- Planning authority
- St Helens Borough Council
- Postcodes
- WA12
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 37°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.7 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Merseyside
What the council will look at in Newton-le-Willows
Garden plots rarely sit alone. Where several long gardens run side by side, whether in Newton-le-Willows, in nearby Golborne, Ashton-in-Makerfield and Haydock or anywhere else, a scheme across two or three of them can be much stronger than one squeezed into a single plot.
Options are a common way to bring those gardens together. Each owner grants an option on their own land, and an agreement between the owners can share the outcome fairly, even though only one garden provides the access. St Helens Borough Council would then consider one well-planned scheme instead of several piecemeal ones.
From first call to decision
After your enquiry, we carry out the free appraisal and compare an option with an outright sale and a conditional contract for your plot. If you choose the option, your solicitor reviews the agreement before signing, and once it is in place we start the planning work, share the drawings before submission and keep you updated.
Free plot appraisal
We look at your title, the access, the planning history and the policies that apply, then tell you honestly whether an option, an outright sale or a conditional contract fits your plot best. It costs you nothing.
Heads of terms
We set out the option period, the price formula and minimum price, any option fee, our planning obligations and the cap on your reasonable legal fees, which we cover. Nothing is binding at this stage.
Planning work
We commission surveys, design the scheme and apply for planning, keeping you updated and showing you the drawings before submission. The council decides; if it refuses, the agreement sets out whether we revise, reapply or appeal.
Exercise or lapse
If an acceptable permission is granted, we serve notice, the price is fixed by the formula and the sale completes in the agreed time. If not, the option lapses, the entry comes off your title and the land stays yours.
Worth checking early
- Deductions agreed at the start, such as planning costs, reduce what you receive, so check them closely.
- With a market value formula, the final price isn’t known until the option is exercised.
- Options have their own Capital Gains Tax treatment, so take advice from a tax adviser before signing.
Your questions, answered for Newton-le-Willows
Do I pay Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) if you exercise an option over my Newton-le-Willows plot?
No. Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) is paid by the buyer of land, so any amount due on completion falls to us. As the seller, you may have Capital Gains Tax to consider, and options have their own rules on timing, so take advice from a tax adviser before signing.
What happens to my Newton-le-Willows plot if the option ends?
It stays yours, and the entry on your title is removed. You’re free to keep, sell or develop the land. If a permission was granted before the option ended, it generally stays with the land, though it will need to be started within its time limit.
Is an option better than selling my Newton-le-Willows garden plot outright?
Not always. An outright sale is quicker and certain once contracts are exchanged. An option suits plots where planning is uncertain or more land is needed, because it gives us time without forcing a guess at the price. Our free appraisal compares the routes for your plot.
Do I still own my garden in Newton-le-Willows during an option?
Yes. An option is a right to buy, not a sale, so the land stays yours until we exercise the option and the sale completes. You carry on using the garden, and the option is noted on your title so the plot can’t be sold elsewhere while it runs.
Other options in Newton-le-Willows
- Bungalows on large plots
- Planning permission for a garden plot
- Large rear gardens
- Planning promotion for your garden plot
- Sell subject to planning
- Tandem and landlocked plots