DEEDS & LAND REGISTRY
If you need copies of your Deeds you can obtain these online from Land Registry via: https://www.gov.uk/get-information-about-property-and-land/copies-of-deeds
Property Deeds are now called Official Copies of Registered Title and these are recorded online at Land Registry. Your Conveyancer will refer to them as the office copies. You will not receive a bundle of historic paper deeds when you buy a property. The office copies are a summary of the old paper deeds and show current owner, lender, rights and covenants or conditions affecting the property.
OFFICE COPIES
Office copies are available to anyone for a small fee (around £12 per title). Each parcel of land has its own title. Anyone can pay for and order office copies for a UK address. Your office copies are not private or confidential. They are open to the public.
Land Registry is a Government body. Under UK legislation they maintain these records and each property is given a unique title number. When you buy a property, your Conveyancer will update Land Registry records to record change of ownership. We call this registration at Land Registry. When you sell property we download the office copies to prove your ownership and issue a draft contract pack to the buyer’s Conveyancer. When you remortgage your Conveyancer applies to the Registry to record the discharge of the repaid mortgage and to register the new mortgage.
EXPEDITING REGISTRATION
If you are selling or remortgaging and the Registry have not completed your purchase registration then you will need to request that this is expedited. See my blog article on this for more information.
It is worth noting that there are huge backlogs at Land Registry. This has been the case for years now and pre-dates Covid. As you would expect Covid exacerbated the delays. It can now take 12 months, or more, to update the Register. Plots of land and New Builds take the longest to register as they are more complex. This causes issues when selling or remortgaging these.
ESTATES & PROBATE
Where dealing with a family estate, or a loved one passing, you need to obtain a Grant of Probate from the Probate Registry before you can deal with their assets. A Grant of Probate gives you the authority you need. Your Conveyancer will request this during the sale.
The Probate Registry is a Government agency. You can apply for Probate via this weblink:
You will need to supply evidence that you are entitled to deal with the estate and assets and that you are related to the deceased. Obtaining Probate takes a long time. Again there are delays as this is a Government body and typically under staffed. Current timescales are approximately 10 to 12 months. Bear this in mind when marketing the property. If a buyer is found before Probate is granted then you cannot complete and must await issue of Probate. This causes great frustration.
ASSENTS
The beneficiaries of a Will can seek to Assent the property into their names and update the register (office copies) at Land Registry. Please see link here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/whole-of-registered-title-assent-as1/guidance-how-to-comp
You will need the Will, Grant of Probate, ID1 form (evidencing your identity) and various documents in support of your application. You do not need to instruct a Conveyancer but it is beneficial as they have expertise and can deal with Land Registry requisitions (or questions).
ID CHECKS & LAND REGISTRY
It is worth noting that strenuous ID requirements must be satisfied before the Registry will update the office copies. This ensures no property fraud or identity fraud has occurred. The Government has made Conveyancers and Land Registry the front line for combatting criminal activity in property fraud and ID theft. The Registry are known for being pedantic and exacting. They will raise enquiries or what they call requisitions and there is no guarantee they will register what you want.
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