This is not as simple as it may appear, especially when provisions made in previous transfers of the property have an effect.
A recent case before the Court of Appeal highlighted the problems that can arise.
It involved a couple who bought a property that bordered a park. There were two potential boundaries to their land. One was a wire fence and the other was a hedge about six yards further out.
The couple maintained that the hedge was the boundary. This would give them a significantly larger plot.
However, the Land Registry adjudicator and a judge both ruled that the fence was the true boundary.
This was because it was a condition of an earlier sale that the fence should be in stock proof condition before the transfer could proceed. This strongly indicated that the fence was the correct boundary and the title plan should be altered to reflect that.
That decision has been upheld by the Court of Appeal.
The case illustrates the need to thoroughly check all the legal detail relating to a property before buying as it may not be possible to rectify mistakes afterwards.
Please contact us if you would like more information about the issues raised in this article or any aspect of buying or selling a property.
