Director of Land Acquisitions & Entitlements
About The Position
We are seeking an experienced and driven Director of Land Acquisitions & Entitlement to manage a team and lead all aspects of the residential land acquisition process — from site sourcing and financial underwriting to contract negotiation and entitlement approvals. This high-impact role combines strategic execution, legal expertise, and cross-functional collaboration to drive our rapidly growing residential land development pipeline. If you thrive in a fast-paced, growth-oriented environment and have a proven ability to manage a team, source, creatively structure, and close multiple complex land acquisition deals — ranging from 50-lot tracts to multi-phase, 2,000-unit master-planned communities — we want to hear from you.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in Real Estate, Business, Finance, or a related field.
- 5+ years of experience in residential land acquisitions; $100M+ in closed deals preferred.
- Strong background in legal review, title, contract negotiation, and financial modeling.
- Deep understanding of land development, entitlements, and market analysis.
- Familiarity with MUDs, PIDs, utilities, and off-site infrastructure and reimbursement agreements.
- Proficient with Microsoft Office (especially Excel), GIS, Smartsheets, and land software systems.
- Highly organized, analytical, and process-oriented with the ability to scale systems.
- Excellent communication, negotiation, and leadership skills.
- Self-motivated, collaborative, and results-driven.
Responsibilities
- Team Management Leadership & Collaboration: Coordinate and manage a team of land development project managers, analysts and consultants to achieve deadlines and goals
- Mentor acquisition and entitlement team members and coordinate with internal departments including development, homebuilding, accounting, finance, and executive teams.
- Ensure smooth project closings and transitions to homebuilding post-acquisition.
- Land Acquisition & Sourcing High volume producer.
- Source, evaluate, and secure lot opportunities in residential communities ranging from 50 to 2,000 units, including raw land, finished lots, paper lots, and lot trades.
- Structure and negotiate innovative, out-of-the-box deal terms that generate value and unlock opportunities otherwise unavailable—even in down markets or highly competitive environments.
- Formulate underwriting, due diligence, market analysis, and investment presentations.
- Build and maintain strong relationships with brokers, builders, developers, landowners, and other stakeholders.
- Legal Review & Negotiation Lead contract negotiations including LOIs, PSAs, development agreements, and preliminary plan agreements.
- Coordinate title review with legal counsel and executive team to ensure favorable terms and mitigate risk.
- Navigate reimbursement agreements with MUDs, PIDs, and off-site utility obligations.
- Underwriting & Financial Analysis Manage financial modeling, land development budgets, and proformas.
- Evaluate IRR, ROA, YOS, capital allocation, and financing scenarios to guide investment decisions.
- Ensure all deals align with company financial and strategic criteria.
- Entitlements & Approvals Take projects through the entitlement process to obtain development agreements and/or preliminary plans.
- Coordinate with development teams and consultants to meet entitlement milestones and timelines.
- Systems & Operations Build scalable systems for deal tracking, reporting, and documentation.
- Lead internal forecasting and land pipeline reporting.
- Drive operational efficiency through standardized tools and workflows.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Manager
