- Planning authority
- Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council
- Postcodes
- L37
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 36°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.8 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Merseyside
The local picture in Formby
On many backland plots, access matters more than size. A long garden in Formby may have no route to the road wide enough for cars, bins and emergency vehicles, and Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council will look closely at the effect of a new drive on the homes either side of it.
For homes in L37 we look at access first: the width beside the house, visibility at the pavement, and whether a strip of land owned by someone else sits in the way. If access only works by joining with a neighbour, we’ll say so, and promoting the combined site may be the better route.
What happens next in Formby
From first call to completion, a promotion in Formby runs in clear stages: free appraisal, heads of terms, agreement, planning application, marketing and sale. You decide at the points that matter most, signing the agreement, setting the minimum price and approving the buyer. Timing depends on the council’s workload, any extra reports it asks for and the buyer’s solicitors, so we give a realistic range rather than a promise.
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.
Heads of terms
We set out the deal in writing: the term, how our fee works, the cap on planning costs we can recover, the minimum price, the marketing approach and the cap on your reasonable legal fees that we cover.
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.
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
- The plot’s price isn’t known until it’s marketed with permission; it depends on location, size, access and the permission itself.
- Planning may be refused. You keep your land and owe nothing for planning, but the months spent can’t be given back.
- Promotion takes longer than a straight sale: planning, then marketing, then completion, and each stage can run on.
Formby: questions to ask
What happens if planning is refused for my garden in Formby?
You keep your land and owe nothing for planning, because our costs are only recovered from a sale with planning. Within the term we may revise the scheme and reapply, or appeal if the grounds are strong. If there’s no realistic route to permission, the agreement ends.
How long does planning promotion take for a garden in Formby?
It usually takes longer than a straight sale. Design and surveys often take a few months, then Sefton Metropolitan Borough 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.
Is planning promotion available for a single garden in Formby?
Yes, if the plot is suitable, though promotion is more usual on larger sites. On one modest garden, the fixed costs of planning, legal work and marketing take a bigger share of the sale. After the free appraisal we’ll tell you whether promotion, a sale subject to planning or an option suits your garden best.
Does a mortgage on my Formby home stop a planning promotion?
No, but your lender has to be involved. The lender’s charge covers the garden, so it must agree to release the plot before it’s sold, and some lenders want to approve the promotion agreement too. We raise this at the start so it doesn’t delay a sale later.
Other options in Formby
- Large rear gardens
- Garage courts and yards
- Planning permission for a garden plot
- Sell subject to planning
- Corner and side plots
- Garden plot option agreement