with the owner of the property.
Location: WYNNUM, QUEENSLAND
Purchase Price: $810,000
Strategy: The land had a wide frontage where two modern, high-end townhouses could be built side-by-side to take advantage of the view from the bay nearby.
Result: This Wynnum deal was found by researching through RP Data and will sell for roughly $1,000,000 per townhouse, yielding roughly $193,000 in profit.
Location: GREENFIELD, VICTORIA
Purchase Price: $250,000
Strategy: DGI Graduate, Dan bought a vacant block of land for $250,000
Result: After subdividing and constructing 18 new homes, Dan is looking to make a potential profit of $1.2 million.
Location – ROSEBUD, VICTORIA
Purchase Price: $500,000
Strategy: DGI Graduate, Andrew bought a $500,000 property in the beachside suburb of Rosebud, Victoria and decided to renovate the existing house at the front & do a 1:2 land subdivision.
Result: After subdividing the existing land and constructing a new home in the backyard and renovating the existing house, Andrew projects he will make a potential profit of $250,000.
Location – MALENY, QUEENSLAND
Purchase Price: $500,000
Strategy: After taking a look at the Maleny property, Ursula quickly realized she could fit three townhouses at the back of the property, as well as renovating the existing property.
Result: Ursula expects to sell the renovated existing home for $650,000 and the three new townhouses for $675,000 each, returning her a healthy $375,000 in profit.
Location: GOLD COAST, QUEENSLAND
Purchase Price: 1.08M
Strategy: DGI Graduate, Mat bought a beachfront COVID property at a $100,000 discount during the pandemic.
Result: Mat’s vision is to develop the site into a triplex and make a potential profit of $600,000.
Location: Queensland
Purchase Price: $760K
Strategy: House is pre-war so cannot be moved. Owners are converting the house into 2 townhouses and building 3 more townhouses on the back of the block. They have a DA and are doing the whole development.
Result: The owners are looking for a project profit of $333,302.
Location: Goodna, Queensland
Purchase Price: $320,000
Strategy: Leeroy intended to renovate existing house and subdivide the land at the back of the property to have an house built and sold.
Result: Leeroy and his wife renovated and kept the front property and subdivided the land at the back. Leeroy then sold the newly subdivided land for $200,000, and is leasing out the renovated property for $355 per week.
Location: HARKNESS, VICTORIA
Purchase Price: $412,000
Strategy: This large, 966m² piece of land will be subdivided into three separate blocks, upon which three townhouses will be built and sold.
Result: Annia expects each townhouse to sell for roughly $500,000 with a total projected profit of $286,000.
Location: BALLARAT, VICTORIA
Purchase Price: $330,000
Strategy: With dual street entry to this 100-year-old off-market property, Joe and Viki knew the property would be perfect for a subdivision to be sold as a renovated home and a vacant block of land.
Result: The land was subdivided and the existing 100-year-old cottage was renovated, both of which are now expected to yield Joe and Viki a combined profit of $270,000.
Location: GRANDE, PORT MELBOURNE
Purchase Price: $1,000,000
Strategy: After purchasing the property sight unseen, Adam & Mandy have planned to renovate the existing the house and subdivide a block on either side of the property for additional profits.
Result: Adam & Mandy expect to generate a profit of $194,000 after renovating the existing house and subdividing the land.
Location: ROYSTON PARK, SOUTH AUSTRALIA
Purchase Price: $780,000
Strategy: Vanessa’s initial intention was to live on this property but after giving it some thought, she eventually decided to continue developing for ongoing profits.
Result: The existing home was knocked down and rebuilt, which made Vanessa eligible for a $25k government builders grant during COVID-19 and yielding her a healthy projected profit of $344,000.
Location: FLAGSTAFF, SOUTH AUSTRALIA
Purchase Price: $501,000
Strategy: The owner was after a quick sale, so DGI Graduate Karen pitched $1000 over the asking price, resulting in a $501,000 purchase. After recognising the house would need a $60,000 renovation, Karen saw that the real value was in a 1:2 land subdivision instead.
Result: A mortgage broker friend of Karen’s had a client seeking land in Flagstaff Hill so Karen was able to sell to this client for $630,000, making a profit of $45,500.
