PROPERTY owners and their families planning to sell their home or land are being encouraged to investigate its status to ensure a smooth sale.

Since 1990, registration of property was made compulsory, having been introduced gradually since the early 1900s.

Prior to that, not all property was registered and, in cases where land or a house has been passed down generations, deeds may also have been lost.

When the owner or their surviving relatives come to sell the property, they may find there is no official proof of ownership.

Adele Burrows, conveyancing executive at BHP Law, said: “Losing your unregistered title deeds does not necessarily mean you will be unable to sell the property or that you are unable to prove your ownership.

“However, it does make the process more complicated and can delay completion, especially if the owner has passed away and even more so if there is no surviving family to establish ownership of the property.”

Registration of a previously unregistered property with HM Land Registry is triggered typically when it is sold or bought, or a mortgage is raised against it. But some properties have remained in families for decades.

Once the title deeds are lost, the Land Registry has strict rules regarding what evidence is required to prove ownership.

“Providing this evidence can be stressful to families and will result in higher than normal legal fees as the time spent meeting Land Registry requirements can be time consuming,” said Ms Burrows.

She advises that in families where property is likely to go on the market in the future, steps should be taken now to locate the title deeds.

“In cases where people don’t know whether or not the property is registered, we can investigate and, if necessary, deal with the first registration,” she said.

“Where title deeds are missing or have been destroyed, we can talk owners through the various documentation that will be required by Land Registry in order to reconstruct the title.

“Families dealing with the issues after the death of a loved one may find it much harder to gather the information, and time may be of the essence if a buyer is waiting.”