- Planning authority
- Trafford Council
- Postcodes
- M33
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 37°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.7 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Greater Manchester
What the council will look at in Sale
On a conditional sale, the contract defines what kind of permission triggers completion. In Sale, that definition has to reflect what Trafford Council is likely to ask for: access standards, parking, perhaps biodiversity net gain rules, and possibly a contribution or the Community Infrastructure Levy if the council charges it.
Getting this right protects both sides. Set too tightly, a sound permission might not count; too loosely, you could be held to a sale on terms nobody expected. We draft it around the council’s Local Plan and explain every limb of it before you sign.
From first call to decision
Here is what to expect in Sale. First a phone call, then a desk check of the title and the council’s Local Plan, then a visit if the plot looks promising. If we both want to go ahead, heads of terms set out what we would agree, without obligation, before solicitors draft the conditional contract. The appraisal costs nothing.
Free plot appraisal
We check your title, access, planning history and local policy from our desk, then talk it through with you. If a new home looks realistic, we visit the garden and tell you which route we think suits it best.
Heads of terms
We set out the price or price formula, what counts as satisfactory permission, the long-stop date, how any planning costs are treated and who pays which fees. You see all of it before instructing a solicitor.
Exchange of conditional contracts
Both solicitors agree the contract and the plan of the plot. On exchange, both sides are bound, subject to the planning condition, and our contract is noted on your title so the plot can’t be sold elsewhere.
Completion, or you keep your land
Once a satisfactory permission is granted and any challenge period has passed, the sale completes within the agreed time and the plot gets its own title. If permission is refused and the contract ends, the land stays yours.
Worth checking early
- You wait for a planning decision, and possibly an appeal, before you are paid.
- The plot can’t be sold to anyone else while the contract runs, even if another offer comes along.
- The definition of satisfactory permission and the long-stop date decide how certain the sale really is; read both closely.
Sale: questions to ask
Will my neighbours in Sale be told about the application?
Yes. Trafford Council publicises applications through letters to neighbours, a site notice, or both, depending on its practice. Neighbours can comment, and the council weighs their views against planning policy. You can choose whether to speak to adjoining owners before the application goes in, and we’ll fit in with what you prefer.
Who decides the planning application on a conditional sale in Sale?
That is Trafford Council’s decision as the local planning authority, made under the council’s Local Plan and the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). We prepare the application, submit it and answer the council’s questions, but the outcome isn’t ours to control. That’s why the contract has a long-stop date and says what happens if permission is refused.
Do I pay for the planning application on my Sale garden plot?
We normally fund the planning application, including surveys and drawings. Any recovery of those costs is agreed in heads of terms before you sign, for example as a deduction from the price at completion. You see the full position before instructing a solicitor, so there are no surprises later.
Can I still use my garden in Sale while the contract runs?
Yes. The plot stays yours until completion, so you carry on using it as garden. The contract will ask you not to build on it, fell trees or grant new rights over it without agreement, and to allow surveyors in from time to time, by arrangement. Your solicitor will point out anything specific.
Other options in Sale
- Garage courts and yards
- Bungalows on large plots
- Combine gardens with your neighbours
- Garden plot option agreement
- Corner and side plots
- Planning promotion for your garden plot