Property fraud is on the rise, but you can take steps to protect yourself and your unregistered property now.
Sophisticated criminals are increasingly finding ways to steal homes. Unregistered property is particularly at risk, with owners having no knowledge or indication that it has happened until it’s too late.
Paper-based ‘title deeds’, usually dating back to when your property was first built, are often unclear, subject to damage, accidental loss and theft. If you bought your house prior to 1990, it’s likely that these are your only proof of ownership. If that’s the case, it’s time to think about getting your house registered with the Land Registry.
What does Registering with Land Registry mean?
Registering your unregistered property with Land Registry will:
- give you proof of ownership
- help protect your land from fraud
- make it easier to sell or transfer your property in the future
Registering your property adds information about your ownership of your property to the Land Registry’s digital database; the paper deeds then become redundant, which removes a significant area of risk with an unregistered property as there is no chance of accidental loss or destruction when the property details are registered with Land Registry.
An attractive target for fraudsters and scam artists,
a property can be sold and mortgaged whilst you are
still living in it – without you having any knowledge
that this has taken place.
If you do become an innocent victim of property fraud and your property is unregistered, you will not be eligible for compensation from Land Registry.
What can you do to protect yourself?
There are certain steps you can take to protect your home from property fraud:
- Ask us to register your unregistered property or land with Land Registry
- Never send your bank details to anyone via email, either phone them through or hand deliver
Once your property is registered:
- Sign up to the Land Registry Property Alert service. Alerts are sent to you via email when official searches and applications are received against the property you want monitored
- Ask for a restriction to be put on the title deeds of your property and instruct us to
stop Land Registry from registering a sale or mortgage on your property unless we certify the application - Keep all of your contact details up to date
How we can help
We are specialists in property law and will register your unregistered property directly with the Land Registry on your behalf.
We will:
- Check through your deeds
- Clear up any problems that may arise (such as unclear boundaries)
- Submit details to the Land Registry
- Deal with any additional legal queries the Land Registry may have regarding your property.