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Square Feet

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  1. Square Feet

    Due Dil

    By Square Feet,


    General
    I've spent the last few days carrying out some desktop due diligence on the plot I want to buy. I thought I would detail it here in case it helps anyone else on their plot buying journey in Scotland.
     
    I've accessed as much information as I possibly can about the plot from the following sources. Most were free, but two were paid. In total I have spent £9.60 on this. 
     
    ScotLIS - Scotland's land registry. You can search the index for free and may glean some information, but for to access the title sheet, deeds and owner info you need to pay £3.60 (£3 plus VAT). The download to your email is instant.  WhoOwnsScotland.  This is a privately run website that allows you to map search for the details of significant landowners.  I used it in addition to the above as the plot I am interested in is in the countryside and surrounded by farmland.  It costs £6 for one month.  (I happen to have an annual subscription for this already which works out at £1 a month, but if you just want it for one thing it's £6). It doesn't show small plots below a certain size which is why I needed the land registry info too. Council planning portal. Free. From this I have been able to view the existing (lapsed planning), and read all the documents, view plans etc. I did the same for earlier planning applications on the same plot and also neighbouring houses.  There's a vast amount of information available. I now have a pretty good idea of what kind of house will be allowed and what won't and also a steer on the council's likely response to road access, archaeology, environmental, services etc. I also found the owner's email address which they had neglected to redact.  National Library of Scotland. Free. I used their 'side by side' feature to view historical maps alongside the existing google aerial view. This allowed me to compare the 1800's map with the present day to get some insight as to any old buildings that might be on the site. Google Earth. Free. I used the Historical Imagery button to enable me to go back through earlier satellite images of the plot. This allowed me to see if any modern buildings had been on the site since Google Earth started recording imagery in 2009. Companies House. Free. The plot is owned by a limited company so I was able to find the owner's details including age and address. This allowed me to get a better idea of who is selling the plot and why.  I could also see what value had been given to the plot in the company's balance sheet.   
    I now feel as though I have a much better feel for the plot and the reasons why it hasn't sold so far. I still haven't heard back from the agents but I will try again with the benefit of feeling better informed to begin negotiations in order to make an offer subject to planning. Of all I've read today, the only thing that concerns me is some of the clauses in the deeds, which I can't interpret without the help of my lawyer anyway. I won't bother them though until I have an informal price agreed with the agents as there's no point getting carried away if the seller won't budge on the price. There were some things that I learned today that I hope will give me leverage though.
     
    Please don't tell me that I have to be careful regarding a plot that doesn't have planning - I know this already.  I'm not about to throw a large wedge of cash away on a plot that can't be built on so of course I will make sure I am completely covered and have plenty of legally binding get-out clauses before I formally offer on it. 
     
    If I missed a useful source then please feel free to add it to the comments below.
  2. Square Feet

    In the beginning.....

    By Square Feet,


    General
    Hey everyone.  I've been a forum member for a number of years as a renovator of properties in Scotland.  I joined with the goal of one day building my own house but as happens to many, this has been postponed and pushed back many times.  In the interim I have really enjoyed reading your blogs and posts and I have learned an enormous amount about self-building.  I am now at the point where my ducks are sufficiently in a row to embark upon my own self-build, which is scary but very exciting. I've found a plot I want to buy, which has brought things into sharper focus. As ever, I have a million questions and decisions to make to ensure I get this right.
     
    I'm aware that some of this could be questions in various different forums ie design, planning etc but I thought it would be easier to start this blog from the very beginning in case it helps others by keeping everything in one place.  So here we go.....
     
    The house I want to build
     
    The house I want to build is c.150sqm, two storey, passivhaus standard with enough eco features so that it is as off-grid as is practicable.
     
    I currently live in a top-floor flat that has been extended into the attic - a 'double upper'.  It feels like a house when inside, but lacks the amenities such as driveway parking for my EV, private garden etc that a house would bring. It's also in a town and I want to live in the countryside. My flat is 150sqm in size and is costly to run.  It feels like a good size, albeit with a rubbish layout.  So I'd like my new house to be similar in size but with a better layout and good insulation, eco heating etc.  Downstairs would be the usual - kitchen, dining, living rooms plus a small office/spare bedroom with downstairs shower room for guests or future proofing. Upstairs would be two/three bedrooms and the main bathroom. 
     
