Section 106 agreements

[cjard]

I'm a bit confused about section 106s, and the threshold under which they kick in. I've a site with planning permission that someone else applied for, and they did a section 106 that was based upon affordable housing reasons

The Lancashire policy doesn't discuss anything below sites of 0.5ha / 15 houses, and I'm finding difficulty turning up info about why a builder of a single house (self build) has to enter into a section 106. I'm assuming it's local council policy, but how do I go about finding out where the policy is written?

 

[luisdesign]

It's a bit of a moot point really because that particular application was approved with a section 106 agreement. It may have been discussed at the time of the application and agreed between the applicant at the time.

It sounds as though the local authority may have asked for it because she new house was being built but it was not going to be affordable. Sometimes just 1 new house is enough to kick it in, sometimes anything up to 10 houses can be planned before you need to worry about it. This varies from authority to authority. Have you contacted the planning officer to find out exactly why it is there?

However, as mentioned if you want to go ahead with that particular permission then you will need to factor in the s106.

If you think this will get in the way then you will likely have to make a new application and submit a viability study demonstrating how the 106 will kill the build.

 

[cjard]

Thanks LD.. I'm making a new application and the council said I'd need to make a new s106, but the confusing thing for me is I can't see why and they didn't say; it doesn't meet the laid down thresholds that I can find. Wordings published from other councils say an s106 cannot be used to "bribe" the council into passing an otherwise refusable application so you'd hope that the existing permission would have passed whether it had a 106 or not. I don't buy the other spurious "because it will put an extra strain on local services" arguments, because that's what council tax is for I also read that if the council haven't verifiably used any sums paid after acertain time, the developer should get them back; i'd be keen to know how this is tracked and accounted for

I think, as I'm making a new application, I'll probably have an ideal opportunity to raise these questions. I find it a rather bizarre situation mostly because government documents bang on about affordable housing as housing that's 20, maybe 25% less than market rate in order that it be brought into line of what the purchaser can afford.. I've bought a site that I'll develop into a house and I can just about afford to do it because I'm putting my own sweat into it. If I were to buy the house I want to build, off a developer, it would no longer be affordable. Perhaps this is what you mean by killing the build..

 

[SuperMario80]

Sorry for the thread revival!!

We're currently doing a self build, and managed to successfully get our Section 106 reduced to a much more realistic fee. If anybody needs any advice on it, drop me a line, best place is to leave a comment on my blog below...

http://aquatacklerblog.wordpress.com

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