A new neighbourhood is more than a completed house. Before buying, ask how the roads, transport links, schools and other facilities shown in the wider vision relate to your own move-in date.
England’s planning-obligations guidance explains that section 106 obligations are legally binding and run with the land. Infrastructure can also involve planning conditions and the Community Infrastructure Levy. These routes do different jobs, so a reference to developer contributions is not, by itself, an answer about when a particular facility will open.
Read the trigger, not just the promise
Ask your conveyancer which documents apply to the development and the phase containing your home. Look for the obligation, the party responsible, the event that triggers it and the evidence that the requirement has been met. Do not assume a contribution towards a facility is a promise that the facility will be available before the first resident arrives.
Make a short table of the things that matter to your household. For each item, distinguish what exists now, what is under construction and what remains planned. Keep a copy of the source document alongside any sales correspondence, with dates, so later changes are easier to identify.
Large proposals need the same discipline
The government’s New Towns Draft Programme, published on 23 March 2026, illustrates how infrastructure can shape housing delivery. It described a potential Tempsford settlement of more than 40,000 homes and said housing delivery was not expected before wider flood mitigation was in place. Those statements belong to a consultation document, not a completed scheme or a final permission for an individual home.
That distinction matters wherever a major transport or regeneration proposal appears in a property brochure. Ask which decision has actually been made, what is still being assessed and which improvements your purchase depends on. A proposed connection should not be treated as an existing journey option.
Plan for the interim period
Walk or travel the routes you would use today. Consider school arrangements, shopping, access and ongoing construction if later phases take longer than hoped. Ask who will maintain shared areas and where the corresponding costs are explained.
This document check does not establish that any named developer has failed to deliver. It gives buyers a way to compare the promise, the binding requirement and the position on the ground before committing.
Sources: GOV.UK Planning obligations; New Towns Draft Programme, 23 March 2026. Checked 8 November 2026.