    I'd like a separate garage/workshop.  This would perform a lot of different functions and hopefully keep a lot of the mess of my work and hobbies out of the house as this is a problem currently in the flat.
     
    The plan
     
    The 'back of an envelope' plan is to buy the plot, move onto it in a touring caravan and first build the garage/workshop.  This would be fitted with solar panels and a battery, inverter etc to generate electricity for the build and to charge my electric van.  It would also house a small basic kitchen, lunch room, toilet and shower room which would operate as the welfare facilities for the build, plus a small site office for delivery notes, plans on the wall, etc.  If allowed I would sleep in an attic floor above this, but if not then I would continue sleeping in the caravan.  If needs be I would remove the welfare facilities after the build in order to not create a habitable building out of the garage.  I would then build the house while living on site, with the main goal to get it wind and water-tight as quickly as possible.  If funds have run out by that stage then I will have to earn some more to finish the inside but it's absolutely imperative that I can get a sealed house before that happens.
     
    The house
     
    The house will be around 120-150sqm, 3/4 bedroom, near-passive house. It will be stick-built on site. I would like it to be 150sqm but might only be able to afford to build a 120sqm house.  I would like a two storey house, but planning might only allow a 1.5 storey to fit the local vernacular. I like wooden finishes but I have heard what has been said in here re timber cladding and insurance etc so I am aware that some of it will need probably need to be render externally. 
     
    The plot
     
    I am going to be deliberately coy about the plot at this stage as I haven't yet signed on the dotted line for it and don't want someone stealing it out from under me.  Plots don't come on the market very often so I have been shopping for one for years. These were my criteria:
     
    In a specific Scottish rural area which I love and know well (I work there and have lived there in the past). South facing for passive solar gain and solar generation, also a sunny garden. Rural outlook Space for a separate workshop/garage building Space to park my EV and charge it at home I also had the idea that I wanted to find a plot with planning consent for more than one house so that I could build a second one to sell on to help pay for the house I keep and live in.  This may change however as I know there's complications with this!  
    I have now found a plot that ticks all these boxes. It has planning for two 4 bed detached houses with a separate detached garage building shared between them. The planning lapsed over 10 years ago. It is south-facing, in the area I want to be and has an outlook to die for. 
    I can afford it now if I just buy one plot (the sellers are willing to split) or I can buy both plots together if I sell my flat quickly or get creative with finances.
     
    The budget
     
    After buying the plot I should have around £1,500 per sqm for the build. This includes the workshop. I'm very aware that this isn't a great deal, which is why I have opted for stick-built on site for the construction method.  The plan is to do as much of this as I can myself, with the help of unskilled labourers, plus skilled trades only where absolutely needed ie spark, plastering, heating engineer etc. I have an idea of how I want to do this, but I haven't seen anyone else do it yet!  So I am not sure if it's a brilliant idea or a really stupid one   As I said above - the main focus is to get to wind-and-watertight within budget and I can figure out the rest from there. I've waited over 20 years for the chance to do this so if I have to wait an additional couple of years in order to get it finished inside it won't be too much of a hardship.
     
    The first issue to make a decision on:
     
    Do I buy both plots or just one?  My finances are tight, so it would be better for me to buy just one, but buying two ensures I can control who my neighbours are to some extent and ensure I get the best bit of the land.  I could build the first house and sell it and that would give me enough money to build the second one for me to keep and live in with less need for compromise. I would also have the opportunity to learn a lot by building the first house and could put these lessons into practice in the second (keeper) house.   All of which sounds good, but it means a lot longer to wait until I am living in my own house.  I might be completely done-in by the time I've built one house and not want to go ahead and build another.  There may be CGT, VAT implications etc which would make things unworkable. There's no CIL in Scotland but my area does have a railway contribution that developers need to pay. If I have to live in the first house for 3 years before I can sell it this would stretch the whole scheme a bit too far into my old age (I'm 55) and would impact my ability to cope with build 2.
     
    I'd love to hear your thoughts.
     
     
     
     
     
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