Successfully avoid potential pitfalls with advice from the experts
WORDS JAYNE DOWLE
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Though a home build rarely reaches the finish line without any setbacks along the way, getting up-to-date expert advice during the early planning stage, and as the project progresses, mitigates the risk of serious problems. In 2024, securing finance, finding and buying a suitable plot, navigating planning permission, and managing material and labour costs is generally no easier than in previous years and may, in some instances, be more challenging and costly. But there are ways to turn obstacles into opportunities – with the right help.
1 Track down a plot
If you’ve been browsing land-finding websites for months, are getting alerts from property portals, have registered your interest with local estate agents and the local authority self-build register, all without finding a suitable plot, there are a couple more things to try.
Ask local landowners if they plan to sell off parcels of land. Determined self-builders have been known to drive the streets looking for waste ground and empty lots, so if you spot one, ask the local planning authority if a planning application has already been submitted or track down the property owners through the Land Registry (eservices.landregistry.gov.uk).
Consider hiring someone to find a plot for you. ‘The perfect site might be masquerading as something quite different – a rundown property on a nice plot, or a commercial premises where the wider potential has yet to be recognised,’ says Mike Henderson of Recoco Property Search (recoco.co.uk). ‘A specialist search agent knows what to look for and where.’
2 Get a grip on the cost
