Planning hurdle due to housing density dwelling regs - advice pls

[Bekahbell]

My Husband and I are currently purchasing a plot of land with outline PP for a terrace of 3 cottages in Cumbria. I naively thought changing to a single dwelling for the full PP would be no problem however following our pre-planning enquiry it seems this isnt the case because of the housing density dwelling policy in Cumbria.

They say its fine for us to build the terrace of three and if we choose to sell or rent one or 2 thats fine. We could knock two together under a seperate application too if we want to but a single dwelling on the site isnt permitted.

We did think we could sell one and then we'd be able to fund the rest of the build with less mortgage but i assume this would incur Capital Gains tax? 

Its an amazing site, elevated and looking down onto a gorgeous village with a river and sheep roaming freely and sites like this are very few and far between. It comes with a 2.5 acre field behind it which is why we wanted it in the first place.

We feel disappointed but realise that we are going to have similar problems with other sizeable plots due to the policy.

Has anyone got experience of getting around the housing density dwelling thing or making it work in a situation like this.

Thanks

 

[PeterW]

So..... build three, knock 2 into 1 and let the other as a holiday cottage ..??

[Jeremy Harris]

We have a similar minimum housing density here, and I've not seen anyone manage to change things to allow a smaller number of houses built on a plot, only the other way around, where developers often seem to get PP for the smaller number of houses then put in another application to increase the density, on the basis that the principle of development has already been approved.

 

One option may be to see if the planner would consider a voluntary Section 106 contribution, to "buy off" the reduction in density.  Depending on how they are doing with respect to their 5 year allocation, they may be amenable to a contribution.  They won't suggest this, so it's something you'd have to raise, and I would take advice from a good planning consultant as to whether it's likely to succeed before doing anything.

[Triassic]

Build the terrace and move your most elderly relatives into the older two, then over time knock through.

[Ferdinand]

Welcome.

 

Consider carefully whether to make the purchase conditional on you finding a way ahead.

 

However, a resale sounds feasible perhaps with a value increase, but you could get clumped by second home 3% Stamp Duty in the meantime for an expensive round trip. You will need to check where you are with Stamp Duty and what happens if you buy land and resell without building.

 

You could of course reapply for what you want then Appeal the Refusal. Would need a good Planning Consultant to tell you whether that might work and do it.

 

F

Edited April 7, 2017 by Ferdinand

[bassanclan]

if the requirement is that that given plot of land should support three houses, then design a house that only sits on a third of the land.

in the application you have to say what area of land you are seeking permission for and if you own any neighbouring land, so you could draw the line around around 1/3 of the plot, in your application describe the 2/3 land as "future development"

The downside would be that the 2/3 would not be within your residential curtilage, but it depends how you would need to use the land.

[Simplysimon]

welcome,

if you build the first, move in, build another, then, as it's your only house, sell it and move into the second. that way there will be no tax to pay.

[Jeremy Harris]

10 hours ago, Simplysimon said:

welcome,

if you build the first, move in, build another, then, as it's your only house, sell it and move into the second. that way there will be no tax to pay.

 

That opens up another, rather devious, possibility.  As long as development has commenced, which would be getting the pre-commencement conditions signed off plus some ground works, as agreed with the planners, then there is no time limit, as far as I know, for completion.  In theory, you could build one, or two, of the houses and never get around to building the last one, I think.  I'm not at all sure what, if anything, the planners could do about it.

[Ferdinand]

^ This is not usually something to mention casually in a conversation with your planning officer , or ideally to discuss when you are talking about a specific identified address.

 

And there may be regulatory dots and tittles to address when you sell it, if you do.

 

Ferdinand

Edited April 8, 2017 by Ferdinand

[Temp]

Read the planning policy document carefully and measure the plot carefully.  Do the maths to figure out what the density rules mean. 

 

On ‎4‎/‎7‎/‎2017 at 09:14, Bekahbell said:

We did think we could sell one and then we'd be able to fund the rest of the build with less mortgage but i assume this would incur Capital Gains tax? 

 

Only on any gain in value not the whole value of the plot. Say the plot costs £300K and you sell off 1/3rd of it for £100K. You could argue there was no capital gain. You also have your CGT allowance of £11,300 each.

 

Figure out if the density policy would allow two detached houses - say one on 2/3rds of the land and one on 1/3rd of the land?

 

Another option might be to apply for planning for two semi detached and one detached house that look the same. eg the two semis are the same size and shape as the one detached house, just the interior is different.

 

A lot depends on the size of the plot.

 

 

 

Edited April 8, 2017 by Temp