Dust off your deeds: why should I register my land?

Although compulsory first registration of land at HM Land Registry (HMLR) was brought in back in 1990, 15% of land in England and Wales remained unregistered.

Rural landowners are particularly guilty of stowing their deeds in a box and forgetting about them until they are needed in the future.

Agricultural property does not change hands as often as other types of property and so the compulsory registration may not have been triggered. The issue with this is there are consequences to original title deeds becoming lost or damaged and a myriad of benefits to voluntarily registering the land before it becomes a necessity.

What is first registration?

First registration of a property is when the ownership details are recorded at HMLR. A Title Register is produced which records details about the property, including its full address; name and address of the owner for service of notices; rights benefiting and burdening the property; and details of secured financing. A Title Plan is prepared using up to date Ordnance Survey data which is beneficial when the original deeds contain plans which are of questionable quality or of no defined scale.

What do you mean by compulsory vs. voluntary applications?

The principle of compulsory first registration is that if unregistered land is subject to a specific event such as a transfer (including both a sale and a gift), the obligation to register it is triggered. A voluntary application is exactly what it says on the tin. You voluntarily present your title deeds to HMLR and pay reduced a registration fee to have the registered title created.

Why should I do it now?

Any property lawyer will tell you that HMLR have significant delays in processing first registration applications so this is a factor which might spur you on to dust off your deeds and get it done. I used to estimate that we would not hear back from HMLR after submitting a first registration application for around six months. I now tell my clients that we do not expect to hear anything from them for a whole year. Although the overall length of time is the same, a year when you have zero external pressures can feel significantly shorter than a year when you are attempting to initiate other dealings with your land. Applying as part of preparing for a sale is a great time to register.

Keeping informed

Having an address for service of notices is also something that is key. For example, if someone wanted to try and register a right of way over your property and they applied to HMLR, you would receive notice of the application. If your land is unregistered you are less likely to become aware of anything adverse and so the application could succeed without you having any opportunity to object. Even if your property is registered, it is vitally important to ensure that this address is kept up to date.

Are there any other positives?

HMLR’s fee for a first registration is based on the value of the land, with a maximum fee of £1,105. If you apply for a voluntary first registration the registration fees are discounted by 25%. A registered title can also prevent fraud.

What if my deeds are lost?

It is possible to reconstruct a missing or partial title to a property, but it is produces a less satisfactory result than voluntarily registering your property in the first place. Property is registered with different classes of title, with absolute title being the best class of title available. This generally means that HMLR have had sight of the original deeds to the property and there is no doubt that you are the owner. Reconstructing a title involves piecing together any documents that are available and preparing and submitting statements of truth evidencing the use and occupation of the property. These statements are time consuming to produce and it can be problematic if large chunks of time are unaccounted for because the person with the relevant knowledge is no longer with us or does not have the required mental capacity to make the statement.

If you are successful in reconstructing the title in this way you are likely to be registered with a possessory title, which effectively confirms that you do possess the land. However, if someone were to submit title documents to HMLR within the following 12 years which evidence that they are in fact the rightful owner, your title can be defeated. Conversely, after 12 years have passed following possessory title being granted, you can apply to have the title upgraded to title absolute. Having a possessory title can make future sales or borrowing more challenging as additional enquiries around the title will likely be raised, and the added expense of title insurance may be required.

In conclusion

To summarise, there are numerous advantages to making sure that you get your property registered while you know where your deeds are. If you would like assistance with getting this process underway please contact a member of our Agriculture and Estates Team who would be pleased to help.