Hi All,

Over the past 2 years I have converted my 2 cottages into one. I have
had building control permission and inspections throughout. We have
not altered the external appearance.

A friend tells me I should have had planning permission. Is this right
?

Thanks eveyone

Andy ( now worried )

"Andy" wrote:
Hi All,

Over the past 2 years I have converted my 2 cottages into one. I have
had building control permission and inspections throughout. We have
not altered the external appearance.

A friend tells me I should have had planning permission. Is this right?

Almost certainly, although they take a much more dim view of splitting
one dwelling into two than vice versa in my area. Are you still paying
council tax on both properties? If you have reduced the total number of
bedrooms then the money you will save by having it reassessed as one
property will probably justify the cost of getting retrospective approval.
They could order you to separate the properties again, but I'm guessing
they'd rather just have your money.

Al

A friend tells me I should have had planning permission. Is this right

That would certainly be my understanding. I'm amazed that the council
building control didn't check with planning, or get you to sign off that you
had.

Hopefully, you'll be able to get retrospective permission. You certainly
need to go through the proper channels, or you'll be paying for two lots of
everything, such as council tax etc.

Christian.

Hi Al

Well, I told the council tax people it was now one house, and they
zoned it as such. So I pay one council tax, and get one set ov voting
slips.

Christian, I actually checked the box to say planning permission had
not been obtained for BC !

I'd rather not poke a stick at this if I can avoid it, but i'm worried
about the impact.

Cheers

Andy

Christian, I actually checked the box to say planning permission had
not been obtained for BC !

I doubt it is a get out, though. It would still be your responsibility to
get permission.

However, in many council areas, it is a formality. It is if you live in an
area desperate to increase the number of dwellings to meet county plans,
that you have to worry.

Christian.

Christian McArdle wrote:

Christian, I actually checked the box to say planning permission had
not been obtained for BC !


I doubt it is a get out, though. It would still be your responsibility to
get permission.

However, in many council areas, it is a formality. It is if you live in an
area desperate to increase the number of dwellings to meet county plans,
that you have to worry.

Christian.


I would say whats done is done, and the issues you have to face are that
when you sell it teh tidtle deeds may ahow it as separate.

If the tax is being paid for a single dwelling, and the council doesn't
object withing 12 years or whatever, it is whatever it is.

I am not sure how retropsective planning goes back, but I am pretty sure
12 years covers most things.

"Andy" wrote:
Well, I told the council tax people it was now one house, and they
zoned it as such. So I pay one council tax, and get one set ov voting
slips.

If you've got past this hurdle, I can't see how the council
will ever notice that it needed planning permission. You
could enquire further but I wouldn't bother. If you plan
to sell, it might be worth speaking to a specialist land solicitor
to find out whether it's worth combining the two land registry
entries into one entry, otherwise the purchasers might start
asking questions about whether the necessary permissions
were sought....

Al

Christian McArdle wrote:
A friend tells me I should have had planning permission. Is this right

That would certainly be my understanding. I'm amazed that the council
building control didn't check with planning, or get you to sign off that you
had.

What, building control and planning depts actually talking to each
other?! Not likely...

I did a one-into-two conversion myself last year (I'm sure you replied
to many of my posts for help about it!); all done with full BC approval
and signed off, but without planning permission (a long story!); BC
weren't in the slightest bit interested in that.

Hopefully, you'll be able to get retrospective permission. You certainly
need to go through the proper channels, or you'll be paying for two lots of
everything, such as council tax etc.

Think what's needed is a Certificate of Lawfulness, or Certificate of
Regularity, or something like that. After X years, I think there's an
amnesty on not having applied for permission, providing no residents
have complained and/or nobody official has clocked it and said 'oi!'
You can't then be forced to reverse the changes, for example; which is a
risk the OP is facing at the moment. Can't remember how long "X" is; 5
or 7 years, something like that?

So unless he wants to sell imminently (which is likely to cause the
issue of planning permission to be raised), the OPs best bet is keep his
head well down for a few years, and then quietly apply to regularise it.

David