Location: South Australia
Purchase Price: $756K
Strategy: Strategy is to subdivide and build 5 Torrens title townhouses, 4 with single garage and 1 with double garage.
Result: Selling price for each of 5 units will be $540K-$560K and the double probably $580K. One presale sold for $555K .
Location – South Australia
Purchase Price: $1.46 Million
Strategy: The vendor bought elsewhere so an agent brought this deal to DGI Graduate Julie. She bought it $140K under market value(discount) by Joint venturing with DGI Graduate Phil. Originally 35 blocks were approved but Julie worked around the plan with the town planner to move a road to allow 36 blocks.
Result: Going to subdivide the whole lot and sell off as newly created vacant blocks of land. This is Julie first deal and forecasted profit is over a million.
Property Development courses can give aspiring developers the latest information surrounding the property market, the property development industry, and other relevant pieces of information surrounding property development and how to succeed as a developer.
In our Property Development courses, you’ll hear from real students who have achieved real successes in property development. Theory is important, but practical results speak volumes.
Our property development courses will provide you with a variety of strategies designed to help you understand & succeed in property development in Australia.
Our Old Property Development Courses
Course name: Property Development Workshop
Aimed at: People curious about the profession
Duration: 2 hours
Take-aways: Understanding of the three most popular ways to develop
This free event is aimed at people who are new to property development courses and who want to learn more about how the industry works. Course attendees hear from Dominique Grubisa, the founder and CEO of the DG Institute who herself has an extensive property portfolio and is constantly undertaking developments. If you turn up, you’ll hear about the three most popular ways to make money through residential property development. ‘DA Uplift’ is where a developer buys a property, gets development approval (DA) through the local council for additions that add value and then either sells the approved projects or completes it his or herself. ‘Subdivision’ is where a developer buys a parcel of land and divides it into smaller parcels, typically building a dwelling on each new piece before selling. ‘Residential Unit Development’ involves a developer investing in a site and gaining approval to build multiple dwellings on it before on-selling the project or completing it.
Course participants will come away with a better understanding of the industry – and maybe a hunger to get involved and find out more.
Course name: Property Development Summit
Aimed at: People curious about the profession/people with some knowledge of the industry
Duration: 1 full day
Take-aways: Understanding of the industry plus the role analytics and design in success
If you’ve started investigating property development as a side project, this property development course could be for you. Like the Property Developer Workshop, it provides a solid grounding in the different strategies developers can undertake to create, sell and profit from residential property. But the longer time span of a day provides time to explore these concepts in further depth and to look at important side concepts. You’ll learn how to use real estate industry analytics to work out the value of a property, identify district trends and to undertake a realistic feasibility study on your project. Depending on the session, you might also gain insight into related fields such as the role of interior design and how the right interiors can add hundreds of thousands of dollars to the value of an individual unit. You should come away from this course with a clearly defined idea of what it is to be a developer and whether you have the drive, passion and know-how to do it yourself.
Course name: Property Uplift Program
Aimed at: People serious about developing/perhaps with some experience
Duration: 3 intensive days
Take-aways: The skills, knowledge and contacts you’ll need to get developing
If you see a future for yourself in property development and want the skills, support and tools to make it a reality, then you must join one of the top property development courses in Australia. If you go along, you’ll be part of a three-day immersive experience with Dominique Grubisa leading a team of development experts who will explain each stage of the development process. You’ll learn about the value of research, how to undertake a feasibility study and how to secure different kinds of finance, and what goes on in the pre-construction phase. Then you’ll hear about the different stages of construction and how to market and sell your development. You’ll get the chance to meet with town planners and architects, and financiers. The course price includes: a property development manual; an event recording; a subscription to RP Data by CoreLogic; six months’ access to DGI’s custom-built RP Data online platform for sourcing sites and cutting edge due diligence; and six months’ subscription to Blockbrief by CoreLogic. Participants also get access to feasibility study software, email support, a legal kit and more. You should come away from this course with the confidence and knowledge you need to start your career as a developer.
In summary, there are great property development courses available in Australia, whether you want to dip your toe in the water or if you want to undertake professional education to get your skills up to speed. Good luck with your property development dreams!