Backland Development
0800 088 6248Free to call Free plot appraisal

Sell part of your garden in Braintree

Turning part of a Braintree garden into money doesn’t have to mean selling up. A plot sale transfers only the land you choose, leaves your house on its existing title with a new boundary, and gives the plot a title of its own at HM Land Registry. If the house is mortgaged, your lender signs off the release.

From there, any planning application is ours to make, and the risk of refusal is ours to carry. You’d see the plans like any neighbour and could comment on them. If you’d prefer to sell only once permission is granted, our sale subject to planning works that way instead.

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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
Braintree District Council
Postcodes
CM7, CM77
Noon sun, 21 March
About 38°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.4 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Essex

Before you decide in Braintree

On many garden plots, access matters more than size. If a new home behind yours would be reached along a strip beside the house, Braintree District Council will look at how wide it is, how far drivers can see where it meets the road, and how much noise and headlight glare from passing cars would reach you and the neighbours.

Building regulations add their own test, because 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). Whether your garden is in CM7 and CM77 or just beyond, we measure the access early, since it shapes the offer more than almost anything else.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Braintree: about 38 degrees on 21 March and 15 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 38°, shadow 6.4 m21 Dec, noon: sun 15°, shadow 19.1 mExistingNew home
This section is worked out for the latitude of Braintree: around 38° of sun at midday in late March and about 15° 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.

From first call to decision

Here is what happens if you contact us about a garden in Braintree. We ask a few questions about the house, the garden and any mortgage. We run the desk checks and call back with a view, good or bad. If it’s good, we visit and make a written offer to buy the plot outright. If you accept, heads of terms set out the price, the boundary and who pays what before solicitors start.

  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. Exchange and completion

    Once both sides are satisfied, contracts are exchanged and a completion date is fixed. On completion the money passes through the solicitors and HM Land Registry registers the plot under a new title of its own.

  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.
  • Your house keeps a smaller garden, which some future buyers will welcome and others won’t.
  • A new home will be built close to yours, with building work and deliveries for a period.

Your questions, answered for Braintree

How much is a garden plot in Braintree worth?

It depends on location, size, access and planning, so there’s no honest figure without looking at the plot itself. A garden with good access and room for a well-spaced home is a stronger plot than one with a narrow, shared or doubtful route in. Our free appraisal is the way to find out, and any offer comes in writing.

Do I pay Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) when I sell a garden plot in Braintree?

No. Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) falls on the buyer of land, so on a sale to us any amount due is ours to pay. What may affect you as the seller is Capital Gains Tax, depending on your circumstances and whether you still live in the house. Take advice from a tax adviser before you agree a deal.

Who decides whether a new home can be built in a Braintree garden?

Braintree District Council decides, as the local planning authority, using the council’s Local Plan and the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). Neighbours and consultees can comment, and the council weighs their points against planning policy. Nobody, including us, can promise the outcome, which is why an outright sale without planning is priced for that uncertainty.

What if my Braintree garden has a protected tree?

A tree covered by a Tree Preservation Order, or standing in a conservation area, needs consent or notice before work. That doesn’t automatically stop a sale. Often the new home is placed to avoid the roots and canopy, and Braintree District Council’s tree officer may comment on any application. We check for protected trees during the appraisal.

Other options in Braintree

Sell your garden plot near Braintree

Find out what your garden could become

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

Get my free appraisal 0800 088 6248