Question 1

What is my land worth?

Accepted Answer

There is no single price for a piece of land, because value sits in what can be done with it, not in the acreage or the current use. The same field is worth one figure as grazing land and a very different figure once a developer can build homes on it. What moves the number is location, access, the local planning position, the size of the viable scheme, and whether the land already has consent or a realistic route to it. We have appraised land across Cannock, Walsall, Hednesford and the wider Staffordshire and West Midlands region since 1994. We can look at your specific site and tell you what is realistic, what would lift the figure, and which type of buyer is the right fit.

Question 2

What is the difference between Green Belt and Grey Belt?

Accepted Answer

Green Belt is protected open land around towns and cities, designated to prevent sprawl, protect the countryside and maintain separation between settlements. Building on Green Belt land is treated as inappropriate unless exceptional circumstances apply, which has historically led many landowners to assume their land has no development potential. Grey Belt is a newer classification, introduced in the revised National Planning Policy Framework in December 2024. It describes land within the Green Belt that either has previously been developed or that no longer strongly serves the Green Belt's purposes. Where land qualifies as Grey Belt, development proposals are not automatically inappropriate if they meet the planning Golden Rules. Our Rushall site in Walsall is a direct example. Land the owner had assumed was permanently protected Green Belt turned out to qualify as Grey Belt under the new framework. That change in classification changed what the site was worth and what could be done with it. If your land is Green Belt, it is worth asking whether it is in fact Grey Belt.

Question 3

Do I need planning permission before I sell?

Accepted Answer

No. You can sell land with planning permission already in place, or without it. Both routes are common, and each suits a different type of owner. Selling with consent usually delivers a higher price, because the buyer takes on less risk. But securing planning consent takes time and money, and the outcome is not guaranteed. Selling without consent, via an option or promotion agreement, is faster and simpler, and transfers the planning risk to the buyer or promoter while still allowing you to share in the value that planning permission creates. There is no single right answer. We will look at your land and your priorities and recommend the route that fits.

Question 4

What is an option agreement, and how does it differ from a promotion agreement?

Accepted Answer

These are the two most common ways to sell land that does not yet have planning permission, where a developer or promoter takes on the planning risk on your behalf. Under an option agreement, a developer pays for the right to buy your land at a later point, usually once they have secured planning consent. The price is typically set as a percentage of the land's value at the time of the transaction, reflecting its consented development value. The developer carries the cost and risk of the planning process. Under a promotion agreement, a specialist promoter funds and manages the planning application on your behalf. Once planning is secured, the land is sold on the open market and you share the proceeds with the promoter, usually after their costs and an agreed percentage. This route tends to suit larger or more complex sites. Both approaches let you benefit from the increase in value that planning permission brings without funding the process yourself or carrying the risk.

Question 5

How long does a land sale take?

Accepted Answer

It depends on the route. A sale of land that already has planning permission can complete in weeks to a few months, broadly similar to a house sale in terms of conveyancing. A sale conditional on planning, where the price is only released when the buyer secures consent, typically takes a year or more, because the timeline is set by the local planning authority rather than by you or the buyer. Our completed Hednesford case study, Trinity Court, ran from instruction to £750,000 in five months, but that included a full scheme redesign and pre-application planning process before going to market. Not every site will move at that pace. We give you an honest timescale at the start, specific to your site, so there are no surprises.

Question 6

Is my site developable?

Accepted Answer

Most sites are worth appraising, even when they look unlikely at first glance. The questions that determine developability are not always intuitive. Planning history, access, neighbouring uses, local authority housing targets, Green Belt or Grey Belt status, flood risk and infrastructure capacity all play a part, and no one factor is automatically decisive. The Rushall site came in looking like protected Green Belt land. It was not. The Hednesford site was a redundant community building that had been looked at and passed over. It was not unpromising. It was under-analysed. We assess sites that others have dismissed and find value that was not immediately visible. If you have a site you are unsure about, speak to us. We will tell you honestly what we see.

Question 7

What is change of use, and could it apply to my land?

Accepted Answer

Change of use is the planning process of obtaining permission to use land or a building for a different purpose than it currently has. For landowners, the most relevant version is the change from agricultural, commercial, industrial or community use to residential, because that change typically generates a substantial increase in value. The Trinity Court site in Hednesford is our clearest example. The value came from changing what a 0.58-acre site was permitted to be used for, from a redundant church and community hall to 23 residential apartments. The site did not get bigger or move. It just got permission. If you own a paddock, a yard, a former commercial building, a redundant barn or an institutional site that is no longer in its original use, change of use is one of the first things we look at when we assess your land.

Question 8

What happens after I make an enquiry?

Accepted Answer

We will come back to you within two working days. If the site looks like something we can add value to, we will arrange to walk the site and review the planning history. We will then prepare a confidential appraisal covering the development value, the planning route options and a realistic timescale for each. That appraisal is confidential. It does not commit you to selling. It does not create any obligation to instruct us. It is designed to give you the information you need to make your own decision.

Your land could be worth more than you think

Honest appraisal. Clear planning. Best price.

Four common situations we help unlock

The homeowner with a large side or rear garden

The business owner with an underused car park or yard

The owner of waste or unused land

The owner of an oversized property

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