How to find out who owns land?
Overview
The standard way to identify the ownership of a small parcel of land is to use a Map Search. This will help identify the land, and discover its Title Number. Once this is known it is a straight forward exercise to obtain the Title Register. Section B of the Title Register identifies the owner (referred to as the Registered Proprietor) and the owner’s contact details.
Type of Map
Simple Drop Pin Map
Many search agents use a standard “drop a pin” map to identify ownership. This works well with fields and the like. It does not work, however, with small parcels of land. This is because the dropped pin, usually based on a Google Map, will not identify the small area with sufficient precision and the pin will normally default to an adjoining larger area of land.
Below is an example of a standard map search, identifying one field only to be searched.
Advanced Mapping Tools
Where an area needs to be more precisely identified it is more efficient to trace around the outline of the land to be searched for, or it there is no outline, to estimate its position. The drawn outline can be amended and there are 18 levels of zoom that will further help you.
A search made using an advanced map such as the above will send an exact copy of your drawn map to our search team, and will also provide the coordinates of the nearest registered property. This information helps us to identify the land without any further difficulties.
Below is an example of an Advanced Map Search, clearly identifying the fields to be searched.
Common map based searches that we provide:
Single Plots of Land
This search enables you to obtain the ownership details of a single plot of land, either by dropping a pin onto a built-in map on our application form, or by tracing its outline onto the map.
£29.95Large Areas of Land
This search enables you to obtain the ownership details of a large area of land, whatever its nature, size or shape. Our fee includes the Title Registers for the first 5 Titles. You will be advised of the cost of proceeding with any remaining Titles, which will be charged at £4.95 each.
£89.95Woodland Searches
This search enables you to obtain the ownership details of a parcel of woodland, forest or moorland. If more than one Title is discovered you will be advised of the cost of obtaining further Titles.
£29.95
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Land Registry Services are leading specialists in property data, conveyancing documents and environmental reports. Land Registry Services is neither owned or operated by the UK Government.