In a perfect world, local plan viability would be based on reasonable, justifiable and sensible inputs rather than politics.
It is not a perfect world….

When economic reality and local politics collide, things can get messy.

Planners will not grant consent unless local plan contributions are met and developers can’t build to make a loss. Stalemate.

Our expertise, honed over 20 years and 600+ viability projects, is to break the stalemate before it becomes checkmate.

01  

Background

We must understand the proposed development, the end use, exit (sale or letting) and the viability issue.
So, we will need to see the Design & Access Statement and/or Planning Statement and any other documents relevant to the viability issue.

02  

Initial Appraisal

The initial appraisal is required to assess the extent of the viability problem. This is generally in terms of value deficit or the level of contributions the scheme can make while remaining sufficiently viable to be delivered.
We need plans, accommodation schedules, revenues, build costs (including any abnormals) and details of any other issues (e.g. listed buildings).

03 

Initial Appraisal Output

If the initial appraisal shows that the scheme cannot reasonably afford to make the required affordable housing and Section 106 planning contributions, we will move on to prepare our Statement of Economic Viability report (see below).
However, if the appraisal shows that the scheme can afford to make the required planning contributions, we will not proceed with the project.
Viability is not used to improve returns—it is used to reduce contributions to a level that makes an undeliverable scheme deliverable.

04  

The Report

The report is a formal Statement of Economic Viability prepared in accordance with national planning and RICS guidance and recommendations.
It sets out the viability appraisal’s assumptions, inputs and outputs, providing justification and evidence for each one.
It contains a clear conclusion of viability and recommends the necessary reductions in contributions that would allow the scheme to be delivered at a reasonable return to the developer.

05 

Agreement of Viability

Our reports are usually submitted to an expert assessor appointed by the local planning authority.
They will review our report and appraisal in great detail and may challenge our assumptions and inputs to the appraisal, and although these assessors are under the same obligation as us to act with “objectivity, impartiality and reasonableness”, we never expect (or get) an “easy ride”.

Negotiations with the assessors can take a few days or weeks, depending on the level of clarification required. The only certainty is that the time required to complete this stage is uncertain.