Buying land

[ChuffingHell]

I have absolutely no idea where to put this so I'll try here.

I'm thinking of building a house. I have been looking for a bit of land that I might be able to build such a house on and have found somewhere, but have a few questions:

Firstly, I don't actually know who owns this land (although I have anidea - see next q). How could I find this out? I tried the land registry webiste but it seems that it's search function requires an address (and therefore existing commerical/residential plots) as it asks for the postcode and so on but as this is a field, I don't think it has a postcode. Can the land registry identify the owner of a field?

The land registry also refers to identifying ownerd if somewhere was bought aftere 2000. Is it possible to identify the owner if the land was bought before 2000?

Secondly, i think the land might be owned by a park. If it is, it's right on the edge of the park boundary. Am i being unrealistic thinking that I might be able to buy it off them.

Thirdly, if I could buy some land (be it the bit I have mentioned above, or any other), I know I can't apply for planning until I actually own it, but are planning department people the nice sort of chaps who might come out and give it the once over to let me know their intitial thoughts about the chances of getting planning for it, before I made a purchase?

Any knowledge of any of the above would be much appreciated?

[flyciderman]

I would talk with the planning department first, as normaly you can only build within the "defined bevelopment boundary"

This is set by the local council so they will be able to tell you if it is, it sounds to me that it may not be within the DBB.

One point you do not have to own the land to put in a planning application but you do have to serve notice on the owner
One othr

[williamlc]

Hi
You seem to have so many questions but I think your one solution is your local planning office, from my own experience they will give you the best advice. Sometimes it may not be what you want to hear , but they will put you in the right direction. When you have got this sorted out you will then enter the world of ever changing building regulations.
I built my own house 10 years ago and my main advice to people is to talk as much as possible to self builders, and hire local contractors from recommendations only and if possible avoid yellow pages. Walk round builders suppliers yards and look at plenty of self build magazines to see what is available.
Don't be put off by TV programmes which tell you to always have the services of a on-sight architect and sight manager that is just an unnecessary expence, if you get a good builder he will more or less give you all the advice you need. But above all remain friends with your planning office.

Good Luck
William

[buildersmate]

I have built my own house - project is just finishing. By far and away the hardest part is likely to be acquiring the land for the build. In general, the further South and East in England you want to build, the harder it is to find suitable land. Wales and Scotland in general have a greater supply of single plots. Flyciderman (above) points out to you the key Planning constraint about any old piece of land you might have spotted - in 99% of cases you won't stand a chance of getting Planning Permission on the site. You can always spot where the settlement boundaries to a town are - its where the houses stop and countryside begins! You need to become very familiar with the Planning Policies in the UK and general and the specific policies for the area in which you decide to search. You can do this by inspecting the Local Plan for your Council at the Planning Office - many are now available to view online. Bear in mind that you are in competition with a multitude of project builders (for single plots) who also seek out such sites - the big national builders are not your competition - they buy up fields close to towns years in advance, then lobby to get Planning Permission maybe over a 10 year period. There is a very useful book you could buy which would help you further, see here: - http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0953348911/ 202-4818276-8234222?v=glance&n=266239&v=glance
I also suggest you scan through a website called eBuild which is specialist site for those interested in this subject. See the link here that takes you to the threads on Planning Permission http://www.ebuild.co.uk/forums/messages/772/77 2.html?1156403368

[Sooper]

Right here we go!
The Land Registry has the Largest Property and Land Database in the world at the moment and it is growing bigger by the day! I think i am right in stating that over 85% over all land and properties are currently registered and it is envisaged that in the next ten years all Land/ Property in England and Wales will be registered. It is compulsory to register land and property so there is a good chance that the land you have seen is registered however if this land is linked to a fam etc it may not be registered as often these are handed down through the family and not always sold. In anycase you need to find out who owns this property first becasue it might not be for sale in which case theres not much point finding out about Planning Permission etc! If you go to your nearest Land Registry (there are 24 up and down the country!) you can visit the Customer Information centre and hopefully they will be able to locate the land that you are referrring to , the more info that you can get or have will assist them to locate it. Once located they can provide you with an Office Copy of the title Plan or the register or both , they are �4 each! Cheap isnt it! Good luck with your quest ! I have att'd a link to the various registries locations. You could also ring them but as you seem a bit vague to the exact position of the land they may find it hard to locate. Good Luck
http://www.landreg.gov.uk/regional/offices/

[buildersmate]

In my experience finding the owner of a piece of land using the Land Registry is the least of your worries. Finding a piece of land with the prospect of Planning Permission is the key obstacle. To answer one of your questions directly, Planners won't come out and look at at a piece of land for you. They will however give you an informal opinion of how your idea fits against the policies in the Local Plan. You don't have to own the land in question.