Trusted property development lawyers assisting clients with commercial and development agreements since 1969.
Property development projects often involve complex transactions, multiple stakeholders and significant financial commitments.
At Turnbull Hill Lawyers, our experienced property lawyers can help ensure the legal framework supporting your project is clear, commercially sound and structured to minimise potential disputes.
Our team assists developers, landowners, investors and private groups in preparing and managing commercial property transactions, offering tailored legal advice throughout each stage of the project.
- Initial consultation and transaction scoping
- Contract structuring and risk assessment
- Drafting bespoke contracts and special conditions
- Review and negotiation of counterpart documentation
- Advice on planning, strata and community title interfaces
- Finalisation and execution support
- Post-execution amendments, variations and completion support
Our focus is to combine commercial insight with legal expertise, ensuring obligations are well-defined, risks are addressed and transactions advance smoothly.
Property and construction contract structuring
One of the most important stages of any property development project is ensuring the contract structure properly reflects the commercial arrangement. Standard contracts are often not suitable for complex development transactions, particularly where planning approvals, funding structures or staged delivery are involved.
Our property development solicitors assist with structuring commercial property transactions to clearly allocate risk and create contractual certainty. We prepare and advise on contracts for:
- vacant land acquisitions (residential and mixed-use development)
- commercial property, including retail, office and industrial
- mixed-use developments
- apartment and tower developments
- strata, community title and master-planned developments
By carefully structuring contractual terms, our commercial property solicitors help minimise uncertainty and ensure each party’s rights and obligations are clearly documented.
Joint venture and co-development agreements
Many development projects involve collaboration between landowners, investors and developers. Ensuring these agreements are properly structured is essential to prevent disputes and safeguard commercial outcomes.
Our commercial development lawyers regularly draft and advise on agreements related to joint ventures and co-development projects, including:
- landowner–developer agreements
- heads of agreement and commercial term sheets
- development agreements for staged or complex projects
Through careful drafting and negotiation, our property lawyers help ensure development partnerships operate smoothly while protecting your commercial interests.
Option deeds and staged acquisition strategies
Option deeds and staged settlement structures are frequently used in commercial property transactions to manage planning approvals, funding arrangements or project timing.
Our commercial property lawyers can assist with preparing and advising on:
- put and call option deeds
- delayed or conditional acquisition structures
- early access or early works deeds
- contract variations and settlement arrangements
These arrangements can provide flexibility for developers while managing planning or funding risks. With the legal expertise of our property development solicitors, we can ensure these agreements are carefully drafted to safeguard your interests and guide the development process.
Strata and community title documentation
Many development projects require the creation of strata or community title structures, particularly for residential or mixed-use developments.
Our team can prepare and advise on a range of documentation associated with these projects, including:
- off-the-plan sale contracts (residential and mixed-use)
- strata and community title by-laws
- community management statements
- ancillary deeds and variations
By combining commercial property law expertise with development experience, our team ensures documentation aligns with your overall development strategy and regulatory requirements.
Risk allocation
Effective risk allocation is a critical component of property development contracts. Development projects often involve multiple parties, planning considerations, funding requirements and staged delivery, making it essential that contractual responsibilities are clearly defined from the outset.
Our property development lawyers assist with identifying and allocating risk through carefully structured agreements and special conditions. With the ability to anticipate downstream development issues at the contract stage, our team help address potential risks before they arise.
By applying development-specific contract structuring and strategic risk allocation, we help ensure contracts support the long-term success of your project, while reducing the likelihood of disputes or delays.
Why choose Turnbull Hill Lawyers for commercial property development
Years of legal experience
Since 1969, Turnbull Hill Lawyers has been assisting clients across Newcastle, Maitland and Sydney with a wide range of property development and commercial property matters. Our team has extensive experience in understanding the complexities involved in developments and can provide practical legal guidance to support successful outcomes.
Proactive legal support
Property development transactions often involve multiple stakeholders, evolving commercial terms and tight timelines. Our commercial property lawyers work proactively to assess the legal aspects of your transaction, assist with due diligence considerations and structure documentation that supports both the current project and potential future development opportunities
Tailored property development advice
No two development projects are the same. Whether you are acquiring a development site, entering a joint venture or structuring a mixed-use project, our commercial property lawyers provide legal advice tailored to your specific transaction, commercial objectives and risk profile.
