A firm offering specialist services in land procurement and development opportunities has launched in Birmingham, enabling landowners, investors, builders and developers to capitalise on the growing opportunities in the city and beyond, as the development landscape looks to be ramping up after a pandemic-induced dip.
Atlas Land & Planning, based on Cornwall Street in the heart of Birmingham’s finance district, offers a personal, exclusive and highly efficient approach to every stage of land disposal and development planning. Its portfolio of potential buyers, with whom the firm has built strong relationships over many years, benefit from the fact Atlas is part of a wider network of specialists providing access to finance, tax advice and specialist risk and insurance services.
Headed up by Phil Roberts – an expert in land procurement who has worked in the industry for almost a decade – including at Fine and Country Land and New Homes – Atlas offers a personalised service to clients, from smaller developers through to national house builders, PLC organisations and national registered providers of affordable housing.
Phil explained: “The pandemic has brought many challenges to the development landscape, including furloughed staff causing delays in development or planning application progress, and a shortage of building materials causing a price hike and impacting profit margins – also exacerbated by Brexit. At the same time, as restrictions now ease, the development opportunities are soaring as land becomes available again.
“Land that was earmarked for office development is now likely to be re-purposed for residential use, while property such as disused office space as a result of the remote working scenario will also be ripe for redevelopment. Additionally, with the plans around HS2, city living will become a much more attractive prospect. There is also of course a real housing shortage, and we work closely with providers of affordable housing. All of this is great news for developers and we think there is a rapidly growing appetite and that the market is set to accelerate again,” he added.
Atlas prides itself on dealing exclusively with a landowner, working with them to manage expectations around land worth – all off market to avoid de-valuing the land – and can choose the best buyers based on the firm’s connections. Atlas works proactively, rather than waiting for buyers, and works all at risk as it does not command any up-front fees. This ensures transactions are seamless, efficient and fast – all important factors in this industry. Atlas is part of the ARMCo group, which combines specialist lending, corporate support and insurance services, so can arrange for funding to be in place if needed by the developer – as well as tax advice or specialist risk insurance.
ARMCo founder Russell Martin commented: “Atlas Land & Planning is a great addition to our group, and significantly aids our clients who benefit from this central services approach. The opportunities in the property and development market are currently there to be capitalised on, and we are confident that our offering is the best solution to the specific needs of this sector – regionally and nationally.”
