My property is not for sale so why did a solicitor conduct a search?

[BeeCucumber]

I’ve had a notification from the Land Registry that states a local solicitor has conducted a search on my property. My house is not for sale. Any idea why this has happened?

Land registry applications are for things like mortgages charges, transfer of ownership, changes to deeds, covenants etc.

I would certainly contact the land registry fraud prevention team and also try and contact the solicitor. See which one you get to first.
I suspect the solicitor has put in the wrong address for something else.

Land Registry Property Alerts is a good service to sign up to as it alerts you to any ‘activity’ of any type in relation to your property. You can do it for free and there is an enhanced service for an annual fee. We were signed up for my DF’s house, and currently MIL’s and our own. There have been a few cases of properties ‘stolen’ without the owner’s knowledge, i.e. sold fraudulently, which is easier if no mortgage or the property is empty.

OP, just check this alert out. It’s unlikely to be anything to worry about but you want to be sure.

You need to get this checked urgently.
The land registry alerts don’t stop fraud, they’re only alerts.
The fact that an application has been lodged (not just a search) is very worrying. You need to find out what, exactly, this application is and who’s lodged it.

Also, to protect your property from a fraudulent application (more likely on rented and mortgage-free properties, or if the owners are vulnerable), you can put an anