Received a letter?
Received a Letter From Us About Your Land?
Thank you for looking us up. It is sensible to check who has written to you before replying. Here is who we are, why we got in touch, and how to check everything we say.
Why We Wrote to You
We write to owners of land that our research suggests may have potential for new homes. We use publicly available information, including HM Land Registry records, council planning documents, Ordnance Survey mapping and the government's housing delivery figures, to find land near towns and villages in areas where more housing is needed. Your land came up in that research.
We do not know everything about your land from a desk. There may be good reasons it would not work, which is why the first step is a conversation and a free review rather than an offer.
What the Letter Does and Does Not Mean
- It does not mean anyone has applied for planning on your land. We have not contacted the council or your neighbours.
- It does not commit you to anything. There is no cost to finding out more, and no obligation at any stage until you sign an agreement with your own solicitor's advice.
- It does mean we think your land is worth a closer look, which we can do free of charge.
Who We Are
Subhan Property Group is a trading name of Subhan Developers Group Ltd. We agree prices for land with development potential under option agreements. We fund and run all of the planning work, at our own cost and risk, and we are proud joint venture partners of BuildUp. If planning is not achieved, the landowner keeps the land and owes nothing. More about us.
In practice, that means we agree a price with you at the start, above what the land is worth today. We then pay for everything needed to seek planning permission: surveys, design, council fees and, if needed, appeals. If permission is granted, we complete the purchase and you receive the agreed price. See every step.
How to Check Us Out
You should never deal with anyone about your land without checking who they are. These checks take a few minutes.
- Search for Subhan Developers Group Ltd on the Companies House website to see the company's details and directors.
- Ring the phone number on this website, not a number from an email or text message you were not expecting.
- Ask us for planning references for schemes our partner has worked on, and look them up on the council's planning portal.
- Ask your own solicitor or land agent to speak to us. We contribute to their fees if you go ahead.
We will never ask you for bank details, identity documents or a payment before you have taken independent advice and signed an agreement. If anyone claiming to be from us does, please tell us.
If Other Buyers Have Written to You Too
Land near a town or village often attracts letters from several land buyers, promoters and housebuilders. They are rarely offering the same thing, and the headline figure can hide the difference.
| Approach | What is on offer | Who takes the planning risk | What to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outright purchase | A price for the land as it is now, perhaps with some hope value. | The buyer. | Whether there is overage, so you share in any planning later. See overage explained. |
| Conditional contract | A binding contract to buy at a set price if planning is granted. | The buyer pays for planning, and you are committed to sell if it succeeds. | The planning conditions that must be met and the long-stop date. |
| Option agreement | The right to buy at an agreed price or a percentage of market value, with the buyer paying for planning. | The option holder. | Price basis, deductions, the option period and the long-stop date. See option agreements explained. |
| Promotion agreement | A share of the open-market price once planning is granted. | The promoter, who recovers its costs from the sale. | The fee, the cap on costs and the minimum price. See promotion agreement fees. |
| A consultant offering to put your land forward | Their services, to submit your land to the council or seek planning. | You. | What you pay if planning fails, and whether you would be tied in. |
Our comparison of option, promotion and outright sale goes through the first four side by side.
How to Assess Any Approach, Including Ours
- Identify who wrote. Get the full company name and number and look it up on Companies House. Check when it was set up, who the directors are and whether its accounts are filed on time.
- Work out what is being offered. Match it to one of the approaches above. A letter that talks about a price without saying how it will be paid, or when, is not yet an offer.
- Ask for it in writing. Genuine buyers will send heads of terms, a short summary of the proposed deal, marked "subject to contract".
- Take independent advice. A solicitor who knows development land, and ideally a land agent. Ask the buyer what it will contribute to their fees.
- Compare like with like. For each offer, work out what you would actually receive, when, and what happens if planning fails.
Warning Signs
- Any request for money, such as a registration, survey or marketing fee, from someone who says they want to buy your land.
- Pressure to decide quickly, or an offer that "expires" within days.
- Requests for bank details or identity documents by email or phone before you have taken advice.
- A high price per acre quoted before anyone has looked at the land.
- No company name or number, or contact only through a mobile number or a free email account.
- Being told you do not need your own solicitor, or being steered to one the buyer chooses.
- An email saying payment details have changed. Always check by phone, on a number you already have.
Questions to Ask Whoever Wrote to You
- Which company would I sign with, and what is its number?
- Are you buying, taking an option, or promoting the land for a share of the sale?
- How is the price worked out, and what could be deducted?
- What happens to me if planning fails?
- How long would my land be tied up, and is there a long-stop date?
- What will you contribute to my solicitor and land agent?
Our guide to option agreements has a fuller list for when you reach heads of terms.
What Not to Sign Before Taking Advice
- An exclusivity or lock-out letter, explained below.
- Heads of terms that are not marked "subject to contract".
- A letter authorising someone to put your land forward to the council, or to act for you in the local plan, before an agreement protects you.
- Anything that makes you pay the other side's costs if you decide not to go ahead.
- Any document handed to you on the doorstep or at a meeting, however short.
Exclusivity and Lock-Out Agreements
A buyer about to spend money on legal work and surveys will often ask you to agree not to negotiate with anyone else for a while. This is called exclusivity or a lock-out. It is common and not unreasonable, but it deserves a careful read, because a lock-out for a fixed period can be legally binding even when the rest of the heads of terms is "subject to contract". A fair one will be:
- For a short, fixed period, measured in weeks or a few months.
- Agreed only once you are happy with the headline terms.
- Ended automatically if the buyer has not sent draft documents by a set date.
- Free of any obligation to pay the buyer's costs if you walk away.
The bigger lock-out is the agreement itself. Once an option or promotion agreement is signed, you normally cannot deal with anyone else over the land for its whole term, which can run for many years. That is why the length of the period and the long-stop date, the date after which it ends whatever is happening, matter so much.
Common Worries
Is this a scam?
It is right to ask. We are a registered company, we do not ask for money, and every agreement is reviewed by your own solicitor before you sign. Call us on 020 7946 0850 or check the company on Companies House.
Will you pressure me to sell?
No. Many landowners take months to decide, often after talking to their family. If you would rather we did not follow up, just say so.
I do not want to sell, but I am curious. Is that all right?
Yes. Plenty of people ask for a review simply to understand what their land might be worth. There is no obligation.
The land is owned by several of us. Who should contact you?
Any of you can. Nothing can be signed without every owner agreeing, and we are happy to talk to the whole family together.
How did you get my name and address?
From the HM Land Registry title register, which is a public record. Our privacy notice explains how we use it and how to ask us to stop.
Will my neighbours find out?
Not from us. Our review is confidential. Planning applications and local plan submissions become public later, and we always discuss timing with you before anything is submitted.
Would You Rather We Did Not Write Again?
That is fine. Tell us by phone on 020 7946 0850 or by email to land@subhanpropertygroup.co.uk, quoting the reference on your letter if you have it, and we will not write to you again. You can read how we use information, and your right to object, in our privacy notice.
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