The Farmland Market and other Press Releases
Changes to Rural Planning Policy
The Government has signalled changes to Rural Planning Policy which, if implemented, will have a far reaching affect on land ownership and development strategies.
The policy areas include making the provision of affordable housing easier in small villages to address the housing shortage, and revising policy to make it easier for rural businesses to get planning permission for sites in rural locations that might struggle under the current regime.
The Government also proposes to overhaul drastically the existing suite of national Planning Policy Statements by amalgamating many of them, including parts of PPS7 which covers agricultural and economic development in rural areas.
Symonds & Sampson act as planning consultants across the region, providing strategic advice in relation to the Development Plan system, as well as advising on individual planning applications for agricultural, commercial and residential development. If you have a planning proposal or are experiencing problems with a scheme, please contact us for an initial discussion:
Patrick Woodford on 01305 264172 pwoodford@symondsandsampson.co.uk
or
Simon Munnings on 01202 639403 smunnings@symondsandsampson.co.uk
Whats in Store for Farm Agency This Year ?
2009 is shaping up to be a challenging year with rather too many unknown factors for comfort when it comes to valuing farms. There are forces at work that we haven’t seen before and only time will tell what affect they have on values. There are still, for instance, a large number of people with cash. They have been concerned for some while about the safety of leaving it in the bank and now they have to contend with virtually no interest being paid on it. The pound’s dive against the euro should spur interest from Ireland and the near continent but they have problems of their own. British farmers particularly in the arable sector have generally been receiving more sensible return for their efforts. These matters should maintain the current strong demand for farms in particular.
But what of the supply side? That is almost certain to remain tight. Commercial farmers are less likely to sell when they are making good profits and feeling values are reasonably good (Getting out at the top is always difficult!). We have however seen some land sold in preference to devalued stocks and shares and that trend might continue.
Whilst land prices remain strong against a background of struggling house prices this may be the time to consider one’s options. Why not call one of our Farm Agency contacts to discuss your situation?