Q: What do Saralins do?
A: We specialize in the locating and securing of ‘off market’ land that is suitable for residential re-development. All our sites must meet our strict assessment process and must be able to demonstrate that the land area can support a residential housing scheme. We discuss all our proposed schemes with the local planning authorises, to ensure that the planning officers would support any planning applications.
Q: What is involved in the land assessment process of my property / land?
A: Once you have given Saralins approval to carry out an assessment on your property / land and we have your signed lockout agreement returned, our architects will be able to draw up a suitable residential housing scheme, this will establish the density of units (houses) that will be allowed on your land. Also at this stage we will discuss our scheme with the local planning officers, as they may require other features to be included in the design: e.g. affordable housing, open space requirement, Highways etc. Once a scheme has been finalised, we will then be in a position to make you an offer based on the proposed scheme.
Q: How long does the valuation process take?
A: This process normally takes between 4 / 6 weeks, depending on the size of the scheme being proposed.
Q: How much will your services cost us?
A: Our assessment service is completely Free, if an offer is accepted, Saralins will submit all planning applications including all associated work at our own risk and cost.
Q: What happens if we accept your offer?
A: We prepare a document called an “Option to Purchase” agreement; this document states the agreed purchase price and also secures our interest in your property / land for a stated period of time, it’s during this period that we actually submit our planning applications. At this stage we would highly recommend that you take legal advice. Saralins will pay up to £500 (inc vat) towards legal costs should we not be successful in obtaining planning permission, giving you piece of mind that you wouldn’t be left with a legal bill.
Q: Why choose Saralins, we could go straight to another developer ourselves?
A: This is a very good question, and one which we do get asked a lot. The simple answer is that Saralins will ensure that your property / land obtains planning permission in as short a time scale as possible, hence the reason why our Option agreements only run for months and not years, as most developers require that an Option runs for around two years!, Remember: Land isn’t being made any more, this industry is a very completive sometimes ruthless market place....
Q: Will we be charged Capital Gains Tax on our property?
A: No, if it is your main place of residence you are not liable for CGT; if you were only selling a portion of your rear garden to Saralins, there would be some tax implications. We would therefore recommend you seek professional advice regarding tax.
Q: At what point is our property / land purchased?
A: Once planning has been gained on the site, the process of purchasing your property / land will begin. You will normally have about 6 weeks from exchange to completion, but this can be discussed further at pre-Option stage if more time is needed to vacate your home.