Despite Illegally building 12 bungalows you can Keep Them!

I am sure that many people would love the flexibility of building anywhere and everywhere we wanted on land/property that we own, though we all know that we need to seek permission first and this means working closely with the planning department.

So a recent news story highlighting that illegal new building work took place and the developer has been allowed to keep what they built will raise a few eyebrows and of course tempt others to do likewise!

A developer who was said to have secretly built 12 bungalows without planning permission (they were disguised as gyms) has been allowed to keep them following investigation from Birmingham City Council’s planning committee – Raising a few eyebrows I am sure and of course we ask the question, who knows who at the said planning department so that illegal activities have been rewarded?

The 12 illegally built bungalows, an eye sore for sure, are hidden behind a row of flats in the Hall Green area of Birmingham and had electrics / water all connected ready for residential use – The planning department has since removed the utility connections.

Of course, if the planning department act as they would do if illegal development was against the law, the buildings would be torn down, but it appears that the planning committee withdrew their rejection upon advise that they would find it difficult to defend this in an appeal?

Remedial work is set to be carried out on the illegally built residential property portfolio to include installing roofs, doors and windows.

So lesson of the day, so I see this as being, is to attempt to build what you want on your land, you just may get away with it?

Full story can be read on the Daily Mail website.

Christopher Walkey

Founder of Estate Agent Networking. Internationally invited speaker on how to build online target audiences using Social Media. Writes about UK property prices, housing, politics and affordable homes.

You May Also Enjoy

Breaking News

Nationwide extends six times lending to home movers and remortgage

Nationwide enhances support for people looking to move up the property ladder or get a new mortgage deal Five-fold increase in Nationwide loans to first-time buyers at or above 5.5x income in 2025, compared to 2024 Increased first-time buyer support follows regulatory changes to improve affordability Nationwide is today announcing a major boost to the…
Read More
Breaking News

Breaking Property News – 21/1/2026

Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X.   Jon Cooke steps down as Non-Executive Director at GPEA Jon Cooke will continue to focus on innovation within the property sector Jon Cooke has stepped down from his role as Non-Executive Director at GPEA, the business that owned Fine & Country and The Guild…
Read More
Breaking News

UK Finance Buy-to-Let Mortgage Market Update

UK Finance today releases its buy-to-let (BTL) mortgage market update for Q3 2025, looking at trends in lending to borrowers accessing the market. In Q3 2025 there were 59,467 new buy-to-let loans advanced in the UK, worth £10.9 billion. This was up quite significantly compared with the same quarter in the previous year, 22.7 per…
Read More
Breaking News

ONS Private Rent and House Prices Index

Average UK monthly private rents increased by 4.0%, to £1,368, in the 12 months to December 2025 (provisional estimate); this annual growth rate is down from 4.4% in the 12 months to November 2025. Average rents increased to £1,424 (3.9%) in England, £822 (5.7%) in Wales, and £1,018 (2.8%) in Scotland, in the 12 months…
Read More
Breaking News

UK House Price Index November 2025

The latest index shows that: The average monthly rate of house price growth in November was +0.3%. Average UK house price annual inflation was 2.5% in the 12 months to November 2025, up from the revised estimate of 1.9% in the 12 months to October 2025. As a result, the average UK house price currently…
Read More
Breaking News

Industry Comment on UK inflation rising to 3.4%

UK inflation rises for the first time in 5 months. Industry reactions on UK inflation rising to 3.4% Nathan Emerson, CEO of Propertymark: “To witness inflation creep back upwards again will no doubt be disappointing for many consumers who will have been hoping to see a drop as we move further into the first quarter…
Read More