No title appears on land registry search

warthog_78

Parents in law can't seem to find their land registry title on the website. When searching it comes up with...

"Sorry, we do not have a record of any titles for this property. This does not necessarily mean that the property is unregistered."

In laws have a vague memory 40 years ago when they purchased the property that there were issues with their address not being recognised in some systems.

When searching the help section on land registry it says...
- If no title is revealed by the Property enquiry, does this mean that the property is unregistered?
Not necessarily. If no title is revealed it may be for one of the following reasons:
- we have been unable to electronically match the property details given with our records, or
- the titles have not been linked to the address in the database (e.g., because at the time of registration the address was not known or was different in some way to the address supplied to us by the Post Office).
To be certain whether or not a property is registered you should complete, and post, a search of the index map. Click here for more details. To request a search of the index map, download and complete a form and post it to us. Click here to find the address of the Land Registry office to send it to.

The forms all appear a bit complicated and there's no obvious tel no to phone to clarify. This has arisen because they need a copy for a family members immigration form but they are also looking to sell shortly and are concerned this may slow things down and they will need to move fast.

Can anyone advise?
Many thanks,
Jo

saabay

Try a search with just the postcode. This will reveal all the properties within the postcode. If it's registered it will (should) be there with a title number. If they bought forty years ago it's possible it may not be registered. It may still be there then but with title number shown 'n/a'. In that case you will need to find the original deeds.


That search isn't definitive and only an index map search (SIM) will be absolutely certain.

jbainbridge

According to the Land Registry site - Your property might not be registered if you owned it before 1990 and haven’t mortgaged it since.

https://www.gov.uk/registering-land-or-property-with-land-registry

warthog_78

Thanks. I'll explore an index map search further and see if I can make sense of the form. I assume it has to be registered to sell it!

saabay

It doesn't need to be registered to sell, but if it isn't you will need the original deeds. As I said earlier, first port of call is to try the search with just the postcode (don't put number, street name, locality, or anything else) just in case it's an anomaly with their system matching the exact address. If you're not sure how to do it, PM the address and I'll do it for you.

Richard_Webster

I am a property lawyer but please do not rely on my advice unless you are paying me. A case of wine will do.

What a good idea!

saabay

Richard_Webster wrote: »

What a good idea!

I thought of it first. lol! But I have no objection if you wish. What was all that about VAT and cash payments? What is VAT?

warthog_78

Thanks. I've done the postcode search and all the properties on that road appear, but theirs along with two others have n/a - no information attached.

saabay

warthog_78 wrote: »

Thanks. I've done the postcode search and all the properties on that road appear, but theirs along with two others have n/a - no information attached.

Very likely it's unregistered then. Do the Index Map Search by all means but it will probably reveal the same result.

They are going to need their original title deeds. These may be with the solicitor that acted when they bought or a practice that may have taken them over. They could also be deposited at a bank for safekeeping or, if they had a mortgage in the past, may still be with the original mortgage lender. Failing all of that, they might have them at home and have forgotten about them.

It'll be obvious what they are, they'll be old, called conveyance/indenture/lease amongst other things, and very likely they'll smell pretty rank too.

It's best to find them and get them stored securely because, whilst they may not need them immediately, there will be a time when they do.

G_M

Not changed ownership for 40+ years so highly likely it's not registered. No problem with that as long as you have the paper deeds. Until the 80s/90s, that's how ALL property conveyancing was done.