It is difficult to find the words that can properly describe the change in the world in the last few weeks. You will, like me, be reading articles describing the effects on our lives and businesses as ‘unprecedented’, ‘challenging’, ‘devastating’, ‘like wartime’.
However you describe it, from the point of the property market, the effects are profound and we are only in the first phase.
The most important frontline – the NHS, our care homes, the food supply and so on – is where quite rightly most attention has been focused. Those who have been risking their lives to save the lives of others and who have been going out each day to keep us fed, safe and connected are my heroes.
But as we in the property industry know full well, it is not long before you realise that there are very few components of our modern lives that you can leave unattended for long before they cause major disruption and impair the pace of and prospects for a recovery.
More than half the wealth of the nation is in our properties – over £7 trillion in England and Wales alone. We estimate that £1-1.5 trillion of debt is currently secured on that asset. Those numbers alone tell of the financial importance of property and the role it may play in bridging over the economic troubles ahead.
HM Land Registry’s objective is to do its best to contribute to a healthy and efficient property market, for all the economic, social and environmental benefits that can bring – right now; through the recovery; and beyond. That is a goal shared by many, of course. That commonality of purpose is a strength right now.
Going into lockdown
Our first objective when we went into lockdown was to enable searches and urgent applications to proceed so that transactions could continue throughout. That was no mean feat. My colleagues who process the manual searches and expedited applications were not enabled for homeworking and our systems needed increased capacity to allow that to happen securely. I know this is a problem faced by many organisations.
You then have the more prosaic problems of where and how people can work given their home set up, caring responsibilities and that new-found delight for a lot of us – being a teacher with no previous training and with kids whose usual respect for authority seems to have gone into self-isolation. Maybe that’s just me.
We are now, I suspect like a lot of businesses, in the phase of adjusting to this new normal and building out to our maximum homeworking capacity. That will be in place in just a few weeks’ time. We have now started processing non-urgent applications and our production rate will quickly increase.
From what we see – judging by comments from our customers, incoming applications, and the number of expedite requests received – many people still want to and, most importantly, still need to deal with their property. That may be to obtain vital finance to support themselves or their businesses.
Listening to our customers
I know we are all facing the same challenges to the way we do our work. So another of our highest priorities has been to listen to our customers and find out the problems they are facing, to see if we can help. We want to make all the adjustments we can to enable the market to operate as effectively as it can right now, while keeping the process safe, of course. We have made a number of changes to practice and process requirements already and have several more under consideration.
To keep in touch regularly and test out ideas for their practicality, we have brought together a cross-section of our customers and stakeholders in a discussion forum. We want to use this as a means of understanding first-hand what the industry is experiencing and needs. It will be a proving ground for suggested changes so that we can quickly roll them out for everyone’s benefit. We will be sharing some more information on this group – with details on some of the important discussions underway – in the next few weeks.
It is plain that those businesses, services and marketplaces in the UK that are more digital are faring the best right now. In comparison with other markets the conveyancing process (including some of HM Land Registry’s own processes) is still too disjointed and reliant on paper to be comfortable in this kind of crisis.
Our priority is to look at ways in which we can minimise the need for paper and personal contact in things like the execution of documents and checking identity. We have already made practice changes that allow for easier signing and identity checks. We continue to work with the industry to push on all other improvements that might help.
This is not just a short-term sprint. The economy will need its property market to be the most efficient and effective thing it can be to spur the recovery on. We must continue to work openly and rapidly with the industry to ensure we can all make the most of this unwelcome opportunity.
We will get through this in time. What we want to do, with our customers and with their help, is learn from it and be better for it. That way we will be most able to support them through the crisis and the recovery, when it comes.
65 comments
Comment by Jeffrey Shaw, Nether Edge Law solicitors posted on
The dismissive references to 'paper' belie how important mere 'paper' is.
Consider:
a. unregistered titles (of which there are still quite a lot);
b. the desirability of making a paper application in many cases, e.g. where the items to be submitted are not all electronic creations;
c. repeated cases in which HMLR finds to its surprise that it does not, after all, hold a filed/electronic copy of a vital deed and has to cadge a paper copy from solicitors; and
d. too many cases in which HMLR loses an application and a replacement needs to be submitted on paper.
