My late sister,in the last years of her life told me on many occasions that she had purchased some land in the northwest of England. She said that she could not show me the title deeds as another member of the family was'' looking after them'' for her.I have spoken to the solicitor's dealing with the probate and they inform me that it's impossible to get the Land Registry to carry out a search without the title deeds or some other supporting document. I would have thought in this high tech age that a key word such as a name or place/area put into the registry data base would do the job but they say no. I would be grateful if anyone knows another way of finding out if my sister did in fact own land.
Answer by Spock (rhp)
i'd assume that her financial records such as canceled cheques would show whether she's been paying land taxes, etc.
who has the right to search those?
Answer by Othniel
You need to go through all of her documents and look for clues. If you know the family member who was looking after these purchases then you need to ask them directly. Obviously they will be unable to do anything with them without owning them legally. The will should also mention such possessions unless the will is nonexistent or too general.
If you have an idea of the area where the land is located you can do some specific property searches through the internet. I don't know about England but here in the US I can access property appraiser sites in any State if I also know the county. So however property is held and organized I would assume that you could do the same.
Answer by Politically Correct
You will have to do some detective work. It will not be possible to trace it without the address. All the people saying that you can use a name to do a title search are flat-earthers from America who do not realise that the entire world is not held in their database.
In any case, the relative holding the deeds will need to come forward so that the ownership can be transferred as part of the probate process.
But don't you think that it is possible that she bought it in the name of the relative? That would explain why it is not in her estate.
Answer by Glenn S
Go to a title company and ask them to do a complete title search of your sister's name. They might charge you a nominal fee.
Also note, if she held title in a the name of a corporation it will not show on the title search.
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
Orignal From: How do I find out if my late sister owned land?
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