- Planning authority
- Tunbridge Wells Borough Council
- Postcodes
- TN1, TN2, TN4
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 39°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.2 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Kent
Before you decide in Tunbridge Wells
Tunbridge Wells Borough 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 Tunbridge Wells 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.
How we’d take it forward in Tunbridge Wells
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.
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.
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.
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.
- A new home will be built close to yours, with building work and deliveries for a period.
- A sale without planning is priced for the planning risk we take on, so it usually pays less than the same plot with permission.
Tunbridge Wells: questions to ask
Do you buy garden plots in Tonbridge, Crowborough and Sevenoaks as well as Tunbridge Wells?
Yes. We cover England and Wales, including the places around Tunbridge Wells. 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.
How much is a garden plot in Tunbridge Wells 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.
What if my Tunbridge Wells 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 Tunbridge Wells Borough Council’s tree officer may comment on any application. We check for protected trees during the appraisal.
Can I sell the plot and keep living in my Tunbridge Wells 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.
Other options in Tunbridge Wells
- Build a home for family in your garden
- Bungalows on large plots
- Tandem and landlocked plots
- Planning permission for a garden plot
- Large rear gardens
- Garden plot option agreement

