James Thomas
BSc (Hons ) MRICS
james.thomas@beckland.co.uk
+44 7889 807601
James has over 20 years of property experience. For the first 12 years of his career, James worked as a Partner in the Residential Development team at Bidwells. Subsequently he has worked for the Hill Group as their Head of Land, with responsibility for land acquisitions. Over James’s 10-year period with Hill, the company grew to become the second largest privately owned house builder in the UK. James is a highly experienced development surveyor with a diverse range of skills and strong technical knowledge. This includes expertise in maximising development opportunities, financial modelling of complex schemes, setting up joint ventures with private and public landowners, contract negotiations and identifying and securing consent for high quality residential developments.
Key projects:
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James led on the setting up of a 50/50 joint venture with a private landowner, that promoted and then developed the landowner’s property for a high quality residential led scheme.
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James worked on setting up an Investment Partnership with a Local Authority and then led on the acquisition of a 240-home development that was purchased by the new joint venture.
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James led in entering into an Option Agreement for a potential new settlement of up to 5,000 new homes.
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James led in the negotiations with a Local Authority regarding the Section 106 obligations that could be provided as part of a planning application for a new development. James was able to demonstrate that the site’s constraints were such that the site would be unviable should the Section 106 obligations be provided in accordance with policy. As a result, a substantial reduction in the level of affordable housing provision was agreed.
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James led on the conditional acquisition of a 500-home brownfield development site that is to be the catalyst for a major town centre regeneration project.
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James led on the conditional acquisition of a new development site on an edge of village location that was identified as having potential. He project managed the planning application and oversaw the acquisition following the grant of the planning permission for 97 new homes.
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James worked with a Housing Association in setting up a joint venture to develop a site they owned. The site needed to be replanned in order to be viable and a new planning application was submitted and approved on the site, increasing the total quantum of developable area.
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James has worked on a number of key development projects that have sought to introduce high levels of sustainability embedded within them. The financial implications of these options were considered and modelled as part of this process, before the final agreement was reached as to which sustainability to incorporate into the new development.
Our services
We are well positioned to identify client objectives and seek opportunities to add value throughout the development process.
Agency
Integrity, experience and sharp end market knowledge means that Beckland will get the best price for your land. Over the last 20 years the team has advised on over £500m of land transactions.
Strategic land
Over the last 20 years the team has advised on 30 projects that will each deliver over 1,000 houses. We understand the inter-generational nature of these large projects, and we understand the importance of trust in these long-term relationships.
Professional consultancy
Beckland advises on market appraisals, valuation disputes, promotion, option and hybrid agreements, joint ventures, and landowner collaboration agreements. We always look for alignment between parties in a thorough and robust manner.
Joint ventures and partnering
At Beckland we appreciate that finding the correct partner to promote or develop a landowner’s assets is essential.