Option agreement for land in Northamptonshire
You grant us the right to buy within a set period, usually for an option premium, while we pursue planning.
An option agreement gives us the right, but not the obligation, to buy land within an agreed period, usually once planning is secured. The landowner is usually paid an option premium on signing and keeps the land meanwhile. On option agreements we pay the landowner's reasonable legal costs, with a cap agreed in the heads of terms.
Option agreement for land in Northamptonshire
Option agreement is one of four ways we buy land in Northamptonshire. Northamptonshire is centred on Northampton, with Kettering, Corby, Wellingborough, Rushden, Daventry and Brackley and many villages in between. There is no Green Belt and no National Park or National Landscape in the county, so constraints are mostly local: flood risk in the Nene valley, landscape and heritage. Typical sites include edge-of-town fields, urban extensions, farm buildings and village infill, plus former industrial land in the towns.
The M1, A14 and A43 corridors, and the Midland Main Line through Kettering, Wellingborough and Corby, focus much of the area's growth. Protected wetland bird habitats in the Nene valley gravel pits mean some schemes near the river contribute to recreational mitigation.
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.
Where an English council cannot show a five-year supply of housing land, or its Housing Delivery Test result falls below 75%, the August 2026 NPPF can give policy support to suitable housing outside settlement boundaries.
Northamptonshire has no designated Green Belt, so the main policy questions near Northampton are usually the settlement boundary, landscape and access.
In short: you grant us the right to buy within a set period, usually for an option premium, while we pursue planning. It usually suits farmland and larger edge-of-settlement sites; strategic land needing local plan promotion; owners happy to wait for a better price. See how an option agreement works for the full process, pros and cons.
Land in Northamptonshire that often suits an option agreement
WantedResidential development land
Around Northampton, the residential land that tends to work is close to existing homes, shops and transport rather than out on its own. Suits larger or longer-term land where planning may take several years.
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WantedLand without planning permission
Near Northampton, land without planning is worth discussing where it adjoins existing homes or has been put forward to the council's plan. Suits bigger sites or longer timescales; you are paid a premium and keep the land meanwhile.
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WantedBrownfield land
Former works, depots and yards in and around Northampton can make good housing sites once the ground and neighbouring uses are understood. Less common, but possible on larger regeneration land.
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WantedGarden and backland plots
Backland development in Northampton turns on access and privacy; we look at both before suggesting whether an application is worth making. Helpful where several gardens are being combined over time.
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WantedFarmland and paddocks
We are looking for farmland near Northampton with a realistic access, ideally land the owner has already put forward to the local plan. The usual route for larger farmland: you keep farming and we promote the land.
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WantedStrategic land
Around Northampton, strategic sites tend to be the big fields between the built edge and the main roads, where a whole new neighbourhood could be planned. The standard route: we fund promotion and you are paid on sale.
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WantedCommercial and industrial sites
Older business land around Northampton, especially units now surrounded by housing, is the kind of commercial site we would like to discuss. Possible for larger estates being phased out.
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WantedSites with lapsed or refused planning
If a scheme near Northampton was refused or ran out of time, the officer's report usually shows what a better application would need. Suits larger sites needing a longer route.
Learn moreTowns we cover in Northamptonshire
Option agreement: questions
How long do options last?
It varies with the site and the planning route, from a few years for smaller sites to longer for strategic land. Extension terms are often included.
How is the price worked out?
Commonly as market value with planning, less an agreed discount and allowable costs, often with a minimum price. Take independent advice on the mechanism.
Do you really pay my legal costs?
On option agreements we pay the landowner's reasonable legal costs, up to a cap that we agree in the heads of terms.
Do you use option agreements for land in Northamptonshire?
Yes. We use option agreements across Northamptonshire and the rest of England, where the structure suits the site and the owner.