Missing property deeds?
Discussion
I recently paid off my mortgage and was expecting to received me deeds but have been told they are electronic now and I won't get them.
My house is old and to me the deeds are part of the history of the house as it was one of the first built around where I live so I am really gutted by this.
My house is old and to me the deeds are part of the history of the house as it was one of the first built around where I live so I am really gutted by this.
solo2 said:
I recently paid off my mortgage and was expecting to received me deeds but have been told they are electronic now and I won't get them.
My house is old and to me the deeds are part of the history of the house as it was one of the first built around where I live so I am really gutted by this.
That's not good, they must still have them somewhere, unless they have been destroyed. My house is old and to me the deeds are part of the history of the house as it was one of the first built around where I live so I am really gutted by this.
The physical deeds to my house were sent to me by the BS who I had my mortgage with at the time( which was about 20 years ago).
I thought it was odd for them to send it, but when asked they responded to say they were moving to online records as the cost of storing / retrieving etc of paper records was both expensive and time consuming.
Some of the paperwork for my house is on A0 size sheets along with all sorts of bits of information since it was built in 1872, I use an A0 size folder to keep them all flat.
So it's possible that in the OPs case the actual paperwork has been lost or destroyed.
I thought it was odd for them to send it, but when asked they responded to say they were moving to online records as the cost of storing / retrieving etc of paper records was both expensive and time consuming.
Some of the paperwork for my house is on A0 size sheets along with all sorts of bits of information since it was built in 1872, I use an A0 size folder to keep them all flat.
So it's possible that in the OPs case the actual paperwork has been lost or destroyed.
It looks as if most original old deeds will get destroyed. I think its outrageous, surely they are the property of the house owner ? As said they are part of your homes history.
I`ve been searching for our original deeds because there could be a dispute as to who is responsible for the fence at the bottom of our garden.
The deeds were held with our original solicitors, who were taken over by a group who later went into administration. Their document stores were moved to another solicitors miles away.
As you would expect our old deeds have disappeared. I downloaded the online deeds but it did not show a site plan of our garden.
Luckily for me our neighbours either side of us both have their original old deeds. Their site plans clearly show our gardens with the all important "T" symbol
on the boundaries.
I`ve been searching for our original deeds because there could be a dispute as to who is responsible for the fence at the bottom of our garden.
The deeds were held with our original solicitors, who were taken over by a group who later went into administration. Their document stores were moved to another solicitors miles away.
As you would expect our old deeds have disappeared. I downloaded the online deeds but it did not show a site plan of our garden.
Luckily for me our neighbours either side of us both have their original old deeds. Their site plans clearly show our gardens with the all important "T" symbol
on the boundaries.
Deeds relating to land have lost much of their once totemic value now that most but not all land is registered, but even when the Deeds have no continued utility it is indeed a bit sad that documents that form part of the history of a house, and which can sometimes be of use to historians, are trashed. As noted above, in some cases Deeds retain legal utility, where there is any enduring ambiguity about title, boundaries, easements, and so on, but in most cases their value now is purely historical and/or sentimental.
When I bought a house in 1999, my solicitor asked if I wanted the deeds or should he destroy them as they were no longer required. I kept them, and was interested to see the history of the house back to when the land was sold to the builder in the thirties for a whole new estate, complete with original plan of the house, which helped when I could replace the windows with ones that looked similar to the originals. Interestingly, the first owner was a relative of the builders - I suspect creative accounting was just as popular back then!
Left the whole bundle with the house when we sold it, for the new owners.
Left the whole bundle with the house when we sold it, for the new owners.
Our solicitors are destroying their collection of paper deeds, we were informed and given a couple of months to go and collect. It turned out to be a bundle of paperwork a couple of inches thick. Have visions of scanning them in one day.
Also beware of lookalike sites that charge £50 or £60 to obtain deeds for you. The actual land registry charges are very reasonable <£10 IIRC.
Also beware of lookalike sites that charge £50 or £60 to obtain deeds for you. The actual land registry charges are very reasonable <£10 IIRC.
As already said, old deeds are part of your family history. I wish I had copies of the deeds from all the houses I`ve owned. I`ve kept most of the paperwork relating to the purchase of some of them, Estate Agents advert, solicitor`s invoice and so on. Makes amusing reading, when you compare it with property purchases these days.
I bought my first house, a Victorian Terrace, for £2700 in 1968, and it had a bathroom and toilet indoors. £100 deposit and £19 a month mortgage. I sold that house three years later for £8500 and bought a classic 3 bed semi for £10,000. Those were the days.
I bought my first house, a Victorian Terrace, for £2700 in 1968, and it had a bathroom and toilet indoors. £100 deposit and £19 a month mortgage. I sold that house three years later for £8500 and bought a classic 3 bed semi for £10,000. Those were the days.
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