Temp

Looking at that table of charges I see it has an * against the £18 charge for electronic copies of a decision notice. The foot note says that this is for: "maximum 5no copies (single address only) and £3 for each additional copy." Huhh????

See if the council planning department publish a weekly list of Planning Applications. Sometimes these will turn out to be someone about to sell a plot. You might get to find out about it before it goes on the market. But do make any offer conditional on the PP being granted.

There are a few books on the subject: "How to find and buy a building plot" by Roy Speer. I think latest edition is 2010 3rd Revised Edition but perhaps check. Some of the info relating to planning permission might be out of date but still worth a read. Main thing to beware of is the huge difference in value of plots with and without planning permission which has led to a number of scams. Typically these involve what looks like a cheap plot with promises to get planning permission for you. In reality it's a very expensive field.

Got a feeling you can't move bats from May to October when they are breeding? Never had the problem myself.

Your fathers PPR should be exempt from CGT but it's not enough for the gifted land to be part of the same title plan as his house, it must be garden or similar. I think the words the HMRC use are "land required for the enjoyment of the dwelling".. http://www.wrightvigar.co.uk/tax-implications-sale-garden/ You should not fence off the part he is giving you until after the transfer.. https://www.taxation.co.uk/Articles/2014/02/26/321001/gardening-gains I don't think it's necessary to transfer the land to you before getting Planning Permission. It used to be the case that getting Planning Permission was classed as developing the land making it liable for CGT but I think the rules were changed some time ago... https://www.homebuilding.co.uk/how-to-build-a-new-home-on-a-garden-plot/ If you sell the house soon after moving in the HMRC may look back an any paper trail to see what your intentions were. So any loan you take out should be a regular or self build mortgage not a short term business loan or similar that would give away intentions. The VAT reclaim scheme is also only for people building their own home to live in and some types of warranty are only open to self builders not developers. None of this is a problem if you plan to build a house to live in but needs to be considered if you are building for sale or rent. If you build the house but decide to let it out then CGT will be payable on any subsequent sale due to the "first supply is a letting rule". I hate to mention it but... If your father were to declare bankruptcy within 5 years then the official receiver can reverse the transfer if he believes the gift was made to secure an asset from his creditors.

Most houses end up built over the supply cable... at least the bit where it comes up into the meter cabinet :-) Just a matter of protecting the cable where it goes through the foundations. Use a cable locator and hand dig to find it. Shouldn't really be necessary. I believe it would have to be at least 50mm deep if chased into walls or provided with protection. Fuse and switch needed in the meter cabinet but that's not usually a problem.

You can hire cable locators for around £50 a day. Start by finding any cables shown in the road and look for any branches heading your way. Then do a site walk over? I've only used them for tracing an electric cable not water or gas.. https://www.hss.com/hire/p/cable-avoiding-tool-cat3

OK Google says with render you still need cavity trays but might not need weep holes... https://www.labcwarranty.co.uk/technical-library/weep-holes-in-rendered-cavity-walls/

As I understand it cavity trays are intended to catch any water running down the inside of the outer leaf and divert it to the outside. The source of this water is rain penetrating the outer leaf (bricks are porous). However I though render was meant to be a waterproof barrier so do you need cavity trays at all if the outer leaf is rendered?

If the brick slips have texture will it be hard to keep them clean? Can't imagine trying to mop up a red wine spill or get mud out of our bricks.

When we moved into our house the improvement in air quality was really noticeable. First few nights we woke up feeling like we'd been camping out under canvas. If building again I'd definitely put one in again for that reason alone.

Can't the business just provide you with building services? That way the business never needs to own the land/house. There might be an issue with things like the warranty because I know the NHBC have different policies for self builders and businesses.

Yes that's what I was thinking of but Nicks air admittance trap is a better suggestion.

Thought I'd try and find the regs... http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2003/1511/regulation/4/made Seems it can be used in limited situations.. Para b is unclear. I can read it several ways. Looks to me like the retreated wood must be for industrial or professional use (eg not garden use).

I didn't know you could still buy posts treated with creosote? Its disappeared from all retail shops and most of the online sellers have "substitute" somewhere in small print. https://www.creosotesales.co.uk/

You might get away with an AAV at the end of the new branch? Would need to be indoors and accessible. Another option is to run the basin wastes all the way to the stack rather than share the branch with the WC.

