Land Registry launches consultation to widen its powers and take on Local Land Charge Searches
Land Registry today, Thursday 16 January, launches a consultation which aims to make the house buying process easier by bringing efficiencies to the property sector, digitising government services and making public data more easily accessible for the benefit of the wider economy.
Following a successful prototype, Land Registry is publically consulting on providing Local Land Charge searches in addition to keeping and maintaining the Land Register, where more than 23 million titles – the evidence of ownership in England and Wales – are documented.
Currently provided through 348 local authorities, Local Land Charge (LLC) searches cover a wide range of property related entries including tree preservation orders and conservation areas. Fees vary from £6 to £96 and the turnaround time varies from one to forty days.
Through today’s consultation Land Registry will seek people’s views on assuming statutory responsibility for maintaining a centralised LLC Register which will enable them to offer customers an efficient, standardised and digital service.
Within the scope of the original prototype Land Registry also explored using open standards for local authorities to publish Con 29 information (a standard set of enquiries including public foot paths, building control regulations and property related entries, copyright owned by the Law Society). Land Registry will be working with a range of stakeholders and the market to develop a prototype for Con 29 searches in the future.
Pete Flynn, Technical Support Manager, from Liverpool City Council (who were part of the prototype) said:
“Liverpool City Council were pleased to work with Land Registry in developing the prototype for answering Local Land Charge (LLC1) enquiries. Together we demonstrated that this could work and that if Land Registry were to roll this out then there could be benefits to the conveyancing process in the UK.”
Ed Lester, Chief Land Registrar and Chief Executive said:
“There are huge variations in how Local Land Charges information is held across local authorities, ranging from paper record cards and plans to scanned data and microfiche, resulting in variations in cost, quality and speed.
"Given the importance of the UK property market to our economy we are trying to make a real difference to conveyancing efficiency by providing easy and transparent access to vital land and property information which also supports the Government’s digital by default agenda for public services.”
The consultation will also be seeking views on extending Land Registry’s powers to provide information and register services relating to land and other property to enable it to play a wider role in facilitating the land and property market.
ENDS
Notes to editors
- Responses can be made to the consultation online at: http://consultations.landregistry.gov.uk/consult.ti/LLC1/consultationHome
- Each year, around 1.2m local land charge searches are undertaken by conveyancers as part of residential and commercial property transactions and remortgages.
- A local authority search (LLC1 and Con29) or the equivalent search report provided by a private search company, forms part of the standard conveyancing process for the purchase of land and/or property. The search results are used to assist a prospective purchaser to decide on the desirability and suitability of the property as well as informing them of any enforceable registrations in existence and future proposals under consideration at the time the search was carried out.
- LLC search is one of the searches undertaken when someone buys a property, be it a private house or commercial premises. These searches are normally undertaken by a conveyancer and are intended to find LA information which is relevant to a prospective buyer of a property. Information contained in an LLC search will reveal any binding obligations which may affect a potential buyer. These searches are also necessary on remortgages of properties, to ensure the lender is getting good security for their money.
- Local land charges search results reveal entries on the land charges register. An LLC1 has 12 different parts covering a wide range of areas which can include tree preservation orders; listed buildings; financial charges registered against the property; conservation areas; enforcement notices and further property related entries.
- The Con 29 form has been in use for over 50 years and was created to complement the LLC1. It contains a standard set of enquiries agreed by central government, the Law Society and local authorities. It provides information on items in existence as well as items that are in the pipe line/being considered and/or awaiting approval.
- A Con 29 search can reveal planning history; building control regulations; highway information; public footpaths and byways; gas pipelines and further property related entries.
- Land Registry’s prototype was launched in May 2013 and ran until November 2013. The local authorities involved in the original prototype were Sefton, Liverpool, Denbighshire, Newark and Sherwood, Swindon, Havant and Watford.
- With the largest transactional database of its kind detailing over 23 million titles, Land Registry underpins the economy by safeguarding ownership of many billions of pounds worth of property.
- As a government department established in 1862, executive agency and trading fund responsible to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Land Registry keeps and maintains the Land Register for England and Wales. The Land Register has been an open document since 1990.
- For further information about Land Registry, visit www.landregistry.gov.uk. Follow us on Twitter @LandRegGov. Find us on LinkedIn, Facebook and our blog.
Contact
Marion Shelley, Press and PR Manager
- 0300 006 7543,
- 07790 690297 and by
- email marion.shelley@landregistry.gsi.gov.uk
