You’ve secured the land, obtained planning permission and may already have builders on site bringing your development to life. The next step is selling the plots, and this is where preparation really pays off.
Before you start marketing to buyers, it’s worth making sure your legal ducks are in a row. Having the right information available from day one can significantly reduce delays, avoid repeated enquiries and help get each plot sale over the line as smoothly as possible.
Our Plot Sales team specialises in new‑build disposals, whether you’re selling freehold or leasehold properties, off‑plan or completed units. From experience, ensuring the right documentation is available at the outset can make a noticeable difference to how efficiently a sale progresses.
Some of the documents we ask for will be obvious. Others may feel less relevant from a developer’s perspective but they’re frequently requested by buyers’ solicitors, and delays can easily arise if they’re missing.
The good news is that you’ll often already have much of what’s needed, sometimes without realising it. If our Commercial Property team assisted with your land acquisition, we may even be holding some of these documents already. Pulling everything together early allows us to issue a robust legal pack and reduces the risk of time‑consuming follow‑up enquiries.
While this isn’t an exhaustive list (every site is different), it gives a good indication of the key documents that are most useful to have to hand.
Planning permissions and regulatory approvals
For any new build or conversion, planning-related documents are fundamental. These are usually the first items reviewed by a buyer’s solicitor, aside from the legal title.
Common requests include:
- Planning permissions
- Building Regulations approvals
- Listed Building Consent (where applicable)
- Discharge notices for planning conditions
One frequent enquiry we see is confirmation that planning conditions have been properly discharged. These notices demonstrate that the development is being built in accordance with the permission.
When selling off plan, it’s understood that not all conditions can be discharged until the build is complete. However, if pre‑commencement condition approvals are provided early and further discharge notices are supplied as the development progresses, we can issue these to buyers’ solicitors immediately, helping to avoid unnecessary delays. Building Regulations approvals and Listed Building Consents also help manage issues raised during local authority searches later in the transaction.
Title documents
We can obtain Official Copy entries from the Land Registry, but any additional title documents are extremely helpful. This includes:
- Transfer deeds
- Agreements or documents received when you purchased the land
- Any retained rights, restrictions or easements
Having these available early supports accurate contract drafting and reduces queries around title.
Building warranty documentation
Most new homes are covered by a 10‑year building warranty. Your chosen warranty provider should be able to issue an initial or cover note certificate confirming that the property or site has been registered.
Providing this early gives comfort to buyers and lenders and avoids delays later in the process.
Plans – Land Registry compliant
Land Registry requirements for transfer and lease plans are strict. Poor‑quality or non‑compliant plans are one of the most common causes of registration delays.
At a minimum, plans should:
- Clearly show the plot boundary (usually edged in red)
- Include surrounding estate roads or highways
- Identify any separate parking spaces benefiting the property
- Show a north point and Ordnance Survey details
- Include a scale bar
- Clearly edge or hatch shared areas such as estate roads or accessways
Getting this right upfront saves time and cost later.
Management company arrangements
Where a development includes communal areas, a management company is often required to ensure ongoing maintenance.
This usually involves:
- Setting up a management company structure
- Preparing a service charge budget
- Appointing a managing agent (if required)
Clear documentation around management arrangements reassures buyers and helps ensure maintenance costs are properly recovered. Our teams can guide you through this process and assist with incorporation where needed.
Additional documents to consider
Depending on the site, other useful documents may include:
- Confirmation of postal addresses
- Section 38, 278 or 106 agreements
- Wayleaves and easements
- Tree Preservation Orders
- Contractors’ All Risks Insurance
- EWS1 forms (where applicable)
- EPCs
- Other guarantees and certificates (e.g. electrical, gas, glazing)
The takeaway
Every development has its own complexities, but the principle is the same: the more information you provide upfront, the smoother the plot sales process will be.
It’s always better for us to have too much documentation than not enough. We can assess what’s relevant, supply buyers’ solicitors with what they need, and use this information to accurately draft contracts, leases and transfer documents.
We appreciate that the “Developer’s Shopping List” can feel endless. However, by instructing our specialist Plot Sales team and completing a thorough site setup at the outset, you put yourself in the best possible position for faster, less stressful transactions — and a far more efficient sales process overall.