Backland Development
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Sell your garden plot subject to planning in Swanscombe

Planning is the biggest unknown on any garden plot in Swanscombe, and a conditional contract is a way of sharing it fairly. We take on the cost and work of the application, normally funding it ourselves. You take on the wait. If the council approves a scheme that meets the agreed definition, we complete at the agreed price; if it doesn’t, you still own the land.

That balance suits plots where a sensible scheme is visible from the start. It suits less well where access is doubtful or a neighbour’s land is needed, and we’ll tell you if yours falls into that group.

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Site plan and house elevation drawings on a kitchen table with the back garden beyond the window
Planning authority
Dartford Borough Council
Postcodes
DA9, DA11
Noon sun, 21 March
About 39°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.3 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Kent

Before you decide in Swanscombe

Neighbours in DA9 and DA11 will receive notice of any application on your plot, and some will comment. Dartford 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 Swanscombe: about 39 degrees on 21 March and 15 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 39°, shadow 6.3 m21 Dec, noon: sun 15°, shadow 18.5 mExistingNew home
This section is worked out for the latitude of Swanscombe: around 39° of sun at midday in late March and about 15° at midwinter. It shows why the gap between your house and a new home behind it is about light as well as privacy. Garden assumed to face north.

What happens next in Swanscombe

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 Dartford 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. 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

  • Capital Gains Tax timing on a conditional sale can differ from an ordinary sale; take advice from a tax adviser.
  • 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.

Your questions, answered for Swanscombe

Do I pay for the planning application on my Swanscombe 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 Swanscombe 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.

What if I want to sell my Swanscombe 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.

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

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.

Other options in Swanscombe

Subject to planning near Swanscombe

Find out what your garden could become

Free garden plot appraisal. No cost, no obligation, and a straight answer if it won’t work.

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