Director, Development

JPI•Dallas, TX

About The Position

The Director, Land Acquisition is expected to engage in any or all of a broad range of responsibilities across the real estate development and construction project lifecycle. The position demands significant technical input and decision-making in relation to JPI projects, as well as the leadership and management of people in the Development Team. The Director, Development will typically be responsible for one or more of the following development disciplines: - Development Planning - Land Acquisition and Entitlement - Financial Modeling - Project Close - Investment Ownership

Requirements

A Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Finance, Urban Planning, Accounting, Real Estate, Engineering, Math or related field required.
Demonstrated experience in entitlements, executing development opportunities, working with capital partners, market analytics, asset management, property operations and strong negotiation skills.
Minimum of 8 years’ experience in Real Estate development including significant multifamily development experience.

Nice To Haves

Graduate degree and/or relevant professional certifications encouraged.

Responsibilities

Source land opportunities and track systematically.
Build and maintain broker relations.
Conduct site searches and review land deals for initial feasibility.
Screen land at a macro level, including sub-market analysis and ranking.
Perform zoning and code analysis to assess regulatory fit.
Screen land at a micro level, focusing on site-specific factors.
Ensure business plan alignment with acquisition targets.
Conduct entitlement feasibility analysis.
Apply rule-of-thumb analysis for quick viability checks.
Negotiate land purchases, including LOI preparation and contract finalization.
Coordinate proposals for internal committee reviews.
Kick off the concept design process for potential projects.
Administer hard cost questionnaires for cost estimation.
Oversee due diligence, including budget validation and third-party reports.
Lead the investment committee review for approval of land acquisitions.
Uses approved enterprise AI tools (e.g., Claude Cowork, Microsoft Copilot) to draft, summarize, analyze, and accelerate everyday work.
Applies sound judgment to review AI-generated outputs for accuracy, tone, and appropriateness before using or sharing them.
Follows company data handling, confidentiality, and acceptable-use policies when working with AI tools and sensitive information.
Demonstrates curiosity and willingness to adopt new tools; actively participates in AI training, office hours, and adoption campaigns.
Uses AI assistants to reduce manual effort on routine tasks (email drafting, meeting notes, document summarization, basic research).
Other duties as assigned.