Ask the government to sell property

UK residents can ask for publicly owned land and buildings to be sold if they think that the property is vacant or underused.

You will need to track down the owner of the land and ask for the property to be sold. Your application will not entitle you to purchase the land, the owners may want to consider other offers.

The government department that owns the land will not sell if:

• the land or buildings aren’t safe for your proposed use, for example if they’re part of a port, army barracks or on a flood plain,
• they have plans for the land, such as for a railway or road,
• the cost of selling wouldn’t be good value for the taxpayer, for example if moving to another site would cost more than the value of the property.

You will receive a letter telling you the result of your application.

Initially, you could contact the Government Property Unit righttocontest@cabinet-office.gsi.gov.uk to start the ball rolling.