Planning permission for a pre-1963 cottage exempt from LPT currently

[wolfi87]

Hi, infos on www seem very confusing to me, so I hope someone here might help:

We have a pre 1963-cottage on our land that (according to neighbours) hasn't been lived in for about 40 years. Can we simply renovate it or does it require a planning permission? We would like to re-plaster it and possibly replace the corrugated iron roof with natural slate tiles, of course also doing insulation etc. The house is on an L-road where only 3 neighbours pass. We are currently exempt from the LPT since it's non-habitable (after definition "habitable" for LPT). Electricity and water connection is there already. We would also like to add a 40m² extension (which does not require approval). We're just confused as to whether planning permission is required to turn it back into a residential building. In case that's important, it's a 1-bedroom cottage (2 rooms in total) with 2 chimneys, so it was definitely a dwelling a long time ago.



Hope someone can help.

Thanks.

 

[Forumuser]

Has the cottage a septic tank and/or percolation area?
If not, you need a planning permission for sure.
You would also need planning permission if your planned extension is not situated at the back of the cottage.
I would simply ask someone in the planning office of your CC.

 

[wolfi87]

Has the cottage a septic tank and/or percolation area?
If not, you need a planning permission for sure.
You would also need planning permission if your planned extension is not situated at the back of the cottage.
I would simply ask someone in the planning office of your CC.

There is no septic tank yet, for that we need to apply, we know.

 

[Leo]

We have a pre 1963-cottage on our land that (according to neighbours) hasn't been lived in for about 40 years. Can we simply renovate it or does it require a planning permission?

The status of planning at time of construction doesn't come into play here. The fact that it's not currently classed as habitable means that full planning permission will be required to bring it back into use. With that, you must also ensure the finished product will comply fully with current building regs for energy performance, waste treatment, etc..

A Wicklow couple made the papers a couple of years back, they assumed they could just patch up an old cottage and move in. They were forced to rip out all the work they did costing them in the 10's of thousands.

I'd suggest a pre-planning meeting with the planners in your local authority to see what their appetite is for bringing this back into use. They will also be able to advise you on the grants available for the renovation of derelict properties.