How Planning Delays Really Work (And How We Prepare for Them)

PropInvest Co.
Jul 10
3 min read

A transparent look at timelines, risks, and how we protect investor confidence when the planning process slows down.

If there’s one thing even seasoned investors sometimes underestimate, it’s how long planning can take, and how unpredictable it can be. The truth? Even with the best consultants, most organised documentation, and local relationships, planning delays are part of the process.

But how you prepare for those delays, and how you communicate through them, is what separates solid developers from shaky ones.

The Reality of the Planning Timeline

In theory, a simple planning application should take 8–13 weeks. In reality, you’re often looking at 4–8 months, sometimes longer, especially for:

Change of use applications
Barn conversions under Class Q
Sites in green belt or conservation areas
Anything involving multiple dwellings or new access roads

Even minor alterations can trigger back-and-forths with case officers or planning committees. And it’s not always about the site, it’s often about council capacity, political shifts, or local objections.

Where Delays Creep In

Here are the most common reasons we’ve experienced (or avoided) planning delays:

Validation delays: Applications get held up before they’re even registered, often due to missing technical reports or outdated surveys.
Inadequate pre-apps: Skipping the pre-app process can lead to bigger issues later — we now always take this route for clarity.
Third-party feedback: Highways, ecology, drainage — each of these can cause delays if not properly addressed up front.
Planning committees: When applications go to committee, timelines become far less predictable — especially in small councils with infrequent meetings.

How We Prepare for Delays (Without Compromising Delivery)

1. We build buffers into every project timeline.

If we think planning will take 4 months, we tell investors 6. We add time contingencies on paper so we can beat the timeline in reality.

2. We front-load our diligence.

This means detailed site assessments, legal checks, and pre-app discussions before a project is even offered to investors. If something is likely to cause an issue, we’ll know early — and either resolve it or walk away.

3. We work with proactive planning consultants.

We’ve built long-term relationships with planners who know the local landscape and how to manage cases diplomatically. That means faster resolutions and a realistic gauge on what’s achievable.

4. We update investors early and often.

We don’t wait for delays to become problems. Every investor gets monthly updates, with access to a shared Google Drive folder housing all submitted documents, planning responses, and consultant reports. That level of transparency builds confidence, even when timelines move.

5. We don’t raise money for planning-only sites unless we’re confident.

We’ve seen developers raise on hopes, not facts. We prefer to wait until key planning risk is removed — or if we do bring investors in at that stage, it’s with clear disclaimers and mitigations in place.

Why This Matters for Investors

Planning delays can stretch exit timelines and impact cashflow, but they don’t need to damage trust.

Because we over-communicate, structure projects with flexibility, and show the full paper trail, our investors stay confident in the process.

And when the planning does land? That uplift in value is often the biggest generator of ROI in the entire project.

What next?

Planning is not a straight line. But it’s not chaos either, if you build in structure, strategy, and transparency.

At PropInvest, we treat every project like a live ecosystem. The plan is never fixed. But our process is.

If you’re considering investing in developments with planning potential, make sure your partner has the experience and the buffer to handle what comes next.