This week, we got more responses to our letters, following the seven responses we received up to last week.
8th Call: they have someone already on the plot, so we’re too late. But I said I’d check in with them in three months. Lots of deals don’t complete, so following up is key.
9th Call: they have various pieces of land they would be interested in discussing, although, after a further look, I don’t think it’s going to be a deal. It’s too complicated; access would need negotiation with several parties, so I’ll take a pass.
10th Call; a collection of poultry farm buildings. Site visit made.
11th Call, paddock land out the rear with potential. Site visit made.
12th Call, please take me off your list.
So, out of the 108 letters sent, we’ve had 12 responses, 3 of which have been positive. We may get one or two more responses trickle through over next week, but we will have had most of our responses now.
Including the site visit we arranged last week, we have carried out three site visits this week, two of which are farm buildings, where we can use Class Q permitted development rights, and the 3rd site is paddock land.
This last site, see below, offers great potential, but as with lots of these things, it’s not straightforward. The access to the land isn’t great; that’s the issue to overcome. But the site offers so much potential as the land surrounding it is all approved for residential use, so with this site falling straight bang in the middle, it’s ripe for residential use. But the access is currently on a single-track road. So the question is, can the access road be expanded, or can we find another access point.
Along with the site visits, I’ve also been searching for more direct-to-vendor deals myself, I need to get the letters out. I want to have several deals on the go so I am not held hostage by any one deal.
Out of the three site visits this week, all went reasonably well. However, that initial meeting is just about getting a feel for each other, trying to build some rapport, understanding the owner’s situation, seeing if the site has a likely chance of success should we be able to agree on a price, what the likelihood of planning, what’s the access like any site considerations that could complicate things.
I like to have a quick initial meeting and then find a reason to visit again the following week. I find it a good exercise to have more than one meeting so you can try build a relationship with the vendor. Everything is relationships, and I want to be the friendly person they want to deal with. That means being nice, friendly, knowledgeable, interested in their wants and desires, and understanding their position so I can best craft my offer to suit them and their situation.
If I can have three meetings with someone, you can quickly build up a friendly relationship, which puts you in a better position than the agent they reach out to when they look to get a second opinion further down the line.
With these three sites currently on the go, I am analysing them in more detail this week, speaking with my planning consultant, and looking to revisit all the sites again to see if I can make an offer that works for both parties.
Next week, we will share the details of each site visit, how the negotiations went, and how the deals stack up.
If you missed last week’s newsletter, catch up on it by visiting LANDpreneur.co.uk.