Legal Term 'Beneficial Owner'

[mazi]

the land registry was set up in1925, but properties were only registered when they came up for sale  mine was only registerd in 1999, came with a full set of deeds back to when the earl of xxxx trustees transfered it to his eldest son on the occasion of his marriage.

I interpret the phrase "the title shall commence........" as meaning the property would be regitered with the land registry in the vendors name, then immediately transferred to the purchaser

maybe because the property was not yet registered the term beneficial owner was used because they held it by deed rather than registerd title.

hope it makes sense

mike

[mazi]

just another thought-- if the elderly lady had lost her deeds, a not uncommon occurence, especially if she inherited it from her parents, she would be the beneficial owner, this was the vendors solicitor saying that title would be obtained prior to the sale

mike

[Jane Masri]

Thanks Mike a bit clearer now.  Not being in the UK I'm a bit a lot ignorant of these matters.
Who is likely to hold further documents relating to the property & land ownership before development, the local authority and/or land registration office?

Jane

[avm228]

The Land Registry has a very good online service whereby you can view records for a small fee.

[mazi]

I'm not aware of any central body prior to the land registry but if you know the street and district a post on london and middx board might be worth a try

mike

[Jane Masri]

Thanks Mike & avm226.  I've got quite a bit to work on but I can consider the land registry on my next UK visit,

Jane

[mike175]

...
I interpret the phrase "the title shall commence........" as meaning the property would be regitered with the land registry in the vendors name, then immediately transferred to the purchaser

maybe because the property was not yet registered the term beneficial owner was used because they held it by deed rather than registerd title ...

Another possibility could be that the original Deeds had been lost, so there was no record of the legal ownership history . . . hence "the Title shall commence ..."

Presumably, if that were the case, the "Beneficial owner" would have had to satisfy the authorities (by sworn statements, witnesses, etc) that he had a good claim to the Title before he was able to sell the property.

[Jane Masri]

A possibility Mike,

Jane

[GFHWP]

Under the Law of Property Act 1925, land holdings in England were classified into one of two legal  estates, Freehold or Leasehold.
These were further categorised depending on the security of the holding.
In the case of Freehold there were (and still are) two interests, Absolute Freehold and Possessory Freehold.
Possessory Freehold is a limited holding backed only by evidence of uninterrupted occupation over a period of years (12) and can be contested.
On the other hand, Absolute Freehold is an undefeasible title but to claim this it is necessary to back it up with an unbroken chain of ownership throughout a period of years. In 1931 the period was 25 years and so if you had the relevant deeds covering that period you could sell as the beneficial owner of the Absolute Freehold.
These deeds (prior to land Registration) tended to be held by the Solicitors acting for the beneficial owner and might have gone back, in some cases several hundreds of years. However it was only necessary to show the documentation for the legally required period. So, even if you have documents to show the chain of title through various owners down to yourself , say for the last 100 years, you did not have to produce them, stating instead that tile should commence only at a certain date and supplying that documentary evidence.
By 1931 Land Registration was compulsory for all property transactions in London and so if your property fell within the geographical area at that time then it would have to have been registered on the sale. The Land Registry would have examined the deeds and if satisfied, superseded them with a certificate. The certificate would have a unique number (the Title Number) and contain a plan of the property/location and a written schedule (called the Register), which gave details of the property, the beneficial owner, the class of title and also any legal considerations (such as a right of way) affecting it.
You can apply to the Land Registry for a search of their Index Map, quoting the property address. This will reveal the title number and using this you can obtain a copy of the certificate.
I hope this helps.

Phil