Land Flashcards
What is real property?
Land or interest in land
What is personal property?
Chattels/fixtures.
Classes:
- choses in possession - movable things eg car
- chose in action - rights which do not have physical existence.
What is land?
LPA 25 - corporeal hereditaments (tangibles) (surface, buildings, trees fixtures) and incorporeal hereditaments (intangible) (rights etc)
What are limitations on airspace?
Limited to such height as is necessary for ordinary use and enjoyment of land and structures on it.
What are the limitations on things in the ground?
Not mines and minerals - regulated by statute.
Gold and treasure belongs to Crown.
Do landowners own wild animals on their land?
No, right to hunt them though
What passes on sale of land?
Fixtures pass. Fittings don’t.
How does court determine if fitting or fixture?
2 tests
1) degree of annexation. Greater degree of attachment, more likely to be fixture. If removal will cause damage, fixture.
2) purpose of annexation. Looks at whether item brought onto make permanent improvement, if so, fixture regardless of annexation. If temporary less likely to be fixture.
If there is a conflict between degree and purpose of annexation tests, what prevails?
Purpose of annexation
What is commonhold? How is commonhold created?
- freeehold estate must be registered as freehold estate in commonhold land
New form of land ownership. Similar to leasehold. Makes easier to ensure positive to be covenants complied with.
- land must be specified in memorandum of commonhold association as land in relation to which association is to exercise functions and
- must be commonhold community statement which makes provisions for rights and duties of association and unit holders.
What are 2 legal estates?
- freehold
- leasehold
What are legal interests?
Set out by statute. Need to be created by deed.
1) mortgages
2) easements
3) rent charges
4) profits à prendre (in gross and appurtenant)
5) rights of entry
What are equitable interests?
Where attempt to make legal interest but deed formalities not met.
- equitable mortgages - contract for land needed (writing, signed & terms included)
- restrictive covenants
- positive covenants
- estate contracts - option to purchase or pre emption. Contract for land needed.
- equitable leases
- failed legal interests
- equitable easements
- beneficial interests under a trust
What is require for creation of legal interest?
Valid deed to create or transfer legal interests and estates in land (not short legal leases and implied legal easements).
Document must be:
- in writing
- state on face of it that it is a deed
- be signed by grantor in presence of witness who attests signature and
- be delivered (showing intention to be bound usually by dating or sealing)
How are equitable interests created?
Contracts for land for:
- failed legal interests
- estate contracts
- equitable mortgages
- equatable leases
Requirements:
1) general requirements of contract, offer, acceptance, consideration, intention, capacity.
2) in writing
3) contain all agreed terms
4) signed by all or someone with authority
If don’t meet, unenforceable.
How can covenants and equitable easements be created?
Require only writing signed by grantor.
What is proprietary estoppel?
Can intervene to grant a remedy where would be unfair to permit party to lose or gain advantage and rights.
What are the requirements of proprietary estoppel?
- assurance that C would have an interest in land. Can be active or passive.
- C must have shown reasonable reliance on assurance (changed position)
- C must have acted to detriment
- must be unconscionable to permit party to gain or lose proprietary rights having regard to all circumstances.
If a claimant established proprietary estoppel, what will court do?
Consider what appropriate remedy is. Factors into claimants expectations, detriment suffered, what is proportionate.
Remedies can be transfer of freehold, granting lease, right to occupy, compensation or no remedy at all.
How does the seller prove to the buyer that they own the estate in unregistered land?
By deducing title
Production of documents commencing with good root and demonstrating unbroken chain of ownership to current owner
Minimum period 15 years.
What are the requirements of a good root of title?
- at least 15 years old
- deal with whole equitable and legal interest
- contain adequate description of the property
- do nothing to cast doubt on the title
What will the seller send to the buyer solicitor in unregistered land?
Epitome of title - chronological list of documents with copy of each document attached.
In unregistered land, when does equitable title pass?
Passed on exchange, buyer becomes equitable owner. Buyer has insurable interest and so should insure from exchange.
In unregistered land, when does legal title pass?
On completion. Application for first registration must be made within 2 months of completion
How are third party interests discovered in unregistered land?
By investigating title, searches, physical inspection.
In unregistered land, how are legal interests protected?
Buyer will purchase subject to any legal interest whether or not buyer aware of them.
Legal interests binding on buyer irrespective of notice.
In unregistered land, how are equitable interests protected?
Most should be registered at land charges register. Constitutes actual notice to all persons and makes it binding on subsequent owners. Must be registered against estate owners name not address.
Class C (i) - puisne mortgage
Class C (iii) - general editable charge (equitable mortgage)
Class C (iv) - estate contract
Class D (ii) - restrictive covenants
Class D (iii) - equitable easements
Class F - non owning spouses statutory right of occupation under FLA 1996
In unregistered land, how is a beneficial interest under a trust protected?
