Registering a property for the first time

EdGasket

My sister inherited the 'family' home from my father about 30 years ago. The property is not registered with the Land Registry so she only has the paper deeds, held elsewhere (inconveniently) for safe keeping. We are looking into getting the property properly registered and I note we have to 'Apply for a search from the Land Charges department against all previous owners since 1925 using form K15.

So on form K15 you have to enter 'Names to be seached'. What are these 'Names'? Would we have to get hold of the deeds and list all owners since 1925 on the form or would just my sister's name suffice?

Secondly I don't really understand this form K15 because all it asks for is names and not even the property address? So what is the point of a search of John Smith with no address? Seems a stupid form as it doesn't even ask for the address of the property!

TBagpuss

You do give the address, it's lower down the form in the 'description of land' box.

Names would be names of the former owners.

TBagpuss

Your sister may want to instruct a solicitor to deal with the first registration for her if she is struggling with the forms

EdGasket

Yes thanks I saw that however when you look at the relevant note 7 it says:
"Land description. It is not essential to provide a land description but, if one is given, any relevant former description should
also be given (see the guide referred to above)."

'It is not essential' <-- thats what confused me because I would have though it would be absolutely essential for any meaningful search?

EdGasket

TBagpuss wrote: »

Your sister may want to instruct a solicitor to deal with the first registration for her if she is struggling with the forms

Yes that is possible; any idea what the'd charge?
Her idea is to instruct me to sort it out; it all looks manageable but maybe not always straightforward if one hasn't done it before.

ProDave

I went through a very similar process when I bought the plot we are now building a house on. the vendor only had a poor copy if the paper deeds and the plans were not very good.

My solicitor resolved it by applying to the Land registry for a P16 report (it may have a different name, we are in Scotland) and they matched the paper plans to a vacant (as far as the land registry was concerned) piece of land.

Be warned this may throw up boundary disputes id adjacent land has been registered inaccurately.

Land_Registry

EdGasket wrote: »

Yes thanks I saw that however when you look at the relevant note 7 it says:
"Land description. It is not essential to provide a land description but, if one is given, any relevant former description should
also be given (see the guide referred to above)."

'It is not essential' <-- thats what confused me because I would have though it would be absolutely essential for any meaningful search?

A Land Charges search is against the Name(s) being searched and is not a search against the land/property itself

kaya

Why would you want to register it? we brought ours two years back and as it was a one owner house since 1937 when it was built the land registry woman was very confused when i phoned to find out about boundrys as she couldnt find it, there was no mention of registering it when we called though

EdGasket

Land_Registry_representative wrote: »

A Land Charges search is against the Name(s) being searched and is not a search against the land/property itself

How can you just search against a name e.g. John Smith? There could be thousands. I'm sorry I don't get it; can you explain please?

EdGasket

kaya wrote: »

Why would you want to register it? we brought ours two years back and as it was a one owner house since 1937 when it was built the land registry woman was very confused when i phoned to find out about boundrys as she couldnt find it, there was no mention of registering it when we called though

If you bought it since around 1990 then it should definitely be registered; find out why it isn't ASAP. Why? To prove you own it and not somebody else.

davidmcn

EdGasket wrote: »

Why? To prove you own it and not somebody else.

And also because many conveyancers are lazy when acting for buyers/lenders and will want you to register it before your transaction can progress - so you may as well get it done when there are no time pressures.