Why legal searches prior to building are important....

[Feltwell]

A victory for the locals against a major housebuilder. There must be more to this story though.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-16309548

 

[Penners]

I read about that in yesterday's paper.

It's astonishing that a company of the stature of Taylor Wimpey should allow this to happen. What were they thinking of?

 

[d49xc]

I'm more astonished that the villagers "won".

I'm sure I recall a case some years ago when the Judge said something to the effect that old covenants restricting building on plots were in effect a precursor to modern planning.
As such they should not be allowed to stand in the way of a properely considered planning application which complied with the planning regulations/law as they are at present, particularly when they are being used for the sole objective of obstructing the planning process.

Pehaps the builder was insured against this sort of thing and figured that with house prices dropping and a lack of buyers they would be quids in by knocking the whole lot down, collecting the wonga and riding off into the sunset, rather than bothering to appeal the decison.
(Probaly find Tesco will apply for a change of use and put a superstore there instead!)

 

[MatthewC]

I'm sure I recall a case some years ago when the Judge said something to the effect that old covenants restricting building on plots were in effect a precursor to modern planning.
As such they should not be allowed to stand in the way of a properely considered planning application which complied with the planning regulations/law as they are at present, particularly when they are being used for the sole objective of obstructing the planning process.

Yes, but there are good reasons to observe covenants:

In London most (all?) churchyards were closed in the mid 1800s as they were full and a health hazard, and were in general passed to the "care" of local councils. IMO, they are some of the leafy green open spaces that London more attractive. Were it not for the restrictive covenants which (inter alia) prevent such sales, most councils would have sold them off for commercial development during any property boom time, to the general detriment of the locality and its populace. About 4 years ago, I had (and won) an argument with Southwark about exactly such a case, when they were proceeding without apparent knowledge of the restrictive covenants.

Matthew