Land registry expedited service taking weeks

Duckynineteenseventyfour

The house I’m selling doesn’t have the garden on land registry. It’s a street of houses where back gardens have been fenced off and used as gardens for 20ish years. Some houses on the street have added theirs to registry. My buyers insisted we apply for it to be added to registry despite there being an indemnity in place. We have applied and expedited but land registry have taken over a month already and everyone is desperate to complete before end March. My seller is threatening to pull out if we don’t. Any advice? Is there any reason why this would be taking so long when apparently quite straightforward? 

jimbog

Duckynineteenseventyfour said:

The house I’m selling doesn’t have the garden on land registry. It’s a street of houses where back gardens have been fenced off and used as gardens for 20ish years. Some houses on the street have added theirs to registry. My buyers insisted we apply for it to be added to registry despite there being an indemnity in place. We have applied and expedited but land registry have taken over a month already and everyone is desperate to complete before end March. My seller is threatening to pull out if we don’t. Any advice? Is there any reason why this would be taking so long when apparently quite straightforward? 

@Land_Registry on this forum would able to help

silvercar

From previous comments by Land Registry, Expedia ting gets your case to the front of the queue - generally within 2 weeks - but everything needs to be in order for changes to be made. If there is a boundary change then LR may feel the need to survey the area and this will take longer.

if you post the title plan number, or DM @Land_Registry the number, he can probably tell you the progress or the reason for the hold up.

Tiglet2

I had the same issue some years ago.  The process took three months, with expedition.  It means the application is looked at within 10 days, but the process still has to be followed i.e. Land Registry will send round a surveyor, then LR will write to neighbouring properties to see if there are any objections - allowing around three weeks for responses - before changing any title deeds.  

Land_Registry

As already posted expedition isn't a magic wand re completion of an application and that's especially true re this type of case.
As Tiglet2 posts if the application is to claim ownership of land then there are 3 stages to complete. The first is consideration of the case and supporting evidence to ensure the legal requirements have been met - expedition generally means that can happen within the 10 days quoted
Stage 2 is a site visit/survey to ensure that the claim is backed up by the reality on the ground. Ordnance Survey (OS) do the visit/survey and report back but they can't be expedited/hastened
So those 2 stages probably account for the 4 weeks the OP refers to and the owner should know if OS have been 
Stage 3 follows on from the case being reviewed again in light of the OS report. If things are all ok then wider checks ensue inc contacting neighbouring land/property owners to see if they consent/object. They generally get 3 weeks to do that
Of course if stage 2 reveals issues the timescale can be further stretched
Any application to register a claim as to ownership, with expedition, is still going to take several weeks to complete and that's only if everything goes to plan. 

Duckynineteenseventyfour

Tiglet2 said:

I had the same issue some years ago.  The process took three months, with expedition.  It means the application is looked at within 10 days, but the process still has to be followed i.e. Land Registry will send round a surveyor, then LR will write to neighbouring properties to see if there are any objections - allowing around three weeks for responses - before changing any title deeds.  

Does the full process always have to be followed? My solicitor assured me this would add ‘a few weeks’ to the process and it’s costing me money for the solicitor to do it - if they have to go through all of this there was probably never a realistic chance of completion on time. I assumed because others had already done it it would be more straightforward. 

Land_Registry

Duckynineteenseventyfour said:

Tiglet2 said:

I had the same issue some years ago.  The process took three months, with expedition.  It means the application is looked at within 10 days, but the process still has to be followed i.e. Land Registry will send round a surveyor, then LR will write to neighbouring properties to see if there are any objections - allowing around three weeks for responses - before changing any title deeds.  

Does the full process always have to be followed? My solicitor assured me this would add ‘a few weeks’ to the process and it’s costing me money for the solicitor to do it - if they have to go through all of this there was probably never a realistic chance of completion on time. I assumed because others had already done it it would be more straightforward. 

Not always but what has happened re neighbouring properties rarely has a direct impact on the process to be followed. 
Every application is treated on merit and of course the 'facts' provided by each owner are unique t their land/property and circumstances
In my experience any 'claims' as to ownership will always take at least 2-3 months to complete and many can take longer as things don't prove to be as simple as perhaps envisaged. 
The registration process to be followed is explained in some detail in our Practice Gudie although specific timescales can't be included as they will vary on each and every application made - Adverse possession of (1) unregistered land and (2) registered land where a right to be registered was acquired before 13 October 2003 (PG5) - GOV.UK