Property developers · Residential and mixed use
Fractional CFO for property developers
A development is planned over years and paid for month by month, and every month of delay adds interest and holding costs that come out of the profit. We help you test the feasibility, build the case for finance and watch the margin while the project runs.
What developers are deciding
Rules and rates are stated in general terms. Your legal adviser or tax adviser can confirm how they apply to your business.
Whether the next site stacks up
Land, build, finance, holding costs and sales prices all move, and a feasibility is only as good as its weakest assumption.
How to fund it
Senior debt, presales, mezzanine and equity each change the cost of capital, the margin a lender will want and how much control you keep.
What a delay costs
Interest, line fees, land tax and holding costs keep running while approvals, weather or a builder hold the project up.
What the tax changes of 1 July 2027 do to demand
Negative gearing for residential investors is limited to new builds from 1 July 2027, which may change who buys and when. Your tax adviser can confirm how the rules apply.
Illustrative example · Townhouse development · Queensland
Six townhouses, three months late
In this illustrative example, a developer builds six townhouses to sell at $1,050,000 each, $6,300,000 in all, at a total cost of $5,400,000 including the land. The planned profit is $900,000, a margin of 16.7 per cent on cost.
Construction finance of $3,500,000 is drawn when the builder hits a three month delay. At an interest rate of 8.5 per cent a year, that adds $74,375 of interest over the three months, before line fees and other holding costs.
$74,375
Interest over three months
8.3%
Share of the profit it takes
16.7%
Planned margin on cost
15.1%
Margin on cost after the delay
Line fees, land tax and the cost of selling later sit on top of the interest, so a feasibility that holds a contingency for time as well as cost is easier to defend to a lender.
Illustrative, modelled on a small townhouse project. Not a client engagement.
Method: interest on the drawn balance at the stated annual rate for three months; margin on cost as profit over total cost including the interest. Worked in code on 22 October 2026.
How an engagement runs
Every engagement starts with discovery and a diagnostic in the first two weeks. We get under your numbers, from the feasibility and the finance terms to the cost to complete, presales and the cash flow by month, and surface the issues and opportunities that matter most to a development business.
In weeks three and four we set up clean reporting, a cash flow forecast and the rhythm of reviews. The first decisions land in the second month, in pricing, cash or cost, and from the third month we are part of how the business runs, alongside your accountant and bookkeeper. The fractional CFO service page sets out the full scope.
Tools to start with
Free tools on the ProfitPulse tools site for the questions developers ask most, each with its result on screen straight away.
Common questions
Do you replace our accountant?
No. Your accountant keeps the tax returns, BAS and year end accounts, and your bookkeeper keeps the books. We add the forward looking work: the feasibility and its updates, the project cash flow, the finance case and the numbers behind decisions on sites, funding and sales. We share what we find with your accountant, so everyone works from the same figures.
What does it cost?
The fractional CFO partnership starts from $3,750 a month, billed month to month with no long term lock in. When you need a figure for the business, before a sale or a handover, an indicative valuation starts from $4,500 and a comprehensive valuation from $13,500. Each of these is a starting price.
How is the fee sized?
Engagements usually stay at the starting price. Some need closer oversight or a deeper assessment, and the scope and fee rise to match. Find your fit confirms your price based on the characteristics of your business, and the pricing page explains how everything is sized.
Do you work with developers outside Brisbane?
Yes. We work with developers across Brisbane, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast, and further afield across Australia. Most of the monthly work happens over video calls and shared reports, with visits to your office as each engagement needs, so distance changes little. The locations we serve page has the detail.
What do you need from us to start?
The feasibility for the current and next project, the finance terms and drawdown schedule, the cost to complete, presales and the contract schedule, the last two years of financial statements and the group structure. A first meeting with you covers how sites are found, funded and sold. Nothing needs to change in your systems before we start.
Talk it through with us
A 45 minute discovery call is complimentary. Bring the feasibility for your next site.