Development Director in London

Capstone Recruitment has been retained by a highly capitalised international residential investment manager to appoint a Development Director to play a pivotal role in the growth of its UK Build-to-Rent platform. Backed by long-term institutional capital, the business is investing significantly into purpose-built rental housing across the UK and has an active pipeline of direct developments and forward-funded schemes. With several major projects already secured and further acquisitions expected, this is an outstanding opportunity to join at an exciting stage of growth.

The Opportunity

Reporting directly to the Head of UK, you will take ownership of a growing development portfolio centred around Manchester, whilst being based in London alongside the investment team. This is a broad development role combining direct development, technical leadership and development management. You'll be responsible for taking projects from acquisition and planning through procurement, delivery and completion, whilst also managing external development partners on forward-funded schemes. The current pipeline includes:

• A flagship c.150-unit Build-to-Rent development moving into delivery
• Oversight of multiple forward-funded developments
• Several new acquisitions progressing through planning
• A rapidly expanding national pipeline as further capital is deployed

Responsibilities

• Lead the end-to-end development of institutional Build-to-Rent schemes.
• Take ownership of direct development projects from planning through construction and completion.
• Manage external development partners delivering forward-funded projects.
• Lead technical due diligence on new acquisitions.
• Manage consultant teams, contractors and professional advisers.
• Drive planning, procurement and construction programmes.
• Ensure projects are delivered against programme, budget, quality and ESG objectives.
• Work closely with the investment team on acquisitions, appraisals and development strategy.
• Represent the business with local authorities, JV partners and key stakeholders.

Candidate Profile

We're interested in individuals with a strong technical foundation rather than traditional real estate development backgrounds. Typical backgrounds include:

• Construction Management
• Quantity Surveying
• Civil or Structural Engineering
• Project Management
• Building Surveying

You'll likely have:

• 10+ years' experience delivering large residential or mixed-use developments.
• Strong technical delivery capability through design, procurement and construction.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary consultant teams.
• Exposure to Build-to-Rent, PRS or large-scale residential developments.
• Excellent commercial judgement and stakeholder management skills.
• Experience working with institutional investors, forward-funded developments or joint venture structures would be highly advantageous.

Why Join?

• Rare opportunity to help build a UK institutional residential platform from the ground up.
• Significant autonomy with direct access to senior leadership.
• High-quality pipeline backed by long-term capital.
• Opportunity to build and lead a development team as the platform expands.
• Excellent long-term career progression within a growing international investor.

For a confidential discussion, contact Rob Joslin on +44 (0) 203 757 5000 or email.