Buying undeveloped land that can be built on is the new craze

Buying undeveloped land that can be built on is the new craze - and given the supply and demand equation in relation to the UK's housing needs it is not difficult to see why.

Look around your home town and a pound to a penny says that you will find one property or another appearing on land that you would not have thought could contain such development. Yet it is all the rage as back gardens fall into the hands of developers and homes start to sprout up in the most unlikely of places That means there is money to be made from owning land that has building potential and today land speculation is all the rage.

How often have you heard about substantial profits from buying land cheaply and obtaining residential planning consent7 How often have you thought that the market is only available to developers and professional speculators? Buying land for sale in Britain appears attractive during a period when property still seems to be the best and safest investment. But there are a number of factors that the investor new to the potential in self-build land needs to know about, even though investment land for sale has been considered by many to have performed well over the past few years.

The value of land has risen dramatically in recent years (almost 24 per cent last year), and with the current shortage of affordable housing, the value of self-build land development looks set to rise again. This, coupled with the fact that land is seen as a real investment and that the supply of self-build land cannot be manufactured out of nothing, shows why building plots of land for sale are viewed by many as an attractive investment opportunity.

Even so people buy land for different reasons. Some wish only to care for animals or use their land as a pony paddock; others take a long term investment perspective and hold on to their building plots of land for sale for many years, waiting for the value to appreciate. Many people also use their plot as self-build land to build their own 'dream' home.

The internet now allows land agents to market plots of self-build land for sale to the general public rather than just public bodies, farmers and the landed gentry as previously.

Because you are entering an unknown, a land agent can help with the buying process. To the man in the street, or even to those more experienced in financial matters, self-build land development is probably a foreign business Many people are experienced in the purchase of new homes and there is some overlap between this and the purchase of land, but there is also a great deal of territory between the two As with any investment, there is an element of risk with investment land. And, of course, it is about speculation and having an eye on the long game. The government has already said that to cope with the demand for housing in London green belt areas will need to be developed The figures suggest 40 per cent development of greenfield land and 60 per cent of brownfield sites.