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Submit plansWe have put a deposit down on an abandoned house which has no heating and is on a 0.5 acres countryside plot. After struggling to make well-suited renovation plans, we are leaning towards knocking down and rebuilding the house to fit our modern and energy efficient ideas. However, we are not sure how this is going to be received by council planners – what should our next steps be?
Often local planning policies will be supportive of replacement dwellings, therefore seeking a knock down and rebuild is usually possible, subject potentially to some restrictions around the scale and nature of any replacement compared to the original dwelling.
However, in the case where a property is abandoned, it may be less straightforward. Whilst there may be benefits financially and/or structurally to a knock down and rebuild, it is vital to check first what the council’s policies are regarding replacement dwellings and whether you may need to seek a Certificate of Lawfulness for the existing dwelling to confirm that the proposed use of the land is lawful and that it has not been ‘abandoned’ in planning terms, which may change the context for either a renovation or replacement.
Julia Riddle (Build It planning expert)