We have rather brash sellers who has suggested a exclusivity contract with a non-refundable deposit of 5k. Are such agreements sensible?

Lock out agreements are contracts between a home owner and prospective buyer giving the buyer exclusive rights to the sale of the property for a set period of time. Essentially, a lock out is a document stating that you should receive a contract at a later time which is the contract for the actual sale. It tends to be utilised for buyer protection though in many situations, the proprietor may enjoy an upside from such agreements as well. There are various positives and negatives to having an agreement but you should to check with your lawyer but beware that it may end up costing you extra in conveyancing fees. In light of this these contracts are not popular in relation to conveyancing in Chipping Norton.

Will my conveyancing lawyers need to check that the building insurance when buying a house in Chipping Norton. My lender is Platform

Platform have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook. As of 13/10/2025, the requirements read as follows :

I have todaybeen informed that Stirling Law have been shut down. They conducted my conveyancing in Chipping Norton for a purchase of a leasehold flat 10 months ago. How can I check that the property is registered correctly in the name of the previous owner?

The quickest method to check if the property is in your name, you can make a search of the land registry (£3.00). You can either do this yourself or ask a law firm to do this for you. If you are not registered you can seek help from one of a number of Chipping Norton conveyancing specialists.

I'm purchasing my first flat in Chipping Norton with a mortgage from Barnsley Building Society. The sellers refused to budge the amount so I negotiated 6k of extras instead. The house builders rep advised me not to tell my lawyer about the deal as it could affect my loan with the bank. Do I keep my lawyer in the dark?.

All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.

Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.

Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.

Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I have offered on two weeks back in what should have been a quick, no chain conveyancing. Chipping Norton is where the house is located. Can you shed any light on this issue?

Flying freeholds in Chipping Norton are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Chipping Norton you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds diligently. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Chipping Norton may decide that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.