"Acquiring" council owned land attached to property
Discussion
Hey guys and girls,
So as you may know I've just brought my first house and it's a complete project, (being gutted
And re-done and garden is being landscaped etc)
So while I am re-doing the driveway/garden I thought that it's now or never to try and acquire this land. (roadworks have obviously gone now)
It's a good size bit of land and has a big tree and a post box in it so I'm Not expecting to accrue the whole lot, would just like to see if there is any chance of adding a Proper 2 car driveway or extending the garden a bit?
How would I enquire about this and what (if any) would the council charge for the land?
Thanks
So as you may know I've just brought my first house and it's a complete project, (being gutted
And re-done and garden is being landscaped etc)
So while I am re-doing the driveway/garden I thought that it's now or never to try and acquire this land. (roadworks have obviously gone now)
It's a good size bit of land and has a big tree and a post box in it so I'm Not expecting to accrue the whole lot, would just like to see if there is any chance of adding a Proper 2 car driveway or extending the garden a bit?
How would I enquire about this and what (if any) would the council charge for the land?
Thanks
Phone the local authority and they will put you in touch with the right department. My old business partner purchased a ten foot strip of land (part of an old road before redevelopment) adjacent to his property and, all it cost was the price of the stamp he had to sign over to complete the deal.
Having said that,it might be that the council will want to keep the 'grassy verge' look of the area. Then again, it might be that they would like to save monies by not having to pay for the upkeep. Good luck.
Having said that,it might be that the council will want to keep the 'grassy verge' look of the area. Then again, it might be that they would like to save monies by not having to pay for the upkeep. Good luck.
That land will be seen as amenity land , and ..
"of high importance to the visual amenity of the street scene ".
Even if they sold you some , wou wouldnt have a hope in hell of converting any of it for residential use. imho of course , but it doesnt hurt to try.
ps.Any form of fencing off / screening or parking wouldnt be an option either in my opinion.
"of high importance to the visual amenity of the street scene ".
Even if they sold you some , wou wouldnt have a hope in hell of converting any of it for residential use. imho of course , but it doesnt hurt to try.
ps.Any form of fencing off / screening or parking wouldnt be an option either in my opinion.
Edited by Busa mav on Tuesday 5th February 10:11
No harm in making an enquiry to the council. If they are agreeable to the sale then they will be under a duty to sell it at a 'market rate'. You will no doubt be responsible for their legal and surveyors fees as well as your own.
Looking at the piece of land I suspect that the council will be keen to hold on to it as it forms part of the visability splay for the junction.
Anyhoo, you dont ask you dont get.
Looking at the piece of land I suspect that the council will be keen to hold on to it as it forms part of the visability splay for the junction.
Anyhoo, you dont ask you dont get.
I wouldn't want to brick wall it of or turn it into a Tarmac eyesore, just a small gravelled section big enough for 2 cars would suit me greatly.
If its going to cost tens of thousands I wouldn't bother, few hundred or thousand I may be interested.
Would I have to buy the whole lot or nothing or couldn't buy a "section" of it?
If its going to cost tens of thousands I wouldn't bother, few hundred or thousand I may be interested.
Would I have to buy the whole lot or nothing or couldn't buy a "section" of it?
rhodz2001uk said:
Looking at the piece of land I suspect that the council will be keen to hold on to it as it forms part of the visability splay for the junction.
Not wishing to nit-pick but as it's the only part of the thread I have experience with I'll have to...The visibility from that junction is very good, unless you wanted to build walls right up to the edge of the current grass area you shouldn't be refused hypothetical permission based on visibility alone...
Thanks for the advise chaps, very helpful.
So I called the planning officer and he informed me that most of it was classed as "tenant land" but a small part was amenity land. He and I assumed that the amenity land was the tree/postbox section. So I asked him if he thought it possible to buy/acquire his land and he seemed quite positive and asked me to email him so he can ask about.
Here is the email I sent:
"Hello Peter,
Thanks for your time today, as requested I am interested in the land to the right of the property we are purchasing.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r92/sidekickdmr...
As mentioned there is a post box on the corner of XXX lane and XXX road so I am not interested in that land (happy to maintain it though of that's any easier)
It's the land to the back of the property I'm interested in, mainly to add a driveway for our cars (it's all street parking at the moment and there isn't sufficient) And I am happy to access it from XXX lane rather than XXX road (quiet side street rather than busy through road)
I would also be interested to see if it is possible to extend our garden too, although this is a secondary consideration and the parking is the main issue.
When we move in we are going to be re-landscaping and replacing the old broken fences so would be great to be able to do it all at once if possible.
Please have a look into this for me and let me know if there is any chance of this happening and how to proceed.
Thanks again Peter!
Any questions please feel free to call/email"
So fingers crossed!
So I called the planning officer and he informed me that most of it was classed as "tenant land" but a small part was amenity land. He and I assumed that the amenity land was the tree/postbox section. So I asked him if he thought it possible to buy/acquire his land and he seemed quite positive and asked me to email him so he can ask about.
Here is the email I sent:
"Hello Peter,
Thanks for your time today, as requested I am interested in the land to the right of the property we are purchasing.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r92/sidekickdmr...
As mentioned there is a post box on the corner of XXX lane and XXX road so I am not interested in that land (happy to maintain it though of that's any easier)
It's the land to the back of the property I'm interested in, mainly to add a driveway for our cars (it's all street parking at the moment and there isn't sufficient) And I am happy to access it from XXX lane rather than XXX road (quiet side street rather than busy through road)
I would also be interested to see if it is possible to extend our garden too, although this is a secondary consideration and the parking is the main issue.
