Question: What exactly do developers do?

[jaredw]

Hi,

I am just wondering what exactly do developers do. Do developers work on land that is not theirs (hired out), or do most purchase land to develop. What type of people would a development people hire, like engineers and such. I am just curious, and am wondering what the best thing to major in at college to run my own development company.

Thanks,

Jared

[Brickell]

Developers are like Movie Producers. Sometimes it's their own money, sometimes not. Sometimes it's their own land, sometimes not. They organize the whole project and bring everything together. They would hire the architect, the engineer, get the permits, hire contractors, etc. Some community colleges offer construction/development related degrees, but you'd probably be better to get a business/finance degree or a some type of real estate degree. Or you could go into urban planning/architecture. But from what I know, developers are mostly paper pushers concerned with making the numbers work. In the meantime start saving your money so you can build up a downpayment on your first project.

ps. a quick search shows that Univ of Florida has a BS in Building Construction. I'm sure other schools have similar degree programs.

[gliptitude]

ha this post is old and i don't really have a more authoritative answer than the previous reply, so i guess i'm posting here for my own amusement.

anyway, i agree the movie producer analogy is the best analogy. however, sticking with the movie comparison, i think a developer could also resemble the director because they may oversee the assembling of "talent", labor and resources. also the developer could sort of resemble the movie studio or studio executive and i think "developer" could be a company rather than a person. if you look at "real estate developer" on wikipedia.org, it describes how one would go about becoming a building developer.

i think the developer is fundamentally concerned with profit and there is an entrepenurial aspect to it. architects do not typically initiate building projects.

they are kind of like construction/real-estate barons. for example if a city wants to build a new stadium, they need a more cohesive, established and finance oriented leader than an architect, to establish the project. i think the developer would hire the engineers/architects, and not the other way around. donald trump is a developer.

[mcashlv]

Mostly they rape, pillage, have sex with their secretaries.

Hi,

I am just wondering what exactly do developers do. Do developers work on land that is not theirs (hired out), or do most purchase land to develop. What type of people would a development people hire, like engineers and such. I am just curious, and am wondering what the best thing to major in at college to run my own development company.

Thanks,

Jared

[bmorescottamanda]

Mostly they rape, pillage, have sex with their secretaries.

dame what did a developer do to you?

[GRDadof3]

Mostly they rape, pillage, have sex with their secretaries.

Modern day Vikings. You forgot "overcrowd schools for a living".

In answer to the original question, most developers hire out everything, and maintain very minimal staff.