Backland Development
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Sell part of your garden in Ely

Some gardens in Ely are long enough to hold a second home behind the first, and some side gardens are wide enough to hold one beside it. Either can be sold on its own while you stay put. The sale doesn’t need planning permission in place, and you don’t need to clear, fence or build anything first.

What it does need is a clear route in. A shared or new drive has to work for cars, deliveries and bin collections, and the new home will need fire engine access (or other measures, often sprinklers, agreed with building control and the fire service where a fire engine can’t get close enough). If the only way in crosses land you don’t own, a ransom strip can change the deal entirely, so we check who owns the access before anything else.

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Long back garden with a string line and marker pegs across the lawn showing where a plot could be split off
Planning authority
East Cambridgeshire District Council
Postcodes
CB7
Noon sun, 21 March
About 38°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.5 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Cambridgeshire

What shapes a plot in Ely

East Cambridgeshire District Council sets out its approach to new homes in the council’s Local Plan, and many councils add supplementary guidance on garden development, privacy distances and parking. Those documents, rather than rules of thumb, are what an application for a plot in Ely would be tested against. Before we offer on a garden, we read the relevant policies, look at recent decisions on similar plots nearby and check whether the site falls in a conservation area or flood zone. If the policies point against a new home, we say so rather than offering a price we can’t stand behind.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Ely: about 38 degrees on 21 March and 14 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 38°, shadow 6.5 m21 Dec, noon: sun 14°, shadow 19.8 mExistingNew home
This section is worked out for the latitude of Ely: around 38° of sun at midday in late March and about 14° 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.

The next steps, locally

From first call to written offer usually takes a few weeks, depending mainly on how quickly the title checks and site visit can be arranged. After that, the legal work for a plot sale in Ely often runs for a few months, driven by the lender’s consent and any covenant or access questions. The appraisal costs you nothing, and you can stop at any point before exchange.

  1. Free plot appraisal

    Tell us about your garden. We check the title plan, access, local policy and planning history from our desk, then talk it through with you. If it looks viable, we arrange a site visit, with no cost and no obligation.

  2. Written offer and heads of terms

    We put our offer in writing, subject to survey, title and contract. Heads of terms then record the plot boundary, the price, access rights, who pays which costs and the rough timetable for each stage.

  3. Solicitors and lender

    Your solicitor prepares the transfer of part and asks your mortgage lender to release the plot. Ours checks the title, covenants, rights of way and searches, while surveys of trees, ground and drainage run alongside.

  4. After the sale

    Any boundary fence or access works agreed in the transfer are carried out as set out. If the plot still needs planning, we apply as the new owner, and you can see and comment on the plans like any other neighbour.

Worth checking early

  • Selling the plot after you have sold or moved out of the house can change the tax position; take advice from a tax adviser.
  • Lender consent, old covenants or access disputes can slow a sale, and occasionally stop it.
  • A sale without planning is priced for the planning risk we take on, so it usually pays less than the same plot with permission.

Ely: questions to ask

Do you buy garden plots in Mildenhall, March and St Ives as well as Ely?

Yes. We cover England and Wales, including the places around Ely. The process is the same wherever your garden is, although planning policies depend on the council for your address, so our desk check always starts by finding out which one that is.

Can I sell the plot and keep living in my Ely house?

Yes, that’s the whole point of a plot sale. You keep the house and the rest of the garden, and the boundary is drawn where you agree. The transfer can include rights and covenants that protect your home, such as who builds the new fence and limits on windows facing your property.

How long does selling a garden plot in Ely take?

The legal work usually runs for a few months, much like an ordinary house sale. What drives it is the lender’s consent to release the plot, any covenant or access issue on the title, and how quickly both solicitors work. Selling without planning means there’s no council stage to wait for before completion.

Will I need my own solicitor for a garden plot sale in Ely?

Yes. You need a solicitor or licensed conveyancer acting for you on the transfer of part, separate from ours. Choose one who handles property sales and, ideally, development land. Who pays their fees is agreed in heads of terms before you instruct them.

Other options in Ely

Sell your garden plot near Ely

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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