Buying Land with a History of Planning Refusals

Knowing the history of a site, or a property for conversion, will give you a good indication of how any future planning applications will fare. Many plots have a chequered history – with past refusals and maybe even appeals – and you need to know about this to make an informed decision before you make a purchase.

If you are buying somewhere that already has planning permission, and you want to build the project that’s been granted approval, then none of this really matters. But most people will want to put their own mark on a home, tweaking or completely changing the design or layout to suit their own requirements.

So, if this is the case, what’s the best way to approach a plot with a chequered history? If you are contemplating buying land without planning permission, aside from the usual cautions, a thorough understanding of the history, policy and how policy is applied locally is essential.

Do your research

Start your research online via the planning section of your local council’s website; the amount of detail held on these portals varies considerably. Some have all the documents associated with applications spanning decades, others will only have information from the last few years, with older applications simply recorded as approved or refused.

Your solicitor’s searches should root out the full history, but an early warning of past problems, particularly recent ones, might well be significant in determining whether or not you buy it. In some cases, online records will split applications and appeals, so ensure you check for both. You should also look out for any enforcement history.

When searching through planning records, look for officers’ reports. These documents detail the ins and outs of the decision, and will have a summary of the feedback from the consultees, including neighbours, the parish council, highways, ecology, trees and so on. If any party had objections you can follow them up by looking at their actual correspondence, meaning you have the full details.

When looking at planning permissions, remember to read the conditions carefully and if there are refusals in the history, look at the reasons given. If there’s an appeal, read the decision letter – even a dismissal may contain useful pointers towards what might be acceptable.

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