Comment by David posted on
About 2 years ago I attended a Land Registry presentation regarding voluntary Land Registration. My organisation had completed a large scale project for scanning all the documents in the deed store. This has proved to be a worthwhile project in may ways, including when making first registration applications. At the time the Land Registry indicated they were happy to receive properly certified copies of documents in electronic format. If this is still the case then this would seem to address most of your concerns. Granted with some really old 200 year plus documents that are bigger than A1 size and with wax deeds it may be necessary to use specialist scanning companies, but for the majority of the documents an A3 scanner was sufficient.
Comment by AdamH posted on
David - we do accept certified copies from conveyancers for example. On first registrations, where the old deeds come into play, then section 4.4.4 of our PG 1 explains the available option https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/first-registrations/practice-guide-1-first-registrations#lodging-applications-for-first-registration
Comment by Richard posted on
Adam,
Thanks for the reply. The problem is that far too often the scanning and retention abilities of the land registry are lacking. Large scale plans are scanned at A4 size meaning half is lost. plans are scanned in black and white not colour. documents are scanned illegibly so it is impossible to read them. some documents are not scanned at all . A lot of time is now wasted trying to find copies of documents which have not been dealt with correctly on first registration or later.
Comment by Sarah posted on
I must second what Richard says: back 'in the day' Land Registry was pretty hot on most things but in recent years have become unreliable. Documents too often are either not available or badly scanned. in addition, too often applications are being rejected for tenuous reasons which common sense could overcome. this just adds to everyone's work load.
Comment by Anthony Howarth posted on
Hi David,
Whilst I note that the Registry states that properly certified copies are acceptable, our common experience at the moment is that our First Registration Application will be picked for a "spot-check" and original documents are required to be forwarded by post. This has recently been the case even where only one document was listed on the Epitome as being an original; in that same matter we received two requisitions thereafter stating an FR1 has not been enclosed with the application despite our Trainee having had the contents of the envelope containing the application documents checked by multiple colleagues.
The Registry's handling of First Registrations was therefore imperfect before lockdown and we can only hope that a more diligent and cooperative approach will develop now
Comment by Geraldine posted on
Sounds like HMLR will have some long term improvements as a consequence of the pandemic. Somewhat a shame it has taken such extraordinary times to bring processes at HMLR on to something closer to 22st century. I look forward to a smoother, slicker experience next time I move house!
Comment by Geraldine posted on
* 21st not 22nd century
Comment by P Desai posted on
It would be great if more information could be available to the customer at the touch of a button. Thank you
Comment by Philip Bryett posted on
Very grateful that attention and awareness is being focussed on the Property Market which is vital to individual and national wealth. THANK YOU Land Registry.
We must maintain property values and curtail the current drive to over-supply residential housing. Every town in UK has many Property Agents trying to find buyers and Tenants for EXISTING properties and housing stock, yet we are building more and more.
Comment by Kasmai bahram posted on
Very good.Thank you
Comment by Kevin Leigh posted on
If more work digitising records is being made, as a practitioner who often, decades after transactions are recorded, has to deal with issues arising from boundaries and easements etc, when only registered titles are available, it would be very helpful if all documents submitted for first registration and subsequent ones submitted when changes occur are ALL scanned since the parties themselves frequently do not ask for them back (and I understand HMLR destroys them) and if they are returned they are often lost over time. This way there is historically relevant material that might assist parties and courts interpret the meaning of old text and old plans/drawings. Registered titles and digitalisation of storage is wonderful, especially if it is easily accessible to the public and advisors. But the loss of contemprorary historic documents that might inform the meaning of aspects of titles is something to be avoided.
Comment by Georgina Allcock posted on
We have been waiting 5 weeks to have the lease of life removed, will these changes speed up the process?
Comment by AdamH posted on
Georgina - I’m sorry to read of the delays on this. We do have a process whereby the lodging conveyancer can ask us to expedite their application. I’d suggest contacting them to check/confirm and they should be able to keep you updated on its progress also
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/coronavirus-covid-19-impact-on-our-services
Comment by Will posted on
Very helpful to those who are still trying to buy or sell but until removals companies are told they are able to move people's possessions again the housing market will remain immobile. Those individuals who had exchanged prior to Cover-19 remain in the worst state of limbo - the vendors who have taken deposits are not compelled in law to be passionate or sympathetic and can simply serve notices to complete and walk away with the money if the buyer is unable to offer VP on their own home as result of not being able to move home.
Comment by Vicky posted on
Interesting read. Our house purchase has been on hold since lockdown due to the suspension of site visits by Ordnance Survey, as our sellers have an area of unregistered land they need to claim adverse possession on before we can proceed.
We still have no idea when this service will resume and it's looking more and more probable, as time goes on, that we will lose out financially due to our mortgage offer and searches approaching expiry.
It's stressful that Ordnance Survey will not consider alternative ways to manage this on a case-by-case basis. Our poor seller has been in tears on the phone with them trying to convince them there would be no contact, offering video link, which was refused. I imagine many people are in the same position. If a similar situation happens in future, my feedback would be that remote surveying needs to be looked at and perhaps look at increasing the number of companies/surveyors that could perform this work in addition to Ordnance Survey. Appreciate the hard work of everybody at HM Land Registry, hoping surveys can resume soon so we can still complete in time.
Comment by Kevin Leigh posted on
I've come across consultants in the property/planning field using drones to conduct onsite surveys remotely. It might mean a controller driving to and parking up nearby but nonetheless remaining socially (and safely) distant. Perhaps this could be used for surveying until third party human contact is safe.
Comment by AdamH posted on
Kevin - We are working closely with Ordnance Survey to ensure a safe return to service as soon as the public health guidelines allow it. We are using alternative methods to avoid all but essential surveys needed to protect interests in land, and the integrity of the register.
We can’t discuss individual cases on here, but if you want to discuss your application further please send us a message using our contact form https://help.landregistry.gov.uk/app/contactus_general.
Comment by Vicky posted on
Good Morning Adam, thank you for replying so quickly. I've e-mailed customer services with more details and appreciate anything that can be done on this.
Comment by Jeffrey Shaw, Nether Edge Law solicitors posted on
ALSO: even before the National Emergency, the delays on Register Create applications [FR1, DFL, TP1] had already grown inordinately. They used to be estimated at five weeks (and the C6(COMP) even said so in writing) but that grew to 8, then 13, weeks. Currently, I have several TP1 applications which are still pending from early August 2019 and that's without any Requisitions! That's best part of nine months, sufficient to create a whole person and surely sufficient to create a new registered title. If/when things return to anything like normal, I do hope that HMLR will give some attention to eliminating the backlog once and for all.
Comment by SEL posted on
Of course, one day, an equivalent 'pandemic electronic virus' will hit the world's computers/data bases etc., which we are blindly sleep-walking into, just like the current medical one-- what happens then will make this crisis look somewhat tame it is feared
Comment by Phil Bates posted on
Agreed sale of terraced investment property early 2020 for exchange and completion on 6/4/20. All documents completed by both parties ready for 6/4 but buyers are waiting from February for removal of old lease by HMLR to enable sale of their property to a tenant. No people to move and our property is empty.
It would be great if LR would respond and enable the transactions to complete and release the funds to support another business with employees and their clients needing support during this awful period.
Come on LR, step up to the mark.
Comment by Trevor Mealham posted on
The removal of written signatures will be welcomed by crooks at the banks and those abusing power over the people.
By removing "wet ink" signatures asset stripping by Lloyds BSU and RBS GRG will be allowed to further steal from innocent SME's where LR Originator charges are placed and not updated.
Well done Land Registry for aiding and abetting fraud to happen easier
Comment by Kenny green posted on
Hi, How significant are delays to updating the register.
I Applied 3rd April 2020 to have my middle name put on the deeds to to development of two barns I finished in February, apparently the mortgage application has to match the register.
Now I’m paying £1850 pm interest on the development loan with a private investor fortunately for me he’s adding it to the loan Every month but without being able to talk to anyone at the land registry in Peterborough it’s quite frustrating and financially crippling me.
Any reply appreciated.
Thanks
Comment by AdamH posted on
Kenny - very significant. If there’s an urgency then use our contact form https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-impact-on-hm-land-registrys-services#expedite-an-application
Comment by Matty S posted on
We had an offer accepted on a house first week in Feb. Sadly we are at the bottom of the chain. All are ready to exchange apart from the top who has decided to use their maiden name on the title deed rather than married name, now we are having to wait for this to be rectified. We initially had a completion set for 30th June. What are the timescales? Our mortgage offer runs out 5th August will it take that long I think it has been r weeks already
Comment by AdamH posted on
Matty S - it could take a while yet due to Covid 19 impact. I’d suggest asking them to request expedition https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-impact-on-hm-land-registrys-services#expedite-an-application
Comment by MattyS posted on
Hi Adam
Would my reasons be suffice to prioritize this case you reckon?
Comment by AdamH posted on
MattyS - you need to get them to expedite their application. They can do that as they have a confirmed sale/purchase
Comment by MattyS posted on
Ok I will ask my estates agent to make contact with the top of the chain's solicitor
It is extremely stressful and concerning especially with our mortgage offer due to run out on the 5th August
Our chain is only small as well with us buying and our vendor buying at the top so there's 2 parties involved
Comment by MattyS posted on
Adam apparently they tried to expedite but it was refused, are they able to do it again?
Comment by AdamH posted on
MattyS - refusal is normally because they didn’t provide documentary evidence of the sale/purchase. They can request again but it must be as per the link I shared
Comment by Matty S posted on
Hi Adam
Top of the chain requested expedite yesterday
How long will it take to process?
Comment by AdamH posted on
Matty S - if expedited then generally speaking it’s considered within 2/3 working days
Comment by Matty S posted on
Excellent thanks Adam you have been a great help
Hopefully we hear some good news this week
Comment by Sam Spreadbury posted on
Hi Marty, did your case get expedited and dealt with in 2/3 days? We have a similar problem! Sam
Comment by MattyS posted on
Hiya
Yes it did very quick too
Best thing to do trust me!!!
Comment by M posted on
We've just been told Deeds of Variation currently aren't being processed, making it extremely difficult to sell our flat. Is there any update on when these services will return? Will it be in time to take advantage of the stamp duty holiday?
Comment by AdamH posted on
M - such applications are being processed. However we do have a backlog of that type of work so if you have a confirmed buyer then ask your conveyancer to request expedition https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-impact-on-hm-land-registrys-services#expedite-an-application
Comment by Pat. M posted on
We bought our house outright for cash which completed on 6th March (before lockdown) and we are still waiting for our title deeds. How much longer is this likely to take.
Comment by AdamH posted on
Pat - all depends when it was lodged, who by and if it’s in order. Covid has impacted so have a read of our online guidance and check with your conveyancer as to whether it’s still waiting or if there’s another reason for the delay. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-impact-on-hm-land-registrys-services#contents
Comment by Leeanne posted on
We have a sale going through on our flat and sent a deed of variation to LR in February. At the beginning of July after multiple requests the case was expedited however we are told we are still number 24 in the queue of cases against our landlord. The speed they are getting through the cases is at a rate of one per week, meaning our sale could drag km for another 6 months. Our buyer has already had to apply for a new mortgage once and at this rate the new mortgage offer will also run out. How can it take this long particularly for a case that has been expedited?!
Comment by AdamH posted on
Leeanne- it can take a while if other applications have priority over the same title. If it’s taking too long then the conveyancer needs to pursue that through their contact with the processing team.
Comment by Paul Forster posted on
Our building partner purchased a plot of land with planning permission in March 2020. We have now been waiting 6 months to purchase 1 of the 3 plots from him but the land has still not been registered by the land registry. Our solicitor has informed us that they cannot do anything until this has been completed and this has held up us starting building work for 3 months. Our family is currently.living with grandparents while we wait. Is there any way this process can be sped up as 6 months seems to be an overly long timescale for transfer of ownership.
Thanks
Paul
Comment by AdamH posted on
Paul - yes, ask the conveyancer to request expedition https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-impact-on-hm-land-registrys-services#expedite-an-application
Comment by Annette Maxted posted on
We received this from the solicitors at the top of the chain with regard to our vendor's purchase of an apartment in a retirement village. "A notice has been issued on our application regarding the charge on the Title. I called HMLR earlier on in the week to query the notice and they advised that it expires at 12 noon on 14 September. It has been sent to the proprietors of the charge, if they do not respond by the date, they will imply consent and proceed with the next stages of processing the application." I don't fully understand what this means, but would like to know how long this might take following the expiry date. I believe that the previous owner of the property is deceased, and the Title needs to revert back to the retirement village, before being transferred to our vendor. I'd be grateful for any information about the process/timescale. Many thanks, Annette
Comment by AdamH posted on
Annette - there are a variety of wider checks that may need to be made before completing an application. These checks can include contacting, or notifying, affected parties such as lenders to confirm their consent or otherwise.
Once the notice period expires the application is usually considered again within 2/3 days
Comment by Annette Maxted posted on
Many thanks for your prompt reply Adam. However, it seems that we could still have an indeterminate length of time to wait before the application can be completed, and our purchase can go ahead. I understand that there is a considerable backlog of applications as a result of the Covid situation and that the fact that expedition has been granted doesn't necessarily help a great deal.
Thanks again, Annette
Comment by AdamH posted on
Annette - expedition reduces the wait time before an application is considered. It doesn’t negate or waive any registration requirements.
The wider checks you referred to are required but expired on the 14th you state. As it’s expedited the application will be reconsidered ASAP so hopefully, if all is in order, it can be completed. The conveyancer will be notified when it is
I suspect if it hadn’t been expedited then you’d have been waiting much longer
Comment by Annette Maxted posted on
Thank you very much for your reply. FIngers crossed for a speedy response then.
Annette
Comment by Margaret posted on
Hi
Do you have any update on MS620887 please?
Regards
Margaret
Comment by AdamH posted on
Margaret - still waiting to be processed. It’s not been expedited as yet either.
Comment by Margaret posted on
Hi Adam,
Thank you for the info
Kind regards
Margaret
Comment by Margaret posted on
Hi Adam
Sorry to ask again, is there any movement as yet on MS620887 please?
Kind Regards
Margaret
Comment by AdamH posted on
Margaret - not as yet
Comment by Margaret posted on
Hi Adam, thank you
Kind Regards
Margaret
Comment by Margaret posted on
Hi Adam,
Re MS620887
Do you have any update on this please?
The estimate of 4/5 weeks for register updates is almost up and I was hoping this would be done.
What is the procedure after the register is updated, how long does the LR take to notify the conveyancer?
Any info is much appreciated
Thank You
Margaret
Comment by AdamH posted on
Margaret - not as yet and it’s still waiting to be processed.when it is the conveyancer is informed. Once completed the register is updated and available online immediately
Comment by Margaret posted on
Hi Adam
Thank you for the info, much appreciated
Kind Regards
Margaret
Comment by Mick Walton posted on
What's the normal wait time for an unregistered lease to be registered? So far I have been waiting 8 weeks and I'm now 5 weeks over my court order to buy ex wife out of my property due to this unregistered lease. I have been sofa surfing already 18 minths since leaving and this is causing me massive mental stress that im unable to speak to anyone or even get any updates - its shoddy!
Comment by AdamH posted on
Mick - several months at present I’m afraid so you need to ask the conveyancer to request expedition dies to your personal circumstances. Refer them to section 3.2 of our PG 80
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-useful-information-for-conveyancers-pg80/practice-guide-80-coronavirus-covid-19-useful-information-for-conveyancers
Comment by Paul Faulkner posted on
Mick we have been waiting for a similar thing at the end of a long chain for at least 4 weeks so we can complete but so far nothing from land registry so
All these people in the chain sat waiting I’m living out of suit cases because we have waited so long I know we have COVID but this is unacceptable
Comment by Trudi Greenham posted on
Hi.... we are almost complete in a house purchase...but a search has highlighted that the road it is on is not council maintained.
We need to ensure we have legal access to the house.
The address is 11 Blackdown Road, GU16 6SH .
Thank you
Trudi
Comment by ianflowers posted on
Trudi - You'd need to seek legal advice, for example, from the legal representative if you have one acting for you in the purchase. The council will deal with road/adoption maintenance so they would need to be contacted if there are further queries about that. From the registration perspective, the ownership of roads, whether or not adopted by the council, will often not be recorded with us due to there not being a sale or mortgage of the road that would require registration of the land for the first time.
Comment by Trudi Greenham posted on
Thank you, I will pursue an answer from the sellers solicitors
Trudi