Property not registered in our name - selling on?

morleymackam

We're selling our house and after flicking through the bumph we got it seems we didn't pay for the solicitor to register our sale at the land registery. This was 3 years ago and we've not been chased about it.

What do we need to do? Is it possible to be backdated? How would this work? Could it be registered straight to the new buyer?

saxy1

I would say this is a 'monumental c**k up' on your solicitors part.

I would contact them immediately, to find out how on earth this happened.

morleymackam

saxy1 wrote:

I would say this is a 'monumental c**k up' on your solicitors part.

I would contact them immediately, to find out how on earth this happened.

To be fair we didn't pay the bill. Cash was very tight due to work problems and we tried to put it off for a little bit but I guess it got forgotten about. It's just strange that we weren't chased about it.

tobedifferent

Sorry to say this but you need to take legal advice on this and fast.

I have worked on benefeit fraud court cases where the decison is that if your name is on the registry then you own the property. If not it could be difficult. What do your deeds say? Also the mortgage charge should be registered at the land registry, whose account is that on?

Its not up to anyone else to chase you, its your place and your responsibility.

oldandhappy

When we purchased this property in 2000 the last time it had been registered was the people before the ones we purchased it from...it never caused us any problems regarding buying and the sellers had said they never had it registered because they never really settled here. They went back to Wales where they had come from originally.Mrs Happy

Bossyboots

oldandhappy wrote:

When we purchased this property in 2000 the last time it had been registered was the people before the ones we purchased it from...it never caused us any problems regarding buying and the sellers had said they never had it registered because they never really settled here. They went back to Wales where they had come from originally.Mrs Happy

That doesn't make sense because the land registry will only registry a change of ownership from the registered owners to the new owners on receipt of the correct paperwork. I don't see how someone who was not registered as the owner was able to sell the property. Have you checked it is registered in your name?

Bossyboots

morleymackam wrote:

To be fair we didn't pay the bill. Cash was very tight due to work problems and we tried to put it off for a little bit but I guess it got forgotten about. It's just strange that we weren't chased about it.

The solicitors hold the whip hand in that they have the documentation you need to prove it is your property. You are going to need to contact them and discuss the way forward which will undoubtedly mean you paying their bill, together with interest. They had no need to waste time chasing you as they would know you would have to reappear at some stage.

Of considerable concern though is your mortgage (if there is one) as you are in breach of your terms by not having the property registered.

oldandhappy

Bossyboots wrote:

That doesn't make sense because the land registry will only registry a change of ownership from the registered owners to the new owners on receipt of the correct paperwork. I don't see how someone who was not registered as the owner was able to sell the property. Have you checked it is registered in your name?

We have the deeds and it lists only the couple that owned it prior to the couple we purchased it from...and us listed as the next and last..no record of the people we purchased it from...also noticed an extra piece of land that is part of our back garden.... purchased at some stage in the past has listed us as the 1st time ever registered.........

The property did take what seemed ages to finalise...maybe that was one of the reasons why.
Mrs Happy

morleymackam

I've just checked on the land registry website and we are the legal owners. Which is odd.

Could he have kept back the deeds or something else until we paid? I presume the mortgage lender would have chased him up for it?

clutton_2

physical "deeds" are no longer required once a property is now electronicallyh registered. Most solicitors send them back to the owner for mementoes sake.

silvercar

solicitors only use the land registry for registered properties, so it looks like you have got away with it.

Deeds are for historical interest only once the property has been registered.