- Planning authority
- Sunderland City Council
- Postcodes
- SR1, SR2, SR3, SR4, SR5
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 35°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 7.1 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Tyne and Wear
Sunderland: light, access and policy
Shadow and distance are often why a combined site in Sunderland works better than a single garden. With the sun at about 35° at noon in late March, the shadow from a 5 m eaves line reaches roughly 7.1 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. Sunderland City Council still makes the decision.
How we’d take it forward in Sunderland
From first call to completion, a promotion in Sunderland 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
- 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.
- The plot’s price isn’t known until it’s marketed with permission; it depends on location, size, access and the permission itself.
Sunderland: questions to ask
Does a mortgage on my Sunderland 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.
Is planning promotion available for a single garden in Sunderland?
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.
How long does planning promotion take for a garden in Sunderland?
It usually takes longer than a straight sale. Design and surveys often take a few months, then Sunderland City 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.
Can you look at my garden in Sunderland 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.
Other options in Sunderland
- Build a new home in your garden
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Sell part of your garden
- Tandem and landlocked plots
- Build a home for family in your garden
- Planning permission for a garden plot