Our son-in-law is in the process of securing a newly built flat in Chipstead with a mortgage from Yorkshire BS. His conveyancer has advised him of a delay in completing the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. What is this document - I have never come across this before?

The document is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when asked. The developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it. The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Yorkshire BS conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.

My wife and I are close to exchanging contracts on the sale of our property in Chipstead and the buyers lawyers are claiming that there is a risk of it being constructed on contaminated land. A local conveyancer would know this is not the case. For the life of me I don't know why the purchasers used a national conveyancing outfit rather than a conveyancing solicitor in Chipstead. We have lived in Chipstead for many years we know that this is a non issue. Is it a good idea to contact our local Authority to obtain clarification that the buyers are looking for.

It would appear that you have a conveyancing solicitor already. Are they able to advise? You should enquire of your lawyer before you do anything. It is very possible that once the local authority has been informed of a potential issue it cannot be insured against (a bit like being diagnosed with a serious illness and then taking out life insurance to cover that same illness)

Are there restrictive covenants that are commonly identified during conveyancing in Chipstead?

Restrictive covenants can be picked up when reviewing land registry title as part of the legal transfer of property in Chipstead. An 1874 stipulation that was seen was ‘The houses to be erected on the estate are each to be of a uniform elevation in accordance with the drawings to be prepared or approved by the vendor’s surveyor…’

Due to the encouragement of my in-laws I had a survey completed on a property in Chipstead in advance of retaining lawyers. I have been advised that there is a flying freehold element to the house. My surveyor has said that some mortgage companies will refuse to issue a mortgage on a flying freehold property.

It depends who your proposed lender is. HSBC has different requirements for example to Nationwide. Should you wish to telephone us we can investigate further via the appropriate lender. If you lender is happy to lend one our lawyers can assist as they are used to dealing with flying freeholds in Chipstead. Conveyancing can be more complicated and therefore you should check with your conveyancing solicitor in Chipstead to see if the conveyancing will be more expensive.

I would like to sublet my leasehold flat in Chipstead. Conveyancing solicitor who did the purchase is retired - so can't ask him. Do I need to ask my freeholder for their consent?

A lease governs the relationship between the freeholder and you the leaseholder; specifically, it will set out if subletting is prohibited, or permitted but only subject to certain caveats. The accepted inference is that if the lease contains no expres ban or restriction, subletting is allowed. Most leases in Chipstead do not prevent an absolute prevention of subletting – such a clause would undoubtedly devalue the property. In most cases there is a basic requirement that the owner notifies the freeholder, possibly sending a duplicate of the sublease.

I have attempted and failed to negotiate with my landlord for a lease extension without getting anywhere. Can a leaseholder make an application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal? Can you recommend a Chipstead conveyancing firm to help?

You certainly can. We are happy to put you in touch with a Chipstead conveyancing firm who can help.

An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement decision for a Chipstead flat is 223 Brighton Road in September 2013. The premium payable for the acquisition freehold of the properties should be £10,934 (Ten thousand,nine hundred and thirty four pounds) This case related to 3 flats. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 75 years.