Backland Development
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Sell your garden plot subject to planning in Lancing

Planning is the biggest unknown on any garden plot in Lancing, 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
Adur District Council
Postcodes
BN15
Noon sun, 21 March
About 39°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.1 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
West Sussex

What shapes a plot in Lancing

Adur District 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 Lancing, 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 Lancing: about 39 degrees on 21 March and 16 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 39°, shadow 6.1 m21 Dec, noon: sun 16°, shadow 17.8 mExistingNew home
This section is worked out for the latitude of Lancing: around 39° of sun at midday in late March and about 16° 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 Lancing

After you get in touch about a garden in Lancing, 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. 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

  • The plot can’t be sold to anyone else while the contract runs, even if another offer comes along.
  • 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.

Lancing: questions to ask

Do I keep my garden in Lancing 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.

Do I pay for the planning application on my Lancing 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.

Will my neighbours in Lancing be told about the application?

Yes. Adur District 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.

Can I still use my garden in Lancing 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 Lancing

Subject to planning near Lancing

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