Determined by the doctrine of notice.
Purchaser bound unless can show equity’s darling. Bona fide purchaser for valuable consideration of legal estate without notice
What is considered notice?
3 ways
Actual notice - actual knowledge of interest
Constructive notice - if had made reasonable enquiries would have discovered.
Imputed notice - notice given to agent of buyer deemed to be notice to buyer.
What are interests that override first registration?
- lease granted for 7 years or less
- legal easement
- local land charge
- interest belonging to person in actual occupation
What is the significance of interests which overrides first registration?
Automatically binding when unregistered title becomes registered at HMLR.
If buyer aware of overriding interest on application for first registration, need to disclose to HMLR. Interest will then be protected by register and no longer overriding
What is adverse possession?
When title to land is acquired by possession rather than by protection of documents.
In unregistered land, how long does land have to be occupied by another for the owner to lose right to recover?
12 years
Owner retains legal title but holds legal estate on trust for squatter who can apply for registration in owners place.
What does the applicant have to show for an adverse possession claim?
- they have actual physical possession of land
- possession is exclusive to applicant and
- possession without permission of land owner
What is an event that triggers first registration?
- conveyance of sale
- an assent
- deed of gift
- grant of lease for less than 7 years
- grant of first legal mortgage
- assignment on sale of a lease which has unexpired term exceeding 7 years
Application for first registration must be made within 2 months of date of triggering event
What happens if buyer fails to register transfer of legal estate on first registration?
Transfer becomes void, legal estate reverts to seller.
With leases and mortgages, disposition takes effect as contract, legal estate will revert to original transferor who holds on trust as bare trustee.
Bare trustee = only duty is to follow instructions of beneficiary.
Who has the cost of remedying failure to register?
Party in default. Also liable to indemnify the other party in respect of any liability incurred and arising from failure to register.
What classes of title can the land registry award?
Absolute freehold - takes legal estate together with all interests disorient for benefit of that estate. Subject only to interest which overriding first registration and overriding interests under LRA 2002
Possessory title - where ownership based on possession not documentary evidence. Might be granted where deeds lost. Possibility of someone coming with better claim.
Good leasehold title - guarentee doesn’t extend to freehold estate or superior leasehold title. Freehold title not been produced to HMLR. Can be upgraded.
Absolute leasehold title - where inspected all titles
What is a caution against first registration?
Informs party with interest in unregistered land that land about to be registered so that their interest can be investigated.
Caution has own title number, register and plan.
How can a caution be cancelled?
Owner of estate against which caution lodged, can apply to registrar for caution to be cancelled. If that happens, registrar must notify cautioner that wok be cancelled unless objection made within prescribed period.
What happens to caution when properly about to be registered?
Cautioner will be informed of the fact and given specified period to object or give notice that don’t intent to object.
Early warning of registration.
When does title pass in registered land?
Title passes on completion
What is contained in the property register?
- postal address
- legal estate held
- if leasehold, lease details
- any rights which benefit
What is contained in the proprietorship register?
- class of title
- name of owner
- may be a restriction on title
What does the charges register contain?
- details of encumbrances
- charges
- restrictive covenants
How are 3rd party interests protected in registered land?
By notices or restrictions on the register
Charges
- legal mortgage
- legal easements (burden on charges, benefit on property register)
Notices
- equitable mortgages, covenants, equitable easements, estate contracts, matrimonial home rights - notice on charges register
Restrictions
- BUITs
What is the effect of entering a notice on the register?
Failure means interest will not bind purchaser for valuable consideration. But will be binding on someone who is gifted property or inherits it.
How can a notice be cancelled?
Registered proprietor can apply for it to be cancelled. Registrar will inform party with benefit of notice to respond within prescribed period and if not, will be cancelled.
Application for notice must be made with reasonable cause.
What’s an overriding interest?
Interest that is capable of binding a buyer dispute the fact that it doesn’t appear on the register of title.
What are overriding interests?
- legal lease for 7 years or less
- implied legal easements or profits à prendre (if meet certain requirements)
- interests of persons in actual occupation
- occupation rights of spouse
When can an implied easement or profit be overriding?
- purchaser has actual knowledge of easement or profit
- easement or profit is obvious on reasonably careful inspection of the land or
- easement or profit has been exercised within 1 year of the date of disposition
When will an interest of persons in actual occupation not be overriding?
- occupier failed to disclose their occupation upon reasonable enquiry or
- occupation was not obvious on reasonable inspection of the land at time of the disposition and buyer did not have actual knowledge of the interest.
What constitutes actual occupation?
Question of fact, common sense.
Court takes into account
- degree of permanence and continuity of presence
- intentions and wishes of person concerned
- length of any absences and reason for absence
- nature of property
- personal circumstances