Land, Development & Construction
Our Real Estate team at pride themselves on being experts in the field of land, development and construction.
Our wide ranging expertise means that we are able to assist with the full spectrum of legal disciplines in this area, including:
- Advice on the most effective way to structure the transaction, including considering the suitability of a land purchase vs corporate purchase where a company owns the target development land.
- Acting on joint ventures and advising on associated documents such as collaboration agreements.
- Advising on all aspects of Construction Law and drafting/negotiating applicable documents.
- We have a specialist disputes team for Construction disputesÂ
- Site assembly projects including strategic land agreements.
- Drafting and negotiating the full raft of development agreements including option agreements, conditional contracts and overage agreements.
- Dealing with all lender and legal requirements in respect of development finance.
- Liaising with statutory undertakers and local authorities in respect of all infrastructure agreements and planning agreements.
- Plot sales, including the preparation of master legal documentation and comprehensive sales packs.
Recent Projects
- The acquisition of land for two national developers of a development site in Alton, Hampshire for 275 houses. We acted for the developers in respect of the negotiation of the option agreement approximately four years before the planning permission was achieved and the land acquired. We also acted on a collaboration agreement for the two developers and the infrastructure agreements to allow the development to be constructed.
- Acting on behalf of a regional developer who took a long term option over a site west of Oxford which included a promotion agreement style arrangement, whereby if the developer didn’t exercise the option agreement then the land would be sold on the open market and the developer would be repaid their planning costs together with a percentage of the sale price. Planning consent was obtained for half of the site (an option agreement remains in place for the remainder of the land) and was sold on the open market to a national developer. We acted in collaboration with the landowner’s solicitors and negotiated the necessary contract and transfer provisions to enable the other half of the site to be developed in the future.
- Acted on behalf of a leading UK-based regional developer on its £27.5 million purchase of a development site with outline planning permission for 248 houses in Mytchett, Surrey, with a developed value of circa £80 million. The transaction was highly complex, relating to a large area of land including numerous titles and contamination-related issues. The transaction also required our team to act on a complex S.106 Agreement which included the SANGS and structured payments for the enlargement of a local free school and independent nursery with six parties to the agreement. We acted for the developer in securing the land and development financing of £12 million to allow for the acquisition of the property. Following completion on the grant of the reserved matters planning permission, the site was re-mortgaged with a £25 million development loan.
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Property Law Team
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Herrington Carmichael offers legal advice to UK and International businesses as well as individuals and families. Rated as a ‘Leading Firm 2023’ by the legal directory Legal 500 and listed in The Times ‘Best Law Firms 2023’. Herrington Carmichael has offices in London, Farnborough, Reading, and Ascot.
Email: info@herrington-carmichael.com
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