Backland Development
0800 088 6248Free to call Free plot appraisal

Sell your garden plot subject to planning in Stockport

Here is the shape of a conditional garden plot sale in Stockport. Heads of terms come first, setting out the price, the scheme we have in mind and the long-stop date. Solicitors then prepare the contract, and on exchange our interest is noted on your title. We apply to Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council, and completion follows a satisfactory permission.

Each stage has its own pace. The whole thing usually runs for months rather than weeks, mostly because of surveys and the council’s decision period. Nothing about it is rushed, and nothing is promised that depends on the council.

Get a free appraisalCheck my garden
Site plan and house elevation drawings on a kitchen table with the back garden beyond the window
Planning authority
Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council
Postcodes
SK1, SK2, SK3, SK4, SK5
Noon sun, 21 March
About 37°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.7 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Greater Manchester

Before you decide in Stockport

On a conditional sale, the contract defines what kind of permission triggers completion. In Stockport, that definition has to reflect what Stockport Metropolitan Borough 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.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Stockport: about 37 degrees on 21 March and 13 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 37°, shadow 6.7 m21 Dec, noon: sun 13°, shadow 21.4 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Stockport on 21 March sits about 37° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line (about 5 m) throws a shadow of roughly 6.7 m. In December the sun is only about 13° up and shadows stretch much further. Drawn for a garden facing north, where it matters most.

How we’d take it forward in Stockport

From first enquiry to exchange of contracts usually takes a few months, set mainly by the solicitors and any title questions. The planning stage then runs on its own timetable, depending on surveys and on Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council. We keep you updated throughout, share the drawings before submission and tell you as soon as a decision is issued.

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.
  • Once contracts are exchanged you are committed to sell if a satisfactory permission is granted.
  • The definition of satisfactory permission and the long-stop date decide how certain the sale really is; read both closely.

Your questions, answered for Stockport

What if I want to sell my Stockport house during a conditional sale?

Tell us as early as you can. The conditional contract is noted on your title, so your house buyer’s solicitor will see it. The two sales can usually be arranged together, but the order matters for the legal work and possibly for Capital Gains Tax, so take advice from a tax adviser too.

Who decides the planning application on a conditional sale in Stockport?

That is Stockport Metropolitan Borough 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.

How long might a sale subject to planning take in Stockport?

It usually runs for months, sometimes longer. Exchange often takes a few months; surveys and drawings take a few more; and the Planning Portal says most applications are decided within eight weeks of being valid, though garden schemes can take longer. The long-stop date sets the outer limit, agreed with you at the start.

Will my neighbours in Stockport be told about the application?

Yes. Stockport Metropolitan Borough 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.

Other options in Stockport

Subject to planning near Stockport

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