Option agreements for land in Cambridge
For owners in Cambridge and the CB21 area, an option agreement is worth understanding before you talk to any buyer, including us.
An option agreement gives a buyer the right, but not the obligation, to buy land within a set period, usually once planning permission is obtained. The landowner receives an option fee up front and, if the option is exercised, a price normally based on market value with permission, less agreed deductions.
- Free appraisal and written offer
- No pressure to decide
- Independent advice encouraged
Get an offer for land in Cambridge
Send the postcode and a rough size.
Where Cambridge sits
Land around Cambridge falls under England's planning system. The closest towns we also cover are St Ives, 12 miles away, and Newmarket, 13 miles away, and Peterborough is 30 miles away.
Flat arable fenland in the north contrasts with a fast-growing Cambridge area in the south, where the Cambridge green belt surrounds the city.
| Town | Cambridge |
|---|---|
| County | Cambridgeshire |
| Country | England |
| Postcode district | CB21 |
| OS grid square | TL45 |
| Nearest towns we cover | St Ives (12 mi), Newmarket (13 mi), Ely (15 mi) |
| Distance from Peterborough | About 30 miles south-east |
| Planning system | National Planning Policy Framework and local plan |
| When you're paid | Option fee now, price when the option is exercised |
| Planning costs | Ours, sometimes recoverable from the price |
When an option agreement suits land near Cambridge
- Larger fields and blocks on the edge of towns and villages
- Owners happy to wait several years for a higher price
- Owners who want to keep farming until development
- Sites with technical issues that need time to resolve
If your land could be allocated in a future local plan, an option keeps it moving towards development without you funding the work.
How the money works
Purchase price
Often a percentage of market value with permission, less agreed costs.
Minimum price
A floor that protects you if values fall.
Term
How long we have to secure permission and exercise the option.
Deductions
Which planning and infrastructure costs come off the price before you're paid.
Land near Cambridge that an option agreement suits
Land without planning permission in Cambridge
We pay for the right to buy later and fund the planning work meanwhile.
Large strategic sites in Cambridge
The usual route: an option fee now and a price based on market value later.
Paddocks and equestrian land in Cambridge
Useful where the paddock could form part of a wider site.
Infill plots and gap sites in Cambridge
Seldom needed for single infill plots.
How a sale works
Tell us about your land
Send the postcode or address and a rough size.
We do the homework
We read the title and planning record and check flood risk and access.
You get a written offer
With the main figures behind it, so your adviser can check it.
Solicitors complete the sale
Exchange and complete, or exchange now and complete when planning is granted.
Planning and legal points for land in Cambridgeshire
Planning framework
Planning decisions in England follow the National Planning Policy Framework, revised in August 2026, and the local plan, prepared by the council or, in a national park, the park authority. Plans are reviewed periodically, which is when new housing sites are usually allocated.
Section 106 and CIL
Larger schemes often need a Section 106 agreement for affordable housing or contributions, and councils that have adopted the Community Infrastructure Levy charge it per square metre of new floorspace.
Common problems, and how we handle them
You're worried about the deductions
Ask for a clear list and a cap on what can be deducted. We'll explain each one.
You'd like your advisers' costs covered
Many option agreements include a contribution to the landowner's legal and agent costs. We'll tell you if ours does.
Useful to send us
- A rough size, in acres or hectares
- A plan, or a screenshot from an online map
- Your title number, if you know it
- How soon you'd ideally like to sell
Questions from landowners near Cambridge
What is an option agreement?
A contract that gives the buyer the right to buy your land within a set period, usually after planning permission is granted. You receive an option fee now and the purchase price if the option is exercised.
Do I keep the option fee if you don't buy?
Normally, yes. The terms are set out in the agreement.
Can I sell to someone else during the option?
Not usually. The option binds the land, and it's normally registered against your title.
Do you cover the villages around Cambridge?
Yes. Villages between Cambridge, St Ives and Newmarket often have the kind of edge-of-settlement land we're looking for.
More land we buy in Cambridge
- Development land
- Land with planning permission
- Land without planning permission
- Large strategic sites
- Green belt and grey belt land
- Land for affordable homes
- Farmland and agricultural land
- Paddocks and equestrian land
- Barns and rural buildings
- Building plots
- Garden land and backland
- Infill plots and gap sites
- Small sites
- Garage sites
- Brownfield land
- Redundant commercial and industrial land
- Inherited and probate land
- Landlocked land and access problems
- Outright purchase
- Subject-to-planning sale
- Joint ventures
- All land in Cambridge
- Option agreements in Cambridgeshire
Get a straight answer about your land
Send the postcode and a rough size. We'll check the title and planning position and come back to you.