Sunshine Coast Development
Background
Four siblings, were each left with an interest in a property on the Sunshine Coast as tenants in common (1/4 share each) when their father passed away.
There had been a falling out prior to his death and the brothers were unable to agree on a sale of the property. The property was a large site with development potential however, significant steps were needed to be taken to obtain a development approval from council.
Inexperienced lawyers were involved in the initial application, which resulted in a difficult to execute order and other issues.
Process
We quickly identified several complications, including
restrictions on the Trustee’s ability to make certain decisions (the terms of court order)
specific matters affecting the marketability of the property including, unique registered encumbrances and environmental considerations
one of the siblings being represented by the Public Trustee of Queensland
one of the siblings had obtained legal advice suggesting there was an unjust enrichment claim.
Rather than simply sell the site as is, we investigated the development potential and associated uplift in value, consulted with Council, external advisors and potentially interested buyers. Due to the otherwise unique nature of the site, a decision was eventually made to conduct an expressions of interest campaign.
By thinking outside of the box, and despite the various constraints, we were able to achieve an outcome that resulted in the property being sold for an amount that was considerably higher than simply taking the property to auction immediately following the appointment.
Result
The property was eventually sold to a developer, which required entry into a contract that was subject to DA approval. To mitigate the time-frame associated with obtaining the approval, we negotiated a non-refundable deposit. The end result, was successful completion of the transaction, with a significant uplift in the sale price achieved, compared to simply taking the property to auction and selling as is. The price achieved was significant enough for all siblings to agree, and therefore avoided the need to seek alterations to the original order to certain restrictions on our ability to complete the sale.