WPB varies in quality so perhaps shop around to compare. Will also need priming before putting the stone down. Many people suggest using PVA to prime wood but some places advise against as water can soften PVA. Perhaps consult the tile adhesive makers like BAL.

Got our trees from.. https://www.barcham.co.uk In Cambridgeshire. Perhaps a bit late for planting but ask the nursery for advice.

A quote will usually come with terms and conditions and usually a list of other assumptions such as a provisional sum for the kitchen or other items that might be unknown at the start. If you have accepted the quote and that didn't include insurance then it's down to you to pay for it. They might be happy to arrange the insurance but you can expect them to want to adjust the agreed price accordingly. If you haven't accepted the quote yet then you can still haggle over what it includes or doesn't include. Edit: We used a builder that had his own insurance policy but because he wasn't starting for some time we took out our own site insurance policy to cover the intervening period. Our site had a public footpath across it until it could be diverted. As I recall our policy covered pretty much everything so there was some duplication but this was some 11 years ago.

Yes normally if you are handing the plot over to a builder and he's doing everything then you check he has his own insurance policy. If you are retaining control of the site and just hiring him to build the shell with you hiring trades to do other work then you would take out a policy, however you would still expect the builder to have a policy to cover his staff and any contractors he hires.

If the breather membrane is vapour permeable you can usually get away without ventilation below it (eg no need for the normal 50mm ventilated void). However you should allow a small void to allow the membrane to "drape" between the rafters. This is to avoid pressing the membrane to the underside of the tile/slate battens. The drape allows water blown under the slates to run down the membrane into the gutter. If you don't do this it can pool above the batten causing the batten to rot. (Edit: I'm not clear how the spray foam companies avoid this issue or even if they try to). The plastic sheet VCL stops water vapour caused by people inside the house getting through gaps in the insulation to the cold membrane where it might condense. So essential to do good job of the VCL. Not so essential to tape the joints in the insulation as well. Seal any big gaps with squirty cream foam. If you fit insulated plasterboard the VCL will be _in_ the insulation layer rather than entirely on the warm side of the insulation layer. That's should be OK provided the VCL isn't too far towards the cold side of the combined insulation. I think the usual rule of thumb is to ensure that 2/3rds of the insulation is outside the VCL with only 1/3rd on the inside. Ideally you would get an interstitial condensation risk analysis done on the proposed make up to ensure the VCL wasn't too far towards the cold side. Perhaps run your make up past the company that will be supplying the insulation. Some insulated plasterboard may also include a VCL?

Google found huge list of price rises with dates here... http://www.encon.co.uk/price-changes

+1 I'm sure they were referring to changes to their standard wording for such conditions not changes to the condition imposed on this application/grant.

Re: your not allowed to speak to her I'm wondering if the company you paid subcontracts out the actual work to self employed solicitors. They may not want you talking direct in case the solicitor steals "their" customer.

Sounds like they messed up. My guess is they knew you were close to roman remains and would need to impose a watching brief condition but the Planning Officer used their standard wording for such a condition rather than wording specific to your site. The reply you got from the planners even mentions that "The condition has been amended recently" meaning they have amended their standard wording. If you wanted to appeal it you would have to show it failed one of the tests I mentioned above. It's important to separate the requirements of the condition from the reason given. If the planners decided to fight an appeal they are likely to argue the condition is valid even if the reason given isn't. necessary - The planners will argue the watching brief is necessary to protect possible Roman remain. They might call an Archaeologist to give evidence. Relevant to planning - This sort of condition has been used many times before. and to the development to be permitted - This is the debatable bit. You would be arguing that "Areas of Archaeological Importance" was capitalised so must refer to areas defined in the local plan not just any old area of archaeological importance. Since you aren't in an AAI the reason given is invalid. The planners would argue that even if the reason given isn't valid the condition itself passes all the tests (1 to 6) due to the "nearby" Roman remains. You would have to argue the remains were too far from your site to be relevant. Ideally find an archaeologist prepared to say it's unlikely there is anything under your site. enforceable - Such conditions have been applied before. precise - What's the exact wording of the condition? Must you get the brief agreed by the planners before work starts etc? reasonable in all other respects. - Again you can try arguing it's not reasonable but if you loose on point 3 then you are likely to loose on point 6. I think Appeal Inspectors can change the wording of a condition. They don't have to choose between upholding it or deleting it. Might be worth finding out what Archeologists think of your site.