RESIDENTIAL

Planning

Fletcher & Lawson can assist with all types of planning law, particularly major development work and planning appeals. Planning plays an important part in residential property.

Planning Permission
Before any work on a property is carried out, it is vital to address the issue of whether planning permission is required.

Matters to consider:

• The size of the works to be carried out
• Do the works affect the external appearance of the property?
• Has the local authority imposed any particular planning designations on the area (e.g. a conservation area, listed building)
• Are there likely to be any objections to the proposed works?

When planning permission is granted, it is important to observe all the conditions and the planning permission must be kept with the title deeds to the property.

Building Regulation Approval
This matter is easily overlooked but a large number of works carried out on any residential property require building regulation approval. Building inspectors from the local council must visit the site to confirm the works have been carried out properly and, when completed, will issue a building regulation approval certificate that, again, must be kept with the title deeds. The title deeds must always be checked to see that the deeds do not impose a condition to get consent from a third party such as the original developer.