|
Good evening!
Planning applications in England are about to become more expensive. The government says the additional income should improve council planning services, although self-builders will begin paying the higher fees before there is evidence that decisions are becoming faster or more reliable.
Planning Fees Are Rising Before the Service Improves
The government confirmed its new approach to planning application fees on 16 July.
National fees will be set at around 90% of the estimated cost of processing each application. The government intends to introduce the new charges before the end of 2026, subject to Parliamentary approval. Read the government response.
As a self-builder, you need to remember that the important point is that the application fee is only one part of the planning cost.
Applications fees to increase
Under the proposed national schedule, a full application for one new dwelling would rise from £610 to £752. Discharging conditions on a non-householder application would increase from £309 to £435. See the proposed fee schedule.
That still represents a small proportion of an entire self-build budget. However, it sits alongside other costs such as pre-application advice, drawings, surveys, planning consultants, ecology work and any amendments required after submission.
The government is also developing a separate surcharge to fund statutory consultees, while councils will retain the ability to charge for discretionary services such as pre-application advice.
The fee could eventually depend on the council
A national fee schedule will be introduced first. Local authorities are then expected to gain powers to increase fees where they can show that the national amount does not cover their costs.
The government proposes allowing councils to charge up to 30% above the national default without seeking exceptional approval.
A £752 application could therefore cost approximately £978 in an authority applying the full increase. And if they can, they probably will.
That creates another local variable for self-builders to investigate alongside planning policy, Community Infrastructure Levy and local validation requirements.
This Week’s Biggest Self-Build News…
- Angela Rayner was appointed Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on 20 July. She previously held the same role between July 2024 and September 2025. Her responsibilities include strategic oversight of housing, planning, local government and regional growth. Matthew Pennycook remains a Minister of State in the department and will attend Cabinet, providing some continuity in the detailed housing and planning portfolio. See the ministerial appointments. A change at the top does not immediately alter the planning rules facing a self-builder. It will be interesting to see if the new administration continues Right to Build reform, improves plot delivery and gives councils enough resource to process applications properly.
- The Bank of England reported that the average quoted two-year fixed rate was 4.92% at 75% loan-to-value and 5.32% at 90% loan-to-value. Nearly 750,000 households paying less than 3% are expected to leave their fixed deals during 2026, with an average projected increase of £170 a month. Read the July Financial Stability Report. This affects completed self-builders as well as people arranging stage-payment finance. A build that finishes later than expected may reach its permanent mortgage at a less favourable rate, while owners who completed a few years ago may now be approaching a much more expensive remortgage.
- From 21 July, eligible households in England and Wales replacing heating oil can receive £9,000 towards a heat pump through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. The grant has increased from £7,500 and is aimed particularly at rural homes exposed to oil-price changes. Read the government announcement. This is more relevant to completed self-builds than most new builds. The grant reduces the initial cost, but it does not confirm that a heat pump will be cheap to run. Heat loss, emitter sizing, hot-water demand and electricity tariffs still need to be assessed for the individual house.
- On 21 July, the government published a Lewisham case study where an AI-based mapping tool identified 3,017 small sites with potential capacity for 9,747 homes. The tool’s accuracy varied between 31% and 76%, so planning officers still had to review the results. Read the Lewisham case study. This sits alongside a prototype being tested in Barnet, Camden and Dorset that aims to reduce the processing time for routine householder applications from eight weeks to four, while leaving decisions with planning officers. Read about the planning prototype. For self-builders, the small-sites work is more directly relevant because it could uncover infill and backland opportunities. However, a site identified by software is not a plot for sale or evidence that permission will be granted so it obviously needs to be treated with caution.
I hope this week’s stories help you account for the smaller changes that can gradually alter the cost and risk of a self-build over time.
Feel free to send any comments or feedback by hitting reply.
Brendan
P.s If you think anyone you know would find this digest interesting please forward them this email!
|
