Building your own home in Lancashire is more achievable than most people assume, but the projects that go well are the ones where the plot, the planning position and the budget were checked properly before any money changed hands. This guide covers what to expect locally, from finding land around Preston and the Ribble Valley to what a build realistically costs per square metre.
Land is usually the hardest part. Serviced single plots are scarce, so most self builders end up with a garden plot, an infill site between existing houses, or a tired bungalow bought to knock down and replace. Replacement dwellings are often the easiest route to permission because the principle of a house on the site is already established.
Prices vary widely across the county. As a rough guide, a single plot with permission might be £70,000 to £130,000 in parts of Burnley, Pendle or Hyndburn, £120,000 to £250,000 around Preston, Chorley and South Ribble, and well above that in the Ribble Valley or sought-after spots on the Fylde coast such as Lytham.
Every Lancashire council keeps a self-build register. Signing up is free or low cost, and it tells the council there is demand for plots in its area. It will not hand you a plot, but it is worth doing on day one.
Never buy land without at least outline permission, or a contract that is conditional on getting it. A full application for a single house currently costs around £600 in fees, and councils aim to decide within eight weeks, although 10 to 14 weeks is common once queries and conditions are involved. Most councils offer paid pre-application advice, which is money well spent on a marginal site.
Lancashire has some specific issues worth checking early:
Build costs in Lancashire are generally lower than in the south, but they are not cheap. For a builder-led project, allow roughly £1,800 to £2,400 per square metre for a good standard specification, and £2,500 to £3,200 or more for high-end finishes, large areas of glazing or a complicated design. On that basis a 160 square metre four-bedroom house might cost £290,000 to £385,000 to build, before land.
What moves the figure most is ground conditions, the shape of the house, the level of finish, and how far the site is from mains drainage, water and electricity. On top of the build itself, budget for:
New build homes are zero rated for VAT, and you can reclaim VAT on eligible materials you buy yourself through the HMRC scheme for self builders, provided you claim within six months of completion. Keep every invoice from the start.
A sensible sequence looks like this:
Allow two to three years from starting your plot search to moving in. The build itself usually takes 9 to 14 months for a typical detached house, with design, planning and building regulations approval taking 6 to 12 months before that.
Yes. A new dwelling always needs full planning permission, even on land you already own, and the council will look at access, parking, overlooking and the effect on neighbours.
You can, and managing individual trades may save 10 to 15 per cent, but it takes a great deal of time and the risk of delays and mistakes sits with you. Many self builders use a main contractor for the structural shell and manage the finishing trades themselves as a middle route.
Tell us about your project. John personally reviews every enquiry and replies within the working day.