When we move in we are going to be re-landscaping and replacing the old broken fences so would be great to be able to do it all at once if possible.
Please have a look into this for me and let me know if there is any chance of this happening and how to proceed.
Thanks again Peter!
Any questions please feel free to call/email"
So fingers crossed!
Our office sells ‘garden’ land such as you have. The sale of anything which is owned by a local authority involves a lot of internal legal process.
The land will be managed by a Service or Department who will have to consider whether they want to lose it. They will have to consult internally and get formal approval to declare it surplus to their requirements. That costs time and you should be charged for that.
Then Estates/Resources/Assets or whatever name they have chosen this month to confuse everyone will have to go through the same palaver declaring it surplus to the Council. They should also be charging you for that.
Don’t forget the surveyor’s and legal fees for inspecting the site, negotiating the price and dealing with all the process. Did I mention price. As a poor relative Up North we charge £65 per square metre which is roughly £250k per acre so down your way anything less than double will be a bonus.
We don’t even start until applicants have sorted Planning and paid us part of the fee up front. There is a backlog of some 700 requests. Don’t point out that you will be doing them a favour by maintaining it as that is a different Department or Service. There should also be a restriction on building on it in the future.
If you do get it for a few hundred you should, after buying it, complain to the Council that they are getting short changed. Your planner who seems positive about the idea is a planner and not the hard-nosed surveyor. Planners are always positive until you make a planning application.
Interestingly it was the planners who insisted that the housing developer left land like yours open to improve the amenity of the area. There may be a restrictive covenant placed on the land by the developer so that it can only be used for open space. That restriction can be removed for, guess what, more money.
The added bonus for any Council will be when the surveyor turns up to look at your plot he will spot a few encroachments by your neighbours to sort out, if he has time.
Good luck with it.
The land will be managed by a Service or Department who will have to consider whether they want to lose it. They will have to consult internally and get formal approval to declare it surplus to their requirements. That costs time and you should be charged for that.
Then Estates/Resources/Assets or whatever name they have chosen this month to confuse everyone will have to go through the same palaver declaring it surplus to the Council. They should also be charging you for that.
Don’t forget the surveyor’s and legal fees for inspecting the site, negotiating the price and dealing with all the process. Did I mention price. As a poor relative Up North we charge £65 per square metre which is roughly £250k per acre so down your way anything less than double will be a bonus.
We don’t even start until applicants have sorted Planning and paid us part of the fee up front. There is a backlog of some 700 requests. Don’t point out that you will be doing them a favour by maintaining it as that is a different Department or Service. There should also be a restriction on building on it in the future.
If you do get it for a few hundred you should, after buying it, complain to the Council that they are getting short changed. Your planner who seems positive about the idea is a planner and not the hard-nosed surveyor. Planners are always positive until you make a planning application.
Interestingly it was the planners who insisted that the housing developer left land like yours open to improve the amenity of the area. There may be a restrictive covenant placed on the land by the developer so that it can only be used for open space. That restriction can be removed for, guess what, more money.
The added bonus for any Council will be when the surveyor turns up to look at your plot he will spot a few encroachments by your neighbours to sort out, if he has time.
Good luck with it.
I had a chunk a land about the same size on the end of my first house. On my deeds the dotted line went round the whole plot, but also showed the fence. Everyone told me there was no way they would ever let you do anything with it.
Fast forward 12 years and I happened to be walking past my old house and thought it seemed slightly different. Then I realised that a complete new house had been added to the end of the terrace. Dug around the planning portal and sure enough they had it converted from amenity land to a building plot. How gutted was I !!
Fast forward 12 years and I happened to be walking past my old house and thought it seemed slightly different. Then I realised that a complete new house had been added to the end of the terrace. Dug around the planning portal and sure enough they had it converted from amenity land to a building plot. How gutted was I !!
Hi guys. I know this is a few years old but it's amazingly similar to an issue I'm just looking into, which is purchasing a small area of grass just next to my house. I've been turned down by the council, and told it's amenity land. They haven't indicated I have any chance to appeal that or that the designation could ever be changed. Since a lot of you guys seem to have experience in this area, could there be a chance it could ever be changed? In particular, the area is directly adjacent to a huge school field. Would this make a difference? Thanks in advance! Dean
Sounds like a service strip, I have one in front of my house, my drive crosses it so when when we block paved the drive we couldnt do this bit which was a bummer. From what I gather, facilities run in these - electric pipes, gas etc So they dont want to sell them/cant. You cant do much with them, although most are planted in my road
https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/cms/content/service...
https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/cms/content/service...
@8-P - ahh, that actually makes more sense. Had they used the term "service strip" I would probably have thought of that. "Amenity land" makes me think of land that just adds visual appeal. I guess there's no chance then? Anyone think I'd had a chance of buying it with conditions around giving access to utility companies etc? (I sound like I'm clutching at straws even to myself here! I just really had my heart set on getting that for a bigger garden).
There's no right or entitlement to purchase Council (public) owned land so like any other land it's entirely up to the owner whether they wish to sell it.
If it's surplus, of no public utility, or costing them more in maintenance than it's worth they might be persuaded to sell but it's their call to make.
If it's surplus, of no public utility, or costing them more in maintenance than it's worth they might be persuaded to sell but it's their call to make.
Lotobear - yes absolutely, I totally respect their right not to sell it, for any reason. However, they have given me a reason, so I'm just interested to know my options and if they are making the decision based on any misunderstanding about the area (the council are based 40 miles from my house). And of course I am not looking to get it for free or cheap, I would be making a financial contribution to the tax payers in return for their land. But yes, 100%, I do not think I have any right to buy it.
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