How can I find & rent/buy a small plot of land in the UK?

November 26, 2009 11:42 AM

Where can I find information about how to find and rent/buy a small plot of land in the UK?

I'm keen to make a home for myself but with the financial crisis, sky-rocketting house prices, and lack of 100% mortgages things seem much harder than neccessary.

I've always had a dream of building my own micro-home -- the tiny houses that are suited to the builder's needs -- and after a preliminary costing it seems achieveable.

However, obtaining the land to build on is easily tripple the cost of the build!

Since micro-homes are tiny and are usually made from timber and other light-weight materials they could be considered semi-perminant, so leasing/renting land could be a suitable option. So could leasing a building's flat roof (with the added bonus of existing on-site utilities).

Google searches tend to be fruitless, so I'm wondering whether the hive-mind of askmefi can assist?

* if it helps, I'm looking for land in the Leeds/Harrogate areas of the UK

posted by refactored to home & garden (3 comments total)

Plotfinder.net.
posted by fire&wings at 12:07 PM on November 26, 2009

I've heard that Plotsearch is good. It's a subscription-based service, but might be worth the (not excessive) price.

Even wooden buildings tend to need a concrete foundation, and I suspect you'd still need planning permission, so renting land might not be on the cards.
posted by le morte de bea arthur at 12:07 PM on November 26, 2009

A concrete foundation can be as simple and unobtrusive as a series of piers set flush with the surrounding land or a slab on grade. What you leave behind when it expires is one of the things you bargain for in a long term lease. Leasing land for homes is common here in BC from either the Provincial Government who for the most part no longer sells water front property or First Nations who aren't allowed to sell reserve land. When the leases expire the homes on them are either moved, sold to the new lease holder or abandoned by the owners. So if your house is cheap enough and the lease long enough (eg: 20 years) you don't really care that you lose your house at the end.

Few roofs have excess capacity to support the addition of another story however it is something that can be accounted for in new construction.
posted by Mitheral at 1:11 PM on November 26, 2009