Questions about selling land and new homes

Start with an appraisal of what the land could take and the routes open to you: a direct sale, an option agreement or a promotion agreement. Then take independent advice from a solicitor and, ideally, a land agent before agreeing heads of terms. Land to Homes offers a free, no-obligation site appraisal and explains each route in writing.

Yes. Land often sells without planning, either for a price that reflects the planning risk or under a deal where the price is set once permission is granted. Land to Homes can buy suitable sites directly, with or without planning and with no onward chain, subject to survey, title and contract, or promote the land through planning with you.

An option agreement gives a developer the right, but not the obligation, to buy land within an agreed period, usually once planning permission is granted. The landowner normally receives an option fee, and the purchase price is worked out under an agreed formula. On option agreements with Land to Homes, we pay your reasonable legal fees, agreed up front in the heads of terms.

Under a promotion agreement, a promoter funds and manages the planning process, then markets the land for sale with the landowner once permission is granted. The proceeds are shared under an agreed formula after the promoter's costs. With Land to Homes there is nothing to pay upfront: planning costs are only recovered from the sale proceeds if the land sells with planning.

Fields and paddocks next to towns and villages, large gardens and backland, infill plots, brownfield and former commercial sites, farmland, and buildings that could convert to homes. Sites need realistic access and planning prospects. If land is too small or too constrained for us, we will say so plainly rather than leave you waiting for an answer.

Yes. Every landowner should have their own solicitor on a land sale or agreement, and many also use a land agent or chartered surveyor. On option and promotion agreements with Land to Homes, we pay your reasonable legal fees, with the amount agreed up front in the heads of terms before you instruct anyone.

Planning permission is consent from the planning authority to carry out development, such as building new homes or changing the use of land. Applications are judged against the local development plan and national policy, which differ in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Permission can be full, or outline, which is called planning permission in principle in Scotland.

No one can guarantee planning permission. Decisions rest with the planning authority or, on appeal, an independent appeal body. What we can do is assess the prospects honestly, prepare a thorough application and deal with likely objections early. If we think a site is unlikely to succeed, we will tell you before anyone spends time or money on it.

The development plan sets out where new homes and other development should go, and it is the starting point for planning decisions. In England it is usually called the Local Plan; Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have Local Development Plans. Land allocated for housing, or next to a settlement where policy supports growth, usually has stronger prospects.

Biodiversity net gain is a requirement in England for most new developments to leave natural habitat in a measurably better state than before, assessed using a statutory metric. It can be delivered on site, off site or, as a last resort, through statutory credits. It affects how much land a scheme needs. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own biodiversity policies.

Green Belt is land around certain towns and cities where policy keeps land open, so new homes are normally resisted unless a local plan releases the land or there are very special circumstances. In England, recent policy changes introduced grey belt land, which can be more acceptable for development in some cases. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own green belt policies.

Usually the applicant pays the council fee and the cost of surveys and reports. Under a promotion agreement with Land to Homes, we fund the planning work, and the costs are only recovered from the sale proceeds if the land sells with planning. On a direct purchase without planning, the planning cost and risk become ours.

Yes. Our site appraisal is free and carries no obligation. It covers access, planning policy, likely constraints and an indicative number of homes, and we talk you through the routes open to you. You do not have to agree to anything afterwards, and we will tell you plainly if the land is not suitable for us.

On option and promotion agreements, yes. We pay your reasonable legal fees, and the amount is agreed up front in the heads of terms before you instruct a solicitor, so there are no surprises later. On a direct purchase, each side normally pays its own legal costs, and we will explain the position before you commit.

Not on a promotion agreement. We fund the planning work, and those costs are only recovered from the sale proceeds if the land sells with planning permission. You will still need your own solicitor, but on option and promotion agreements we pay your reasonable legal fees, with the amount agreed in the heads of terms.

Yes, on suitable sites. We can buy land directly, with or without planning permission and with no onward chain, subject to survey, title and contract. Whether a direct purchase suits you depends on the site and on whether you would rather have certainty now or wait for planning to change what the land is worth.

Heads of terms are a short written summary of the main points of a deal, such as the price or price formula, the length of an option or promotion, who pays which costs and any conditions. They are not usually legally binding, but they guide the solicitors who draft the contract. We set out your legal fee cover in them.

Development land is usually valued by working back from what the finished homes would be worth, then deducting build costs, infrastructure, planning obligations such as affordable housing, fees, finance and a developer's margin. This is called a residual valuation. We do not quote land values online; our free appraisal explains the factors that affect your site.

Not yet. Land to Homes is a new venture and has no homes, plots or developments for sale or rent at the moment. You can register interest with the area and type of home you want, and we will contact you if we bring forward homes that match. We do not take reservations, fees or deposits at this stage.

Tell us your contact details, preferred areas, the type and size of home, whether you want to buy or rent, and your timing. Registering is free, it is not a reservation or an application, and you can ask us to remove your details at any time. We use it to contact you and to understand what people need.

It is an insurance-backed policy covering certain defects in a new home for a set period after completion. The builder is usually responsible for most defects early in the cover, and the warranty provider covers major structural problems later. Most mortgage lenders expect a recognised warranty, or a professional consultant's certificate, before they lend on a new home.

The New Homes Quality Code is a code of practice for developers registered with the New Homes Quality Board, covering how homes are marketed, reserved, sold and handed over, and after-sales care. Buyers of homes from registered developers can usually take unresolved complaints to the New Homes Ombudsman Service. The framework currently covers England, Scotland and Wales.

Councils and housing associations, not developers. They set eligibility, usually based on income, housing need and sometimes a local connection, and allocate homes through their own lists or sales processes. In Northern Ireland, social homes are allocated through the Northern Ireland Housing Executive's common waiting list. Land to Homes does not allocate homes.

Check the specification, the tenure and any lease terms, estate or service charges for unadopted roads and open space, the warranty provider, the reservation terms and whether the developer is registered with the New Homes Quality Board. Instruct your own solicitor early, visit the site if you can and ask for everything important in writing.

Through package deals for affordable homes on sites we control, land-led schemes designed around a provider's needs, affordable homes secured by planning agreements, design and build on land a council or provider owns, and responses to council land disposals. Each route is set out in a written agreement that follows the partner's procurement and governance rules.

A package deal is a contract for a registered provider to buy completed affordable homes from a developer on a site the developer controls. The mix, specification, standards and price are agreed before construction, and ownership transfers on completion. It is a common way of delivering the affordable homes required by a planning permission.

Yes, under a design and build contract or a development partnership, subject to the council's procurement rules. We design and construct homes to the council's specification, and the council keeps or takes ownership as agreed. Where councils dispose of land for housing, we respond to opportunities where the terms suit, following the process the council sets.

Where a scheme includes affordable housing required by a Section 106 agreement in England or Wales, a Section 75 agreement in Scotland or a Section 76 agreement in Northern Ireland, we plan those homes with a registered provider and transfer them on completion. We talk to providers early so the homes meet their standards and local need.

Normally the council or registered provider. Grant is paid to them under programmes run by Homes England, the Greater London Authority, the Welsh Government, the Scottish Government or, in Northern Ireland, through the Housing Executive's Social Housing Development Programme. We plan schemes with the relevant funding conditions in mind, but we do not apply for or hold that grant.

No. Allocations are made by councils and housing providers through their own lists and policies. When affordable or social homes on our sites transfer to a provider, the provider decides who is offered each home. We cannot add anyone to a housing register or influence an allocation, and we direct anyone asking to their council or provider.

Land to Homes is the land and new-homes business of S&K Property Investments and Improvement Ltd, part of the S&K Group. It buys land or partners with landowners through option, promotion and joint venture agreements, manages planning, design and construction, and delivers new homes for sale and rent, including affordable and social housing with councils and housing associations.

The S&K Group is a Birmingham-based construction and property group. Its businesses include glazing, building supplies and property improvement. Land to Homes is the group's land and new-homes business, operated by S&K Property Investments and Improvement Ltd, and it brings land, planning and new homes into the same group as those construction and property businesses.

Land to Homes works UK-wide, across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. It buys land or partners with landowners in all four nations. Planning, conveyancing and tax rules differ between the four nations, so each site and each agreement is approached under the rules that apply where the land is.

Yes. Land to Homes is a new venture. It has no homes for sale or rent yet, so home buyers and tenants can only register interest for now. Landowners, councils, housing associations, funders and institutional partners can talk to us about land, planning and new homes at any time.

Landowners who want to sell land or partner on it through option, promotion or joint venture agreements; councils and housing associations that need new affordable and social homes; home buyers and tenants who register interest; and funders and institutional partners. Nothing on the site is an offer or invitation to invest.

It takes land through planning, design and construction to deliver new homes for sale and for rent, including affordable and social housing delivered with councils and housing associations. Some land is bought directly; on other sites Land to Homes works in partnership with the landowner through an option, promotion or joint venture agreement.