Do house builders pay all the bizarre fees?

[Four Cofffee]

I have been looking at a declined planning application put in for a house I was looking to buy. Basically the guy had applied to build 9 houses in the grounds and convert the main house to flats. He got turned down but amongst the documents lodged with the council were a wildlife survey (bats Including 2 survey evenings to see if they were roosting), reptiles, newts, badgers, birds)a tree survey of every tree in the 2 acres of grounds and a very detailed supporting document from a planing consultant showing other local developments in terms of style etc. They must have cost a fortune but I notice that they were submitted by a well known national builder, not by the owner.

My guess is that the developer agrees to buy the land at £X if outline PP is granted, but pick up the costs it it isn't? If not he must have a large bill to pay.

The docs also showed that the roof needed work, the boiler was on its way out and all the guttering and downpipes needed doing (the repairs needed were used as a tool to suggest why the old pile should be converted to flats) which has not helped his sale!

[Sam_68]

Four Cofffee said:

My guess is that the developer agrees to buy the land at £X if outline PP is granted, but pick up the costs if it isn't?

Yes, that's about the bottom line.

And yes, the costs can be pretty scary.

[Four Cofffee]

Perhaps them asking to put two terraces of modern houses in the garden of a 1900 gothic manor house was asking for the money to be wasted!

[Tuna]

Possibly. If he could swing it with the council, he would have made a fortune though.

[hornetrider]

Four Cofffee said:

Perhaps them asking to put two terraces of modern houses in the garden of a 1900 gothic manor house was asking for the money to be wasted!

You'd like to think so but it's happened plenty of times.