jess1merlin Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 Does anyone on here have any experience of this. A friend of mine has a small plot of land with some old buildings on which she has put up for sale. A property developer has offered slightly over the asking price but wants her to enter into an option to buy agreement while he gets planning permission. On the face of it it sounds ok but I am a little bit concerned that he can just walk away and she will be left high and dry with her solicitors fees to pay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 I'm no expert on this (I'll ask hubby when he gets home, he works in the building trade and knows much more about this) but usually a developer will pay the landowner/seller a fee for the option. This means they pay even if they don't buy the land at the end. The longer the option runs for (say, 5 years instead of 2 years) the bigger the fee. I guess it should cover at least legal costs and possibly also a rent? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken shack Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 No way. He will be able to keep her hanging around for as long as he likes, this could be months even years. If wants it he had better get his finger out and your friend justs needs to be patiant and wait for paper work, solicitors etc to do their work. If it wasn't to his advantage he wouldn't be asking. He is a business person after all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bramble Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 This sounds like an option to purchase, for which your friend should expect the builder to pay, I don't think it unreasonable that the builder should meet your friend's costs either. It's a v complex area, but I would suggest your friend makes some enquiries herself about planning permission, there's nothing stopping her from putting in an application for outline herself, the land will be worth much more with outline than without it. Your friend should consult carefully with her solicitor, estate agent and possibly a surveyor/planning consultant so that she doesn't undersell the land, professionals should be able to advise whether to sell as it is, with outline or go to the expense of a full application. Good luck = Planning permission!! - Good old forum codes!! - Christian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 This sounds like an option to purchase, for which your friend should expect the builder to pay, I don't think it unreasonable that the builder should meet your friend's costs either. It's a v complex area, but I would suggest your friend makes some enquiries herself about planning permission, there's nothing stopping her from putting in an application for outline herself, the land will be worth much more with outline than without it. Your friend should consult carefully with her solicitor, estate agent and possibly a surveyor/planning consultant so that she doesn't undersell the land, professionals should be able to advise whether to sell as it is, with outline or go to the expense of a full application. Good luck Totally agree, while we don't get involved in domestic work here, that's what one of our staff would suggest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfie Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 Why doesn't you pal obtain outline planning permission on the land & buildings herself before puttting it up for sale? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jess1merlin Posted January 15, 2011 Author Share Posted January 15, 2011 Well she has thankfully decided not to sell with the option which I am quite pleased about and has received other offers in the meantime which she is looking into so hopefully she can sell to someone else. I don't think she is keen on getting planning herself as she has a lot of other problems to contend with at the moment but we will have to see what she decides to do. Thanks for the advice, I was just a bit worried for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarrensWorld Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 First ask the local planning office if planning permission is likely. If it is then you put in for detailed planning. Then sell it on to a developer/builder. The extra profit you make will more than cover your planning and architect costs. Thats what we did, but what we should have done was to build on it ourselves. That's with the benefit of hindsight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
