Converting Offices, Retail And Factories To Residential Property

Development involving an office conversion to residential property, and, similarly, converting retail and factories to residential buildings is becoming increasingly popular in the UK. Here we discuss some of the latest government guidelines for converting properties:

Rules for office conversion to residential

According to the General Permitted Development Order (GPDO), offices are allowed to be converted to a large number of different dwellings. This is increasingly becoming one of the most popular development opportunities in England. Latest figures show that conversions involving office to residential properties in England increased by nearly 40% in a single year. As long as the offices are not part of a listed building, military explosives storage area or safety hazard zone, they can be converted into houses and flats. Somewhat surprisingly, the conversion can be carried out in protected land such as national parks and conservation areas.

You can choose to convert an office block of any size. There are also no restrictions on how many dwellings you choose to convert the block to. However, it must be taken into consideration that 30 metres squared is the smallest mortgageable size that is considered acceptable.

According to government guidelines as of 1st August 2020, floor plans must be supplied as part of the application for conversion approval. It will also require a good level of natural light to be available in all habitable rooms of the residential properties created under Class O of the GPDO. Habitable rooms include any room that isn’t purely intended for cooking purposes, such as living rooms and bedrooms. This doesn’t include toilets, corridors or utility rooms.

Converting factories to residential

When no longer used as industrial spaces, the sturdy structure of factories can make for stunning, innovative homes. However, certain issues prevent industrial to residential conversions, such as contamination and flood risks, transport risks, and whether the conversion would affect any other industrial services in the surrounding area.

New Permitted Development Rights

As of March 2020, the government widened Permitted Development Rights allowing developers to demolish buildings that aren’t being used and replace them with residential homes, without needing planning permission. However, due to the controversial uproar following this move, consultation on the matter is to continue.

The new PDR was introduced to encourage quick residential delivery, so industrial units can be easily replaced by homes. There are other benefits to this, such as adding value to factories and retail that are currently going unused, giving people some very cost-effective opportunities.

This will also benefit cities like Birmingham and their Empty Property Strategy implemented to shorten the rising need for houses by bringing empty buildings back into use and instead providing homes. As of 1st April 2020, properties that have been empty for over 5 years will face a 200% premium charge. While this is subject to certain guidelines, in general, it will encourage people to consider converting their unused offices or factories into residential buildings that people can use.