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Sell your garden plot subject to planning in Romsey

Here is the shape of a conditional garden plot sale in Romsey. 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 Test Valley 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.

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Site plan and house elevation drawings on a kitchen table with the back garden beyond the window
Planning authority
Test Valley Borough Council
Postcodes
SO51
Noon sun, 21 March
About 39°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.2 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Hampshire

The local picture in Romsey

Test Valley Borough Council judges every application against the council’s Local Plan, and a conditional contract is only as good as the planning case behind it. So before agreeing terms on a garden in Romsey, we read the policies on homes in gardens, any guidance on parking and privacy distances, and the council’s recent decisions on similar plots. That tells us what kind of scheme stands the best chance and how long the long-stop date ought to be. If the policies point firmly against a new home, we won’t suggest a conditional sale at all.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Romsey: about 39 degrees on 21 March and 16 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 39°, shadow 6.2 m21 Dec, noon: sun 16°, shadow 17.9 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Romsey on 21 March sits about 39° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line (about 5 m) throws a shadow of roughly 6.2 m. In December the sun is only about 16° up and shadows stretch much further. Drawn for a garden facing north, where it matters most.

The next steps, locally

After you get in touch about a garden in Romsey, we run the free appraisal and explain which route we would recommend. If it is a sale subject to planning, we draft heads of terms covering the price, the scheme, the long-stop date and costs. Once your solicitor is happy and contracts are exchanged, we begin the planning work.

  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. 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.

  3. Planning application

    We commission the surveys, prepare the drawings, seek pre-application advice where useful and submit the application, normally at our cost. You see the plans before they go in, and the council makes the decision.

  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

  • Once contracts are exchanged you are committed to sell if a satisfactory permission is granted.
  • You wait for a planning decision, and possibly an appeal, before you are paid.
  • Capital Gains Tax timing on a conditional sale can differ from an ordinary sale; take advice from a tax adviser.

Your questions, answered for Romsey

Is a sale subject to planning in Romsey better than an option?

It depends on the plot. A conditional sale binds both sides from exchange and suits a single plot with a clear scheme. An option gives us a right to buy rather than an obligation, and suits plots where the outcome is less certain or the timescale is longer. We’ll recommend one after the appraisal.

Do I keep my garden in Romsey if planning is refused?

Yes. Nothing is transferred until a satisfactory permission is granted, so a refusal leaves the land in your ownership. Depending on the contract, we may revise the scheme and reapply, or appeal, before the long-stop date. If that doesn’t succeed, the contract ends and our notice comes off your title.

What if I want to sell my Romsey 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 Romsey?

That is Test Valley 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.

Other options in Romsey

Subject to planning near Romsey

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