The best time to consider your scheme’s viability and planning obligations is at the beginning. There are many ‘hidden’ policy costs and viability considerations to take into account when planning a development which are often overlooked.
Viability and scheme optimisation for value, density, tenure and housing mix should inform your considerations even at the bidding stage and can significantly influence scheme design.
We provide high level modelling to maximise value and advise on the cost of planning obligations and policy compliance either before, during or after you’ve acquired your site. Generally we advocate the idea of making the ‘cake’ bigger for all parties.
We work with your architect and planning consultant to optimise the proposed development and ensure you aren’t surprised by unforeseen or unjustified requests from the local authority at the end of the application.
Getting the scheme right from the beginning can save many months of delay and finance costs, improve relations with your planning officer, and ultimately make you more return on your investment.
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Land promotion can be a complex process. There are a number of things to consider when entering into a land promotion agreement.
The first is that, typically, the costs of affordable housing or other planning obligations and requirements will be borne by the landowner.
The promoter will do the work in terms of securing planning permission –however this creates a ‘moral hazard’ as the cost of affordable housing and others106 contributions (Education, Roads, Leisure Etc) are typically deducted from the price paid to the landowner.
If you’re a landowner in this situation, you should be insisting that your developer submit a viability report as part of their planning application to ensure unnecessary costs are not being borne by you. If you have not – we can advise if your interests are being properly protected by the promoter.
Our Land Promotion Support service helps to put the power back in your hands. We can provide advice and support, empowering you to tackle the viability of the development with your developer. This will mean you don’t pay any more than is necessary and viable.
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Rural Exception Sites arise from a little used policy which permits development in rural locations where housing development would not usually be allowed.
Whilst designed to deliver 100% affordable housing, Market housing is often permitted in cases where the open market housing is crucial to provide a cross subsidy to enable delivery of affordable units without grant funding.
This is where our expertise comes in to play. We will discuss the site with you and identify the optimum number of open market housing needed to bring the site forwards, and hence optimise the site value
Get in touch today for a free no-obligation chat with one of our consultants.
Local plans often have policies preventing the change of use of employment land, including offices, public houses, and other low value land uses. This can impact on your development if you are proposing a change of use that the local plan disagrees with.
We can help you to navigate this area by providing viability reporting and market analysis to illustrate whether the protected uses are actually required in this area, or indeed financially viable.
This can help to justify the loss of employment land in favour of residential development and enable different uses within a priority employment land.
If you’re taking on a change of use project, get in touch today for a free consultation.
All of the relevant benefits associated with site viability, including provision of affordable housing units and payments in lieu, are paid for by the perceived uplift in land value generated by a grant of planning permission.
Therefore, if your land is of low value – such as having no existing use – and you bring forward a development exceeding the Local Planning Authority’s threshold for Affordable Housing, it will be difficult to argue that provision of such units are unviable. Typically this threshold is 10 units. As such, it may be advantageous to bring forward a development of 9 units, establishing a land value without triggering affordable housing requirements. This can then be used as an interim step to establish a land value, before moving to your full plans.
If this sounds like a situation you are in, get in touch with us today to find out how we can help.
Call us today for a free consultation. Market leader in viability assessment and Section 106 negotiation.
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