We turn idle land into life-changing money.
You don't lift a finger.
This is rarely just about cash.
Most landowners we meet aren't ringing us up to maximise an asset. They're thinking about something bigger.
Maybe you've held this land for thirty years and you're wondering whether now's the time.
Maybe it's family land and there's a conversation to have with siblings or kids.
Maybe you're approaching retirement and you want to unlock something that's been sitting there your whole working life.
Maybe a parent has passed and the land now sits with you, and you don't quite know what to do with it.
Maybe you've already started the conversation with a developer and it hasn't gone well, and you're tired of feeling like a chess piece.
We've sat at a lot of kitchen tables. We get it. The first conversation isn't a sales pitch. It's a chat about what you actually want from this, before we even talk about whether the land has planning potential.
But when it is about money, the money matters.
Because the money is what unlocks the rest of it.
The money is what lets you retire properly. Helps the kids buy their first home. Pays off the mortgage you've been carrying for decades. Funds the move you've been putting off. Releases the value of land that's been sitting there doing nothing for thirty years.
Our job is to make sure the money is as big as it can honestly be, and that getting to it doesn't cost you anything along the way. Not financially. Not emotionally. Not in time spent doing things you don't understand.
You bring the land. We bring twenty years of getting planning permission. Together we turn something quiet and ordinary into something that changes the next chapter.
What getting planning permission can involve
Most landowners don't pursue planning because the thought of it is exhausting. And fair enough. Here's a flavour of what's required.
Conversations with the local authority. Pre-application advice. Concept drawings. Detailed drawings. Site analysis. Topographical surveys. Ecology surveys (bats, newts, hedgerows, the lot). Tree surveys. Contamination reports. Drainage strategies. Highways assessments. Heritage statements. Design and access statements. Planning policy compliance. Community consultation. Submission. Council validation. Statutory consultation periods. Officer queries. Amendments. Committee. Possibly appeals.
Each of those needs the right specialist. Each has a cost attached.
This is what we do. You don't do any of it.
We work with landowners who:
- Feel overwhelmed by planning laws, ecology jargon, council politics and the rest of the alphabet soup
- Want to unlock equity for retirement, helping the kids, or just freeing up a chapter of life that's been waiting on this decision
- Are tired of conversations with developers that go nowhere
- Have inherited land and aren't sure what to do with it
- Can't (or won't) face the upfront legal costs and risk of going it alone
- Are sitting on land that doesn't quite work as farmland anymore
- Have been approached by national operators and didn't feel comfortable with what they were offered
- Would rather work with someone who lives nearby and knows the area
If you nodded at any of those, we should have a chat.
Plantation Road
We were approached to appraise this brownfield site (former garages) on behalf of a client wishing to sell the plot.
This site was nestled in a residential area in Bedfordshire. Access to the a main arterial road was already in place and well within settlement boundary.
Chris secured planning for two 4-bed detached houses and one 3-bed home, working tirelessly with central Beds planners and navigating new Beechwood SANG and SAMM S106 contributions.
The planning uplift (increase in land value) for this project was 110%.
Our Job
Your Job
1. Have a kitchen table chat with us. Free, no obligation.
2. If you like what you hear, sign an option agreement (your solicitor reviews it first, on us, up to £1,000 + VAT).
3. Read our updates. Ask any questions you have.
4. Sign off at completion when the land is sold.
5. Receive the proceeds.
1. Walk your land and assess its potential
2. Run pre-application discussions with the local planners
3. Brief and instruct planning consultants
4. Brief and instruct ecologists, tree surveyors, contamination consultants and every other specialist the site needs
5. Prepare all the architectural drawings and design documents
6. Manage the community consultation
7. Submit the planning application
8. Manage council queries, amendments and committee
9. Handle any appeals
10. Identify and approach developers
11. Negotiate the best price for the consented site
12. Coordinate the legal completion of the sale via a specialist land agent
If we've forgotten something, we'll do that too.
WHY WE USE AN OPTION AGREEMENT
Why we use an option agreement (and how ours is different)
There are two main legal structures for what we do. Each has trade-offs.
An option agreement gives the option holder (us) the right to buy your land at an agreed price once planning is granted. It's a clean legal structure. One contract. One exercise event. One clear path from start to finish.
A promotion agreement keeps you as the legal owner throughout. The promoter has the right to apply for planning. Once consent is granted, the land is marketed on the open market. The promoter takes an agreed percentage of the sale price.
WHICH ONE DO WE USE? An option agreement,
It's cleaner legally. Faster to execute at the end. And it suits the way we work: getting in early, doing the planning at our cost, and partnering with a developer to close the sale.
But here's the catch with most option agreements. The vast majority of Option-buyers (especially national ones) offer you a fixed price upfront and pocket the entire planning uplift for themselves. On a typical site, that uplift is hundreds of thousands of pounds. Sometimes more.
We don't operate that way.
