I've been getting a bit concerned recently about the number of people jumping on the property development bandwagon (it looks like it's becoming the latest 'strategy') and have even been reading comments about how 'easy' it is! I guarantee you now, anyone getting into property development thinking it is easy is in for a very big shock, and anyone saying it is easy clearly has absolutely no clue what they are talking about. I learnt myself the hard way that property development really isn't that simple or straightforward.   

The vast majority of property developers that ever existed don't exist anymore. The reason is that plenty of people have been attracted to the big money to be made and thought it was much easier than it actually is. What they didn't properly understand was how it really works and the associated risks and, as a result, they messed up and have long since gone bust. In truth, there are very few developers that last for the long term. Like anything in business, the reason it can be massively profitable is because it's also massively risky.

Some people think that property development is mainly about building and construction (I did to start with) - but it's not. This is just the last part of the process and NOT the key part where all of the clever money is made. Property development done 'the right way' is not just about making money.  It's about creating, maximising and sharing value (whilst minimising risk).  

It's not easy to get it right, which is one of the reasons I decided to create a system and write a book about how property development really works.