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For landowners · West Sussex

Sell Land Without Planning in Haywards Heath

Can I sell land without planning in Haywards Heath?

Land without planning permission in Haywards Heath can still be sold for development. Its value rests on hope, meaning how likely it is that new homes will be allowed. Land to Homes can buy suitable sites as they stand, agree a contract that completes only if planning is granted, or partner with you through an option or promotion agreement.

Ripe wheat field edge with a village church tower and rooftops beyond the hedgeHaywards Heath · RH16

Free site appraisal

Tell us about your land and we will call you back. No cost, no obligation.

Prefer to talk? Call 0800 088 6248.

  • Free site appraisalNo cost, no obligation
  • Legal fees coveredReasonable fees, on options and promotion
  • Nothing to pay upfrontOn promotion: we fund planning
  • Direct purchaseSuitable sites, with or without planning
  • UK-wideEngland, Wales, Scotland and NI

Land and sites near Haywards Heath

About 9 miles south-east of Crawley, Haywards Heath is part of our West Sussex coverage, centred on postcode district RH16. Close by, our coverage also takes in Burgess Hill, Crawley and East Grinstead. Haywards Heath is part of England’s South East region.

Sites worth a conversation around Haywards Heath: land behind street frontages, land that already has planning permission and fields put forward or allocated in the local plan. As Haywards Heath is in England, applications are judged against the National Planning Policy Framework, and the buyer of land pays Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT).

A postcode and a rough boundary are enough for us to start a free appraisal of land near Haywards Heath.

What you get in Haywards Heath

Constraints checked first

Flood risk, access, heritage, ecology, protected trees and landscape designations can each decide whether planning is realistic. We look at all of these before discussing any deal or price mechanism with you.

Buying land as it stands

Where we can see a planning route we are prepared to back, we can buy your land as it stands, with no onward chain, subject to survey, title and contract.

Local plan timing

Councils review their development plans periodically and invite landowners to put sites forward. We check where your council is in that cycle, because it can matter more than any single application.

Conditional contracts

Contracts are signed now, but the sale only completes if a satisfactory planning permission is granted by a longstop date. The price is usually fixed, or set by an agreed formula, when the contract is signed.

Rules that apply in Haywards Heath

Whether a field or large garden could take homes depends mostly on the council's Local Plan and national policy. Under the National Planning Policy Framework, plans define settlement boundaries, and land just outside Haywards Heath may still come forward if it is allocated, previously developed or meets evidenced unmet housing need. Smaller housing schemes can also use Permission in Principle, an England-only route that settles location, use and amount first. Our free appraisal explains which route suits your land.

In England, the starting point is the Local Plan and the National Planning Policy Framework. Councils assess land put forward in a housing and economic land availability assessment. Smaller housing-led sites can apply for Permission in Principle to test whether the location is acceptable, and some Green Belt land may now be assessed as grey belt.

Key rules in Haywards Heath
Local planning documentLocal Plan
Who decides applicationsThe local planning authority, usually the district, borough, city or unitary council (or a national park authority)
In-principle consentOutline planning permission, with reserved matters approved later
Land registrationHM Land Registry

Sell Land Without Planning in Haywards Heath: questions

What is a call for sites?

When a council prepares or reviews its development plan, it usually invites landowners and developers to put land forward for consideration. Submitting your site does not mean it will be allocated, but it puts the land in front of the council's planning team. In Wales this is usually called the candidate site process.

What is hope value?

Hope value is the extra amount a buyer will pay above a site's existing use value because there is a realistic prospect of planning permission. The stronger the prospect, and the sooner permission could realistically come, the higher the hope value tends to be. It is lower than the value with permission, because the buyer carries the planning risk.

Can I keep using the land while planning is pursued?

Usually, yes. Under options and promotion agreements you normally keep ownership and can carry on using the land, for example for grazing or farming, until it is sold. The agreement sets out access for surveys and any restrictions, such as on granting new long-term tenancies.

What is a subject to planning contract?

It is a contract where both sides commit now, but the sale only completes if a satisfactory planning permission is granted. It sets a longstop date, defines what counts as satisfactory and usually says who controls the application. If permission is not granted by the longstop date, either side can normally withdraw without penalty.

Do you work with landowners in Haywards Heath?

We do. We work with landowners in Haywards Heath and elsewhere in West Sussex, including East Grinstead, Crawley and Worthing. Send us a postcode and we will start with a free, no-obligation appraisal of what the land could take.

Read more: Sell Land Without Planning · Guide: Planning permission explained for landowners

Own land that could take new homes?

Start with a free, no-obligation site appraisal. On option and promotion agreements we fund the planning work and pay your reasonable legal fees.

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