As a homeowner, the prospect of extending or renovating your property is an exciting one. While it involves a certain amount of disruption and upheaval, the possible results are usually well worth the hassle. However, many kinds of home improvement project require you to obtain planning permission which can result in expensive delays.
As a result, some people forget to make an application before they proceed with their project. In such cases, retrospective planning permission is required, which involves making an application once the improvement works have already been carried out.
Without planning permission, you’ll find it difficult to sell your property since it will be different from the records held by the land registry. Furthermore, you may have to undo the renovations should the planning permission be rejected – something that occurs in around 12% of cases.
How Much Does Retrospective Planning Permission Cost?
On average, you will pay about £462 for retrospective planning permission for a single new dwelling, or around £206 in the case of an extension.
What Happens If Planning Conditions Are Breached?
Making a planning permission application is essential when carrying out certain home renovations, so it’s essential to obtain it before completing your project. If you’ve already finished the work, however, retrospective planning permission must be sought instead, but it’s important to remember that you could find your request is rejected. In such cases, you’ll receive a planning enforcement notice outlining the actions necessary to remedy your breach. If you fail to comply with this enforcement notice you’ll be committing a criminal offence.
When Will Building Control Be Required?
If you use a reliable tradesperson to complete your project, they’ll usually ensure that all work carried out on your property is in compliance with the building regulations. If you’re completing the renovations yourself, however, you’ll need to ensure that you’ve checked that the finished work is in compliance with the appropriate building regulations. Building control will apply to any extension, new building, underpinning, or alternations as well as other renovation types.
What Will Happen If I Build And Have No Planning Permission?
Any work carried out without planning permission having been obtained will be deemed to be a breach of planning. Although you won’t have broken any laws, you’ll be required to obtain retrospective permission for the project. Should the application fail, you’ll need to undo the renovations you’ve carried out, and this could be costly.
The 4 Year And 10 Year Rules
There is a rule that applies to completed renovations in which no planning permission was obtained which states that if the renovated building has been used for either 4 or 10 years and no enforcement action has been taken to challenge that use, there is no further need to obtain permission. Local authorities are only allow to take action during this 4 or 10 year timeframe.
How Large Can A Building Be Without Having To Obtain Planning Permission?
It’s likely that you’ll need to apply for planning permission if you’re thinking of building an entirely new structure at your property, however there are some circumstances where it will not be required. For example, in some cases, new outbuildings are classified as permitted developments that require no planning permission. As long as the new structure will be under four metres in height and won’t take up over 50% of the land surrounding the house, you won’t usually need to apply for planning permission.
A shed is one example of a structure you can build without needing planning permission in many cases. Ideal for keeping possessions safe and storing away garden items, sheds that are under a storey in height (i.e. under 2.5m within 2m of the land boundary), don’t cover over 50% of the land surrounding the house, and take up under 15 square metres of space will usually not need any kind of planning permission application.
Do I Need Planning Permission To Build On My Agricultural Land?
If you’re an owner of agricultural land, it isn’t uncommon to believe you can build on it and change it in any way that you like, however that isn’t always true. To avoid making a planning permission application, any new structure should be more than 75m from any neighbours’ homes, under 500 metres square in size, and under 12m in height.
Will I Need Planning Permission To Build A Garage?
If the garage will be attached to the property, it will be classified as an extension for planning permission purposes. There are some cases where no planning permission is required for a side or single storey extension. If your planned garage will be under 4m in height, won’t extend over 4m back from the property, and will under half of the width of the house, no application will be needed.