- Planning authority
- London Borough of Hillingdon
- Postcodes
- HA4, UB3, UB4, UB8, UB10
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 38°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.3 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Greater London
Hillingdon: light, access and policy
Light is often the deciding issue on a garden plot. At midday on 21 March the sun in Hillingdon stands about 38° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line casts a shadow of roughly 6.3 m across the ground behind it. By late December, with the sun only around 15° up, those shadows stretch much further.
That’s why the gap between your house and any new home matters so much to the London Borough of Hillingdon, and why a single-storey or dormer design sometimes succeeds where a full two storeys wouldn’t. We test the shadows before we offer, because they affect what the plot can hold.
The next steps, locally
Once you get in touch, we look up your title at HM Land Registry and check what the council’s Local Plan says about homes in gardens. Then we talk, with no obligation on your side. If the plot works, we visit, agree the boundary with you on a plan and put our offer in writing. Your solicitor and ours take it from there, and the pace suits you.
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.
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.
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.
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
- 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.
- Lender consent, old covenants or access disputes can slow a sale, and occasionally stop it.
Hillingdon: questions to ask
What if my Hillingdon 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 the London Borough of Hillingdon’s tree officer may comment on any application. We check for protected trees during the appraisal.
Will I need my own solicitor for a garden plot sale in Hillingdon?
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.
Do I pay Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) when I sell a garden plot in Hillingdon?
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.
Do you buy garden plots in Ealing, Harrow and Hounslow as well as Hillingdon?
Yes. We cover England and Wales, including the places around Hillingdon. 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.
Other options in Hillingdon
- Combine gardens with your neighbours
- Tandem and landlocked plots
- Build a new home in your garden
- Plot feasibility and design
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Garden plot option agreement