Clear & actionable guidance
Commercial development contracts can be complex. Our property development solicitors ensure you clearly understand the terms of your agreement, your rights and obligations, and any risks involved to ensure you can make informed decisions throughout the transaction.
Unrivalled reputation
Turnbull Hill Lawyers has built a strong reputation for delivering reliable legal services to developers, investors and commercial clients across NSW. Our team is trusted for practical advice, strong contract drafting and effective transaction support in complex property development matters.
Transparent fees
Our commercial property solicitors provide clear and transparent pricing so you understand the likely costs involved. Fees are based on the time spent on your matter, with clear hourly rates and upfront cost estimates wherever possible.
Support your property development with trusted legal assistance
Protect your development project and contractual rights with strategic legal advice from Turnbull Hill Lawyers. Our experienced teams in Newcastle, Maitland and Sydney can assist with structuring agreements, managing risk, amendments, variations, completion, settlement and ongoing advice to help your transaction progress smoothly.
What our clients say
Elizabeth helped us with purchasing our first home. We had a bunch of questions and she was always approachable and happy to explain things in a way we could understand.
We recently finalised our matter with Elizabeth and she was excellent. She provided clear guidance throughout the process and liaised with external professionals to help move our matter forward efficiently. She generous with her time, including meeting with us on additional occasions to ensure we felt confident and well informed at every stage. Extremely professional, diligent and approachable, we would highly recommend Elizabeth!
Mitchell is great! Very professional, genuine and caring. I would recommend him to everyone. Excellent! 5 stars.
I recently sold and purchased property, Mitchell was fantastic. He was professional, available to answer any questions and responded very quickly. Mitchell displayed professionalism throughout our dealings and was always very approachable. I would highly recommend Mitchell to guide you through the process of buying and selling.
I have never called a lawyer but I’m definitely 100% glad I called.
Our experienced property development law team
Get started in 3 simple steps
From contract structuring to completion, Turnbull Hill Lawyers provides trusted legal assistance to ensure your development or commercial project proceeds seamlessly
Book a Consultation
Call our friendly team on 1800 994 279 or contact us today.
Tell us your story
Our property development lawyers take the time to understand your project and objectives, providing clear, practical legal advice to help your development proceed smoothly.
Receive the right support
We provide personalised legal support at every stage of your development or commercial transaction, helping your project progress efficiently while ensuring your agreements, obligations and objectives are fully addressed.
Frequently Asked Questions
It is generally beneficial to involve a property development lawyer as early as possible in the transaction process. Early legal involvement allows your lawyer to review the proposed deal structure, assist with due diligence considerations and ensure contracts are properly structured before agreements are finalised. Engaging a lawyer at the early stages can also help identify potential legal risks and ensure the development agreement supports the overall project strategy.
In many cases, yes. Standard property contracts are often not suitable for development projects, particularly where planning approvals, funding arrangements or staged settlements are involved. Our property development solicitors can prepare a bespoke contract that properly addresses these complexities and allocates risk appropriately.
Yes. Our commercial development lawyers regularly prepare option deeds, including put and call options, as well as delayed or conditional settlement structures. These arrangements can provide flexibility for developers while managing planning or funding uncertainty.
Planning and funding risks are typically addressed through carefully drafted special conditions, conditions precedent and staged transaction structures. An experienced commercial property solicitor can structure the contract to minimise uncertainty and clearly allocate responsibility between the parties.
An option deed is a legal agreement that gives one party the right to purchase a property at a later date, often subject to certain conditions. Commercial property lawyers frequently prepare option deeds for development transactions where developers require time to obtain planning approvals or secure funding before committing to the purchase.
If circumstances change after a contract is drafted, our commercial property lawyers can provide advice on termination and exit rights, assist with contract variations or unwind options, and offer strategic advice to help preserve future development opportunities. Our team can also assist with amendments and variations as the project evolves.
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