Backland Development
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Planning promotion for garden plots in Torquay

Planning promotion isn’t the right answer for every garden in Torquay, and we’d rather say so at the outset than after months of work. It is more usual on larger sites, because part of the cost of surveys, legal work and marketing is fixed whether the plot takes one home or several.

Where it fits, the deal is simple to describe. We fund the application, the plot is sold with permission, and we’re paid from the sale, after recovering what we spent on planning up to the agreed limit. You pay nothing at the start. Where it doesn’t fit, we’ll explain the other routes, from an outright sale to a joint venture, and leave the choice with you.

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White architectural model of a house at the front of a plot with two new homes at the end of the garden
Planning authority
Torbay Council
Postcodes
TQ1, TQ2
Noon sun, 21 March
About 40°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.1 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Devon

The local picture in Torquay

Shadow and distance are often why a combined site in Torquay works better than a single garden. With the sun at about 40° at noon in late March, the shadow from a 5 m eaves line reaches roughly 6.1 m, so a home squeezed into one narrow garden can end up too close to the houses it backs onto.

Joining gardens with neighbours lets new homes sit towards the middle of a wider site, away from existing windows, with one shared access. Promotion suits that kind of scheme, because planning costs are spread across more land and the site is sold as one well-planned whole. Torbay Council still makes the decision.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Torquay: about 40 degrees on 21 March and 16 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 40°, shadow 6.1 m21 Dec, noon: sun 16°, shadow 17.3 mExistingNew home
This section is worked out for the latitude of Torquay: around 40° of sun at midday in late March and about 16° at midwinter. It shows why the gap between your house and a new home behind it is about light as well as privacy. Garden assumed to face north.

What happens next in Torquay

Here’s what happens after you contact us about a garden in Torquay. We start with a free desktop appraisal of your title plan, access and the policies in the council’s Local Plan, then talk it through with you. If it looks viable, we visit. If promotion fits, we send heads of terms, and your solicitor reviews them, with reasonable legal fees covered up to an agreed cap, before anything is signed.

  1. Free plot appraisal

    We check your title plan, access, the surrounding gardens and the policies in the council’s Local Plan as a desktop exercise, then talk it through with you. If it looks viable, we visit. No cost and no obligation.

  2. Agreement signed

    Your solicitor and ours turn the heads of terms into a promotion agreement. It’s usually protected by an entry on your title, and if your house is mortgaged, your lender is asked to consent early.

  3. We apply for planning

    We commission the surveys and drawings, take pre-application advice where it helps, submit the application and deal with the council’s questions. You pay nothing at this stage, and the decision is the council’s.

  4. Completion and payout

    On completion, sale costs, our capped planning costs and our fee come out of the proceeds in the order the agreement sets. The balance is paid to you through your solicitor.

Worth checking early

  • Promotion takes longer than a straight sale: planning, then marketing, then completion, and each stage can run on.
  • Planning may be refused. You keep your land and owe nothing for planning, but the months spent can’t be given back.
  • You’ll live next to whatever is built, so the layout, windows and new boundary affect your house too.

Torquay: questions to ask

Can neighbours in Torquay combine gardens for a planning promotion?

Yes, and promotion often works better that way. Adjoining gardens can share one access and allow a better layout. Each owner keeps their house, signs an agreement setting out how proceeds are shared, and takes advice from their own solicitor. We can appraise the combined land as one site first.

Can you look at my garden in Torquay before I commit to anything?

Yes. The plot appraisal is free and carries no obligation. We start with a desktop check of your title, access and the planning policies that apply, then talk it through with you. If the plot looks viable, we arrange a site visit before any heads of terms are drafted.

How long does planning promotion take for a garden in Torquay?

It usually takes longer than a straight sale. Design and surveys often take a few months, then Torbay Council needs time to decide, and marketing and conveyancing follow. The council’s workload, extra reports and any appeal drive the timing, so we give a realistic range after the appraisal.

How is a promoted garden plot in Torquay sold?

After permission, an agent agreed with you markets the plot to builders, developers and self-builders. You see the offers and approve the buyer. The plot can’t be sold below the agreed minimum price without your written consent, and any offer from us has to stand up against the open market.

Other options in Torquay

Planning promotion near Torquay

Find out what your garden could become

Free garden plot appraisal. No cost, no obligation, and a straight answer if it won’t work.

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