Exchanged to save chain but contract not honoured

ruggedtoast

Hahuja wrote: »

Contract says we will do our best to arrange to get this missing land transferred before completion.
We like the house and want to complete but also don't want someone claiming on that small bit of our land after few years. I am thinking of holding some money for my buyer as its their responsibility to get this done.

You don't have any choice about completing unless your lender pulls your mortgage over the missing land, which will leave you exposed to the costs of most of the chain plus whatever deposit you have already paid.

Obviously we are only getting your side of the story, but it does not sound as if your solicitor has advised you very well.

The wording on the contract means nothing and I am not surprised at all they haven't transferred the land. They should also have informed the mortgage company that the title was incomplete. The worst case scenario for you now is that they suddenly go wobbly and decide to do this now it is apparent that there is no chance of the land issue being resolved.

Land_Registry

Hahuja - my understanding of the situation now is as follows

The property was transferred by the original developer back in 1985 with the current owner (your seller) acquiring it in 1988.

A strip of land to the side and a small piece of land to the front of the property was not included in the Transfer but to all intent and purposes was seen as being part of the property for a number of years, and probably from when the developer sold the houses in the road.

In an effort to remedy the situation the current owner, your seller has managed to register title to a strip of land to the side through adverse possession and also had another part, between the claimed strip and next door, transferred to them by the next door owner. This has left a small parcel of land to the side and front of the claimed and transferred parts which is the issue you are now faced with.

This additional piece of land is registered and still in the name of the original developer. As such next door cannot transfer it but the developer could or your seller could make an application to register it again under adverse possession.

The seller's solicitors are aware of the situation and at present we are awaiting an application to register any claim.

Until such an application is submitted and the supporting evidence considered we cannot register your seller's claim and this may continue to impact on your ability to complete on the purchase. Your solicitor though should be relied upon to advise on this for you.

ruggedtoast

Jeez. Doesn't sound good.

Land_Registry

ruggedtoast wrote: »

Jeez. Doesn't sound good.

Whilst it does not read too well the reality is that it should be resolved providing the seller can provide the necessary evidence to support their claim of ownership over the remaining small piece of land.

They managed this in respect of the much larger strip of adjoining land and acquired another part from the neighbour. The final small piece of the jigsaw will hopefully fall into place as well.

As the seller has been in their property for a number of years and was the first owner of the house when new and sold by the developer this should also help.

Hopefully Hahuja will be back to update us re the outcome and share some of the issues faced and how the outcomes were achieved.

moneyistooshorttomention

Put very simply, then OP will get all the land they are actually buying and a bit extra land that has been "adversely possessed" in the past and the question is whether they can manage to "adversely possess" this tiny extra bit of land.

That's if I have understood the situation correctly.

If they are getting all the land the property "really owns" then I don't see the problem personally. They're just hoping for a bit extra as a freebie by the look of it.