Our son-in-law is buying a newly built flat in Seaham with a home loan from Coventry BS. His conveyancer has said that there is 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 engaged in the purchase. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when requested. 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 Coventry BS conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.

Is there a search tool that I can utilise to find out if the solicitor conducting my conveyancing in Seaham is on the mortgage lender’sapproved panel? I am looking to avoid the situation of having one lawyer for me and one for Barnsley Building Society thus paying £187.00 plus VAT in supplemental conveyancing costs.

Feel free to take advantage of the search tool on this web page. Please choose the lender and type ‘Seaham’ or your preferred area and you will be presented with a number of lawyer offices in Seaham or near you.

I used Action Conveyancing a few years past for my conveyancing in Seaham. I now require my file however the law firm has closed. What do I do?

Do contact the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) to assist in tracing your conveyancing files. They can be contacted on please contact on 0870 606 2555. Alternatively, you should use their online form to make an enquiry. You will need to provide the SRA with as much information as possible to assist their search, including the name and address in Seaham of the conveyancing firm of solicitors you previously retained, the name of conveyancing solicitor with whom you had dealings, and the date on which you last had dealings with the firm.

I'm buying a new build house in Seaham with a loan from Norwich and Peterborough Building Society. The builders refused to reduce the amount so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The sale representative told me not disclose to my solicitor about the extras as it will affect my loan with the bank. Should I keep quiet?.

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.

I've recently found out that there is a flying freehold issue on a house I have offered on a fortnight ago in what should have been a quick, chain free conveyancing. Seaham is the location of the property. Can you shed any light on this issue?

Flying freeholds in Seaham are unusual but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even though you don't necessarily need a conveyancing solicitor in Seaham you would need to get your solicitor to go through the deeds thoroughly. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Seaham may determine 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 premises.