This is a collective term for all the legal documents and papers
associated with the title to the property. These days they are rapidly losing
their significance as the majority of titles are now held by the Land
Registry. This is a national database which records the ownership of virtually
99% of residential properties. Any important documents associated with the Deeds
will be on this system and therefore available on request in an electronic format
as well as a hard copy by post. To the legal profession a LR title is proof of
ownership as the accuracy of the database is extremely high with unimpeachable
security.
The Deeds still record positive covenants but virtually everything
else, including any negative or restrictive covenants
are recorded by the LR. Under the Land Registration Act 2002, Deeds will become
irrelevant and valueless. Strange to thin that building societies used to spend
a small fortune on the secure storage of the Deeds for all property they had in
mortgage. The Halifax, for example, has many miles of shelving in deep underground
bunkers below the town of Halifax. The test used to be to have the storage nuclear
bomb proof: today the space could become a mushroom farm.
The information
is readily available from the LR for the asking and a modest fee – currently
(pounds) 4 per item – this includes the title itself, the associated plan,
any restrictive covenants, many easements, and all rights of way, plus the full
lease where the property is not freehold. A copy of the title itself can be obtained
by anybody for just £2.
With this information to hand your solicitor or licensed conveyancer
will be able to draw up the initial contract. The buyer’s adviser can check
any aspect with LR but mistakes are all but non existent – a mere handful
although the LR regularly deals with several million transactions a year.
The
LR will also have a full record of any legal charge against the property from
any building society or bank which has lent mortgage money. Many lenders no longer
bother to hold the deeds and rely on the appropriate confirmation from LR. All
they then hold is a copy of the Charge Certificate.
The original Deeds
used to be passed over on completion and sent off to the building society for
safe keeping: these days the lenders do not want the unnecessary paper!
