Is your property registered with the Land Registry?
The Land Registry was created in 1862 to record property ownership in England and Wales, although initially on the basis of voluntary registration. However, ‘compulsory registration’ was first introduced in 1925 and gradually phased in nationally on an area-by-area basis until 1990.
Now any post-1990 sale, purchase, transfer or charge of land need to be registered at the Land Registry. This has led to a natural growth of the Land Registry, however substantial numbers of property remain unregistered. This is particularly the case in areas where ‘compulsory registration’ is a more recent phenomenon. North Yorkshire is such an area, as ‘compulsory registration’ was only introduced here as late as 1st December 1988!
![land-registry-post Land Registry building](https://hutchinson-buchanan.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/land-registry-post.jpeg)
Any sale, purchase, transfer or charge of land need to be registered at the Land Registry.
![college-green College Green](https://hutchinson-buchanan.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/college-green.jpg)
![property-pic06 Property Pic06](https://hutchinson-buchanan.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/property-pic06.jpg)
What you may not know is if you or your family purchased your property before 1990, and are mortgage-free, your property might not be registered.
You can check if your property is officially registered by accessing your title deeds. Can you see a beige Land Certificate or a blue Charge Certificate? If yes, your property holds a title number on the Land Register at the Land Registry, and you’re covered. If not, keep reading.
![dispute03 Dispute](https://hutchinson-buchanan.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/dispute03.jpeg)
We can act on your behalf
You can engage our highly experienced team early to act on your behalf, or you can start the process by searching for land and property information on the UK government website here: https://search-property-information.service.gov.uk/search/
The advantages of land registration
The registration of a property supports home and property ownership and the secured credit market. It offers many advantages, including: –
- providing secure state-backed registration, giving greater security of title. Your ownership is now evidenced and provable by state-backed records, not by title deeds that can be destroyed
- providing greater protection against the possibility of losing title by adverse possession. A neighbour can sometimes acquire registered title to a portion of your unregistered property, causing difficulties in any subsequent sale. This possibility can be avoided if your property is already registered
- indemnifying the registered proprietors against any loss if they are deprived of their state-backed title
- setting out or referring in the land registry entry all the rights that benefit and affect the property (other than certain overriding interests). This can make a title much simpler and easier to understand and therefore easier to sell
- showing the general extent of the land in each title by means of an ordinance survey title plan
- ensuring that capital can circulate freely in the economy by making land readily available as security
- making large holdings of land and portfolios of charges readily marketable.
![Near-Water-Rat Ripon Near The Water Rat](https://hutchinson-buchanan.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Near-Water-Rat.jpeg)
As you can see, there are many benefits to official registration. Indeed, it is normally only possible to remortgage registered land.
The Practice Guide 1: First Registrations on the GOV.UK website here provides comprehensive guidance on registering land for the first time with HM Land Registry in the UK. Key points covered in their guide include:
- Purpose of First Registration
- Who Needs to Register
- Types of Estates
- Application Process
- Supporting Documents
- Types of Evidence
- Special Circumstances
- Costs and Fees
- Post-Registration.
Please note that the Land Registry is presently suffering from considerable backlogs in processing applications for first registration.
We’re seeing processing times exceed 24 months however, we’ve successfully expedited registrations for proposed sales, remortgages and even for divorce proceedings.
Next steps
If you can’t find your title deeds or the Land Certificate or Charge Certificate, start this process sooner rather than later. Check the property’s title on the Land Registry website for as little as £3.00.
Then if you have any questions or want us to register your property on your behalf, we’re here to help. Call Richard Storey, partner at Hutchinson & Buchanan on 01765 602156 or email mail@hb-law.co.uk.
Address
77 North Street
Ripon
North Yorkshire HG4 1DP
Phone
01765 602156
Fax
01765 690018
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