- Planning authority
- Tandridge District Council
- Postcodes
- CR3
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 39°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.2 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Surrey
The local picture in Caterham
Light can decide the size of the scheme an option leads to. Take the figures for Caterham: a midday sun of about 39° in late March means a wall rising 5 m to the eaves shades roughly 6.2 m of ground behind it, and with the December sun near 15°, that shade grows considerably.
Those figures help explain why a plot that could take two homes in one layout might take only one in another. Under a price formula, that difference flows through to the price, which is one reason options suit plots where the outcome is open.
How we’d take it forward in Caterham
To explore an option on your Caterham garden, send us your address and a few details. We check the title, access and planning background, then call you with an honest view. If an option looks right, heads of terms set out the period, the price formula, the minimum price and the cap on your legal fees, which we cover.
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.
Sign the option
Your solicitor and ours agree the option agreement and the plan of the plot. Once it is signed, the option is noted on your title, and you carry on living in your house and using the garden as normal.
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.
Worth checking early
- 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 plot is tied up for the option period and can’t be sold to anyone else meanwhile.
Caterham: questions to ask
How long would an option on my Caterham garden last?
The period is agreed at the start and should match the planning task: long enough for surveys, an application and, where sensible, a revised scheme or appeal, but no longer. On a single garden it is usually much shorter than on farmland. Any extension should be tied to specific events.
What happens to my Caterham 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.
Do I still own my garden in Caterham 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.
Do I pay Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) if you exercise an option over my Caterham 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.
Other options in Caterham
- Tandem and landlocked plots
- Planning promotion for your garden plot
- Build a home for family in your garden
- Build a new home in your garden
- Combine gardens with your neighbours
- Bungalows on large plots