Our option agreement splits the uplift 50/50. You get your land's appraisal value plus half of everything we add to it. We take the other half. We split what we create together because that's the only deal we believe in.
INSIDE OUR PLANNING TEAM
Chris has spent 20 years getting planning permission across retail, residential and commercial schemes. He's the mastermind on every application we submit.
He doesn't work alone. Over those 20 years he's built relationships with the specialists every planning application needs:
- Local authority planners (Wealden, Lewes and the surrounding councils)
- Planning consultants
- Ecology and arboriculture consultants
- Land surveyors and topographers
- Contamination and drainage consultants
- Highways consultants
- Heritage specialists where listed buildings or conservation areas are involved
Most landowners would have to find, brief and manage all of these. You don't. We do.
You'll never have to chase us.
This is where Fay comes in.
Most landowners who've worked with promoters before tell us the same thing. Months go by, nothing happens, nobody calls. They feel forgotten.
Fay has spent 20 years in marketing and PR, building communications for big brands, alongside managing a successful buy-to-let business. Keeping clients informed is what she does best. So while Chris is in the technical weeds, Fay makes sure you know exactly where your project is.
What that looks like in practice:
- A clear plan at the start so you know what to expect at each stage
- Proactive monthly updates so you're never in the dark
- A direct line to either of us when you have a question
- Honest reporting if something gets delayed (because sometimes it will)
The aim is simple. You should be able to see your project ticking over without ever having to chase.
How the money works
You don't pay us anything. The option fee at signing is nominal (£1). We absorb every cost of the planning process:
- Planning application fees
- Architectural drawings
- Pre-application advice
- Ecology surveys
- Contamination reports
- Highways assessments
- Heritage statements
- Community consultation
- Any specialist consultants the site needs
- Your solicitor's review of the option agreement, up to £1,000 + VAT
If planning fails, we walk away. That's our risk to carry.
When planning is granted, we exercise our option, the land sells to a developer, and the money flows at completion. You receive your appraisal value plus 50% of the uplift. We receive 50% of the uplift. All on the same day, choreographed by solicitors.
The bottom line: no money leaves your bank account at any point in this process. And when the money does flow, it goes to you first.
The questions landowners always ask
Q: What's an Option Agreement?
A: A legal contract where you give us the right (the "option") to purchase your land at an agreed price, once we've secured planning permission. The option is locked in by a nominal fee (£1) at signing. No real money changes hands until much later, when planning is granted and the sale to a developer completes.
Q: How is your model different from other Option-buyers?
A: Most Option-buyers pocket the entire planning uplift between what they pay you and what the developer pays them. We split that uplift 50/50. You receive the appraisal value of your land, plus half of everything we add to it. On a typical site, that's hundreds of thousands of pounds more in your pocket.
Q: What does "50/50 of the uplift" actually mean in numbers?
A: Worked example. Land worth £200k today, worth £650k with planning. The uplift is £450k. We split it down the middle: £225k to you, £225k to us. You also receive the £200k appraisal value, so your total is £425k. Over double what your land was worth before. We'll run actual numbers for your specific site at the kitchen table chat.
Q: What happens if planning is refused?
A: We absorb the risk. If we can't get planning consent (even after appeals), we walk away. You owe us nothing. Your land is yours, unchanged.
Q: How long is my land tied up in the option agreement?
A: Up to 8 years total. That gives us enough time to navigate planning (12 months to 3 years) plus a window to complete the sale to a developer (typically 12 months after consent, often much less in practice). If we haven't completed within the agreed window, the option lapses and your land is yours again.
Q: Can I keep using my land while the planning process runs?
A: Yes. The option agreement gives us the right to apply for planning, not the right to use the land. You stay the legal owner throughout the planning process. You can carry on farming, grazing, parking, doing whatever you currently do with it.
Q: Who chooses the developer who buys the land?
A: We lead the marketing and negotiation, but you're involved in the decision. The option agreement also includes a minimum sale price (based on independent valuation) so we can't sell at less than the agreed floor. The aim is the highest reasonable market price every time.
Q: Who pays for my solicitor to review the agreement?
A: We do, up to £1,500 + VAT. You shouldn't have to write a cheque to take advice on something we're asking you to sign.
Q: What if you can't find a developer to buy the land after planning is granted?
A: If we can't complete a sale within the agreed window (typically 12 months from consent), the option lapses. The good news for you: your land is now yours, with planning consent. You can either sell it independently (with consent, you're in a very strong position) or sit on it.
Q: How will I know what's happening?
A: Monthly updates from Fay as standard, more often if there's something to report, and a direct line to either of us any time you want to ask a question.
Q: We've been approached by a national Option-buyer who offered to buy our land. Why work with you?
A: Most national Option-buyers offer a fixed price upfront and keep the entire planning uplift for themselves. Our offer is fundamentally different: same appraisal value AND half of everything we add to it through planning. On a typical site, that's hundreds of thousands of pounds more in your pocket. We'll happily run a side-by-side comparison for your specific site so you can see the difference clearly.
