Backland Development
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Sell your garden plot subject to planning in Hoddesdon

If your Hoddesdon garden could hold a new home but you’d rather not sell it before the planning question is answered, a conditional contract is worth a look. We agree a fixed price, or a formula linked to what the council approves, and exchange contracts. Then we design the scheme, carry out the surveys and apply.

You keep living in your house and using the garden throughout, and you see the drawings before they go to Broxbourne Borough Council. If a satisfactory permission arrives within the agreed time, the sale completes and the plot gets its own title. If not, nothing has been transferred.

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Site plan and house elevation drawings on a kitchen table with the back garden beyond the window
Planning authority
Broxbourne Borough Council
Postcodes
EN10, EN11
Noon sun, 21 March
About 38°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.3 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Hertfordshire

What the council will look at in Hoddesdon

Neighbours in EN10 and EN11 will receive notice of any application on your plot, and some will comment. Broxbourne Borough Council weighs those comments against planning policy rather than counting them, but a scheme that answers obvious worries about privacy, light and traffic before they are raised usually fares better.

Because you will still be living next door, we agree with you how and when neighbours hear about the plans. Some sellers prefer to speak to adjoining owners themselves before the application goes in; others leave it to the formal notice.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Hoddesdon: about 38 degrees on 21 March and 15 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 38°, shadow 6.3 m21 Dec, noon: sun 15°, shadow 18.9 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Hoddesdon on 21 March sits about 38° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line (about 5 m) throws a shadow of roughly 6.3 m. In December the sun is only about 15° up and shadows stretch much further. Drawn for a garden facing north, where it matters most.

The next steps, locally

Getting started takes one message: your address and a rough sketch or description of the land you have in mind. From that we pull the title, look at the planning background and ring you with our view. If a conditional sale looks sensible, we come out to see the garden. Heads of terms follow, and your solicitor reviews them before anything is signed.

  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. 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.

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.
  • The definition of satisfactory permission and the long-stop date decide how certain the sale really is; read both closely.

Questions about garden plots in Hoddesdon

Will my neighbours in Hoddesdon be told about the application?

Yes. Broxbourne 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.

Do I pay for the planning application on my Hoddesdon 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.

Do I keep my garden in Hoddesdon 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.

Is a sale subject to planning in Hoddesdon 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.

Other options in Hoddesdon

Subject to planning near Hoddesdon

Find out what your garden could become

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