Skip to content

Wanted in Folkestone

Development land wanted in Folkestone

We are looking for development land in and around Folkestone: plots, fields, brownfield sites and buildings.

In Kent, Folkestone sits about 31 miles south-east of Maidstone; Dover and Ashford are its nearest neighbours on our list. We are based in Great Barr, Birmingham, around 166 miles from Folkestone, and we travel to see sites across England and Wales.

Kent ranges from the Medway towns, Dartford and Gravesend on the Thames to Maidstone, Ashford, Canterbury, Tunbridge Wells and the coastal towns of Margate, Ramsgate, Folkestone and Dover. West Kent is largely Metropolitan Green Belt, while the Kent Downs and High Weald National Landscapes cover much of the countryside. Sites typically include edge-of-town fields, orchards and farmland, farm buildings, infill plots and brownfield land in the towns.

In England, the revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 17 August 2026 replaced the old "tilted balance" with new settlement policies: development within a settlement should normally be approved unless the harm substantially outweighs the benefits, while land outside a settlement can gain support in defined circumstances.

Some land in Kent is designated Green Belt. If your land is within it, it may still qualify as grey belt or previously developed land under national policy, subject to the Golden Rules.

Land we want in Folkestone

Edge-of-town meadow with timber survey stakes and orange marker pegs, houses along the far boundary

Residential development land

In and around Folkestone we are interested in land that sits naturally alongside existing streets, where new homes would read as part of the place.

Vacant fenced development plot with a council planning notice tied to a lamp post and terraced houses beyond

Land with planning permission

We are interested in sites with planning across the Folkestone area, including smaller consents that larger housebuilders may pass over.

Gently sloping green field next to an English village with a church tower behind a hawthorn hedge

Land without planning permission

Near Folkestone, land without planning is worth discussing where it adjoins existing homes or has been put forward to the council's plan.

Cleared former industrial yard with cracked concrete, a palisade fence and an old brick warehouse wall

Brownfield land

In Folkestone, the brownfield sites we look at are often tucked behind main roads or alongside older housing, close to services.

Overgrown empty plot between two Edwardian semi-detached houses on a suburban street

Infill plots

We look for infill plots across Folkestone and the surrounding villages, particularly where there is room for parking off the road.

Long rear gardens behind 1930s semi-detached houses with a gravel access lane along the bottom

Garden and backland plots

In parts of Folkestone with long gardens or rear lanes, backland plots can work well if the access is wide enough and neighbours are treated fairly.

Horse paddock with post-and-rail fencing and a field gate on the edge of a village at evening

Farmland and paddocks

Around Folkestone, paddocks and fields beside existing homes can have real potential, even where they have been grazed or farmed for generations.

High aerial view of large farmland fields beside a market town, a ring road and a river lined with willows

Strategic land

Around Folkestone, strategic sites tend to be the big fields between the built edge and the main roads, where a whole new neighbourhood could be planned.

Corner plot of rough grass at a suburban road junction with houses along both roads

Small sites

In Folkestone, small sites are often the leftover pieces: a side garden, an old garage block or a gap where a building once stood.

Vacant single-storey industrial units with grey roller shutters and an empty tarmac forecourt

Commercial and industrial sites

In Folkestone, industrial land that has drifted out of use can often be reimagined as homes, subject to the council's view on employment land.

Disused two-storey 1960s brick office building with an empty weed-cracked car park among houses

Redundant buildings

Redundant buildings in Folkestone often sit in the heart of things, close to shops and transport, which can make them strong residential sites.

Traditional red-brick barn with clay tile roof beside a modern steel portal-frame barn on a farmyard

Barns and rural buildings

We look at barns and rural yards around Folkestone and give a straight view on whether conversion or replacement is realistic.

Row of lock-up garages with faded up-and-over doors around a tarmac court behind 1960s houses

Garage courts and yards

Across Folkestone, lock-up blocks that are half empty can be a better use of land as homes, with parking handled sensibly.

Overgrown fenced plot with brambles and saplings behind a weathered hoarding between houses

Sites with lapsed or refused planning

If a scheme near Folkestone was refused or ran out of time, the officer's report usually shows what a better application would need.

Desk with a printed local plan proposals map showing coloured site boundaries and a housing layout sketch

Allocated and promoted land

Around Folkestone, allocated sites and land put forward to the council are usually the furthest along, so they can often move faster than land at an earlier stage.

Four ways to sell to us

01

Outright purchase

We agree a price and buy the land, with no planning condition attached.

Outright purchase

02

Subject-to-planning contract

We agree a price now and complete once a satisfactory planning permission is granted.

Subject-to-planning contract

03

Option agreement

You grant us the right to buy within a set period, usually for an option premium, while we pursue planning.

Option agreement

04

Joint venture

You contribute the land, we fund and manage planning and delivery, and the proceeds are shared as agreed.

What happens after you get in touch

Get in touch
Tell us where the land is and what you know about it.
Site review
We look at the land, its planning position and anything that could affect it.
Proposal
We put our proposal in writing, with no obligation to accept.
Exchange and completion
If you go ahead, contracts are exchanged and the sale completes on the agreed terms.

Development land in Folkestone: common questions

Do you buy development land in Folkestone?

Yes. We buy development land in Folkestone and throughout Kent, as well as elsewhere in England and Wales. Tell us where the land is and we will give you a free appraisal.

Which planning rules apply to land in Folkestone?

As Folkestone is in England, national policy comes from the National Planning Policy Framework, revised in August 2026. Local policies in the council's development plan also apply.

Do I need to pay anything to have land in Folkestone assessed?

No. Our appraisal is free and there is no obligation to sell to us.

Do you buy land in Wales?

Yes. We buy across Wales, taking account of Planning Policy Wales, Local Development Plans, flood risk under TAN 15 and, where relevant, phosphate issues in river catchments.

Got land that could take new homes?

Free, no-obligation site appraisal. We buy directly, with or without planning.

Submit a site 0800 088 6248

Call free Submit a site