How much does planning permission really cost in Broadland?

Most homeowners planning a home project in Broadland start by googling the fee. They find £548, nod, and move on. What they don't realise is that the application fee is often the smallest — and most predictable — part of what they'll actually spend. WhatCanIBuild exists precisely because the real cost of planning depends on factors most people don't know to look for.

The £548 is just the entry ticket

The government-set fee for a householder application — covering extensions, loft conversions, outbuildings — is £548 in Broadland, as it is across England. On top of that, if you apply online through the Planning Portal (which most people do), you'll pay a service charge of £75.83 +VAT. That part is non-negotiable.

But here's what the fee schedule doesn't tell you: if your application is refused, or if you withdraw it, that money doesn't come back. Broadland District Council won't refund it. Most homeowners don't realise that getting the groundwork wrong before you even submit can mean paying twice — or more.

Broadland isn't a simple place to build in

Broadland has 31 conservation areas. It borders the Norfolk Broads — which carries National Park-equivalent planning protection — and sits near the Norfolk Coast AONB. There are 28 Article 4 directions affecting specific streets, and over 1,000 listed buildings across the district.

What does any of that mean for your project? That depends entirely on your property. Whether you're in NR7, NR14, NR10, or anywhere else in Broadland, the constraints that apply to your address can be completely different from your neighbour's — even on the same street. Properties near the Broads boundary sit on what's called Article 1(5) land, where permitted development rights are curtailed in ways that catch people completely off guard.

If your project touches a listed building, or sits in a conservation area, or falls under an Article 4 direction, you may need additional consents beyond a standard householder application — and each one carries its own costs, delays, and risk of refusal.

The hidden costs that aren't on any fee schedule

The application fee is set by government. Everything else isn't. Depending on your property and project, you might need an architect or planning consultant to prepare your application, specialist reports (heritage, ecology, flood risk), or pre-application advice from the council. None of those are optional if the council asks for them — and none of them are cheap.

The real question isn't "what's the fee?" It's "what's the chance my application gets refused, and why?" That's where most of the financial risk actually sits. WhatCanIBuild shows you what's been approved and refused on your street, what similar projects to yours have actually cost homeowners nearby, and what your specific combination of constraints means for your odds — not in theory, but in practice in Broadland.

Before you budget, check what you're actually dealing with

Knowing you're near a conservation area is one thing. Knowing what that actually means for a rear extension at your specific address — whether similar projects nearby got through, what conditions were attached, what triggered refusals — is something else entirely. That's the gap most homeowners fall into.

WhatCanIBuild gives you an address-level picture before you spend a penny on professional fees or application costs. It's the best way to understand what you're walking into.