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— Property Development · Surrey, BC

Legal architecture for projects, from bare land to sold out.

Land acquisition, development financing, subdivision, construction contracts, and the structures that keep a project's risk where it belongs.

— Overview

Counsel that understands both the developer and the lender.

GSG acts for developers and builders across Surrey and the Lower Mainland on the full life of a project: assembling and structuring the land, negotiating financing and registering security, papering the construction phase, and closing the sales at the end. Because the firm also acts for banks, credit unions, and private lenders on development financing, we know what the other side of the table needs to see — and how to get deals funded faster.

The firm's founder comes from a family with deep experience in real estate development and construction, so the advice is grounded in how projects actually run: the trades, the draws, the overruns, and the deadlines that don't move. Our in-house accountant works on the structuring of every project entity.

— What we handle

Property development services.

I.Land acquisition & assembly
II.Project structuring & bare trusts
III.Development financing & security
IV.Subdivision & servicing agreements
V.Construction contracts
VI.Builders lien management
VII.Joint ventures & partnerships
VIII.Project sales & conveyancing
— Common questions

What clients usually ask first.

How should I structure a development project?+
Most projects run through a single-purpose company, often with a bare trustee holding registered title, so liability is ring-fenced and the exit is clean. The structure needs to be settled before land is acquired — property transfer tax and financing consequences follow the title, and unwinding a wrong structure mid-project is expensive.
What are the builders lien deadlines in BC?+
A claim of lien must generally be filed within 45 days of the certificate of completion, or of the head contract or improvement being completed or abandoned. Owners must retain a 10% holdback. Miss the window and the lien right is gone — for developers, managing liens and holdback releases properly keeps financing draws flowing.
What does a lender require to finance a development?+
Expect a mortgage with an assignment of rents, a general security agreement, guarantees from principals, and often assignments of the construction contract, plans, and insurance. Draws are advanced against progress certificates with holdback compliance verified at each stage. We paper this daily — from either side of the transaction.
Do I need a joint venture agreement with my partners?+
Yes — before money moves. The agreement should settle contributions, decision-making, cost overruns, defaults, exits, and how profits and losses flow. Most development disputes we litigate trace back to a handshake that was never documented.
— Begin

A conversation, before a case.

Talk to a Surrey development lawyer before the land closes — structure is cheapest at the start. Call (778) 262-2835 or send a confidential inquiry.