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Property development

Volume homebuilder financial model, built free.

A three-statement Excel model for a volume homebuilder, built from your own figures and checked to balance.

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We use generative AI in parts of our process, so mistakes can occur. Every model should be checked by a person before it is relied on. Read more

The business

Builds and sells detached homes and house-and-land packages from its own land bank, or builds on customers' land under fixed-price building contracts billed in stages, earning a margin per home.

See the sampleHow the model works

In short

  • 01

    Three linked statements

    Income statement, balance sheet and cash flow, linked in every period.

  • 02

    Valued three ways

    Discounted cash flow, trading multiples and net asset value, side by side.

  • 03

    Monthly to annual

    Monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or annual periods, for up to 30 years.

  • 04

    Checked every period

    A Checks sheet shows the balance sheet balances and the cash reconciles.

The sample

The sample, as Excel draws it.

Built by the same system and checks as yours: its structure and its inputs, ready for your own figures.

Annual · 10 years · Low detail
Volume homebuilder sample model.xlsx
The How It Works sheet of the sample volume homebuilder model

The sample describes no real business. Yours is calibrated to your own figures, so its results are your business’s.

How it works

How the model works for a volume homebuilder.

  1. How it earns revenue3 formulas
    Sales, settlements and purchaser deposits · All property developments
    Contracts on hand at the period endContracts on hand at the period startUnits or lots sold (contracts exchanged)Units or lots settled
    Sales, settlements and purchaser deposits · All property developments
    Development sales revenue (settlements)Contract value on hand at the period startValue of contracts exchangedShare of contracts on hand settling
    Sales, settlements and purchaser deposits · All property developments
    Deposits received on exchangeValue of contracts exchangedDeposit on exchange (% of price)
  2. What drives its costs3 formulas
    Cost of sales and development inventory · All property developments
    Closing inventoryInventory available to releaseCost of sales (all remaining inventory once the last unit settles)
    Cost of sales and development inventory · All property developments
    Opening development inventoryDevelopment work in progress at the start date (excluding land held)Land payments made before the start date
    Operating expenses · Across the business
    Operating expensesRevenuefrom statementsOperating expenses as % of revenue
  3. How it is funded3 formulas
    Project finance · All property developments
    Project debt drawn (share of costs)Land and development costs incurredShare of land and development costs funded by the loan
    Project finance · All property developments
    Interest on the average balance (rolled up and capitalised)Opening project debtProject debt drawn (share of costs)from share of costsRepayment of the balance before interestAll-in interest rate (base rate plus margin and line fees)from base rate plus margin and line feesshare of the year
    Project finance · All property developments
    Closing project debtDebt owing before repaymentProject debt repaid from settlements
  4. How profit becomes cash3 formulas
    Working capital
    Trade receivablesRevenuefrom statementsDebtor daysDays in period
    Working capital
    InventoryDirect costs (positive)from statementsInventory daysDays in period
    Working capital
    Trade payablesCash operating costs (positive)from statementsCreditor daysDays in period
What it covers

22 parts, each one tested.

Every part is a tested building block with its own checks: yours is put together from the ones your business needs.

  • CPI forecastCPI glide path
  • Operating expensesOperating expenses as % of revenue
  • Corporate costsFixed cost base indexed to CPI
  • Working capitalDays-based working capital
  • Income taxCorporate rate with tax losses
  • DebtSingle debt facility
  • Equity raisingDistribution reinvestment plan
  • Dividends and distributionsPayout of net profit
  • Discounted cash flow valuationDCF on free cash flow to the firm
  • Multiples valuationEV / EBITDA multiple
  • Net asset valueBook net asset value
  • Key-metric summaryStandard growth, margin and leverage metrics
  • Covenant tests and headroomLVR, gearing and ICR for property
  • Discount rate (WACC)CAPM at target gearing
  • Development pipeline (top-down)Settlements × average price × marginRevenue, margin and inventory for the developer's whole pipeline when projects are not modelled one by one — settlements by year, landbank run-off and capital employed.
  • Interest-rate forecastMarket forward curve
  • Project register and timelineSingle-stage projectUnits or lots, saleable area and the construction and completion timing every other part of the model uses.
  • Land acquisition and holding costsDeposit and deferred or staged paymentsThe land purchase, its payment terms, stamp duty and the holding costs (land tax, rates) until development.
  • Development and construction costsTotal cost on an S-curveConstruction, professional fees, statutory contributions, marketing and contingency, and when they are spent.
  • Sales, settlements and purchaser depositsSales rate per month with settlement lagUnits or lots sold (exchanged) and settled, the revenue recognised on settlement, and deposits received from buyers.
  • Cost of sales and development inventoryForecast gross marginCapitalised land, construction and interest costs held as inventory and released to cost of sales as units settle.
  • Project financeInterest on average spend, capitalisedConstruction and land loans at project level, with interest usually capitalised into inventory.
Key numbers

The numbers it tracks.

  1. 01completions
  2. 02average selling price
  3. 03gross margin per home
  4. 04order book
  5. 05land bank plots and years
  6. 06ROCE
Used for

What it is used for.

Also used for
  • Scenarios and sensitivities
Related models

More in property development.

Every real estate model

Looking for a volume homebuilder financial model template? Ours arrives built for your business, with your figures in it.

See a finished model, sheet by sheet

The sample is built on illustrative figures and describes no real business. Models are calculations prepared from the information you provide. They are not financial advice and must be independently verified. See our terms.