Douglas Leapman

Expertise

Douglas has experience acting for housebuilders and developers and specialises in a broad spectrum of development matters relating to site acquisition.

Before joining Gateley Plc, Douglas advised a range of the top UK housebuilders when working for a previous firm in London and also a range of regional and local Kent housebuilders when working for a previous firm in Tunbridge Wells. He has also acted for land promoters and landowners.

Douglas has extensive site acquisition experience whether by way of strategic agreements (options and/ or promotions), or unconditional or conditional contracts. Douglas also acts in relation to sub-sales, overage agreements and build agreement setups.

Douglas has experience in dealing with properties subject to complex title issues and also acts in relation to utility agreements and affordable housing sales.

How do you help clients?

I help clients understand all aspects of a property they are looking to acquire for the purpose of residential development and de-risking the acquisition to ensure that clients are able to service sites in terms of access and services (and also construction) and subsequently ensure smooth plot sales post-construction.

I enjoy knowing that following completion a new residential development will be sprouting up in the near future providing much needed homes to the UK house market.

Experience

1. Trouble-shooting existing option prior to acquisition of the site with simultaneous sale of one plot to provide SDLT savings whilst also entering into build agreements with the plot purchasers.
2. Acting on behalf of multiple landowners in respect of the sale of a £28m sale via a promoter to a national housebuilder including retention of telecoms land and ransom strips.
3. Unconditional acquisition of a site for re-development including obligations to enter into buffer lease, pre-emption rights and buy-back agreement.
4. Sale of a site on behalf of a developer to another developer retaining existing agricultural rights and also rights for future development of the retained land including obligations on the purchaser in respect of the highway requirements through the land being sold. The transaction also required compliance with complex S106 Agreements obligations affecting SANG land retained for the client in order to ensure that SANG credits can be allocated for third party development sites in the future.
5. Multiple sub-sales acting for end purchaser ensuring that the options entered into by the middle entity covers the necessary requirements for the transfer of the land and including obligations on the middle entity to provide use of the necessary planning documents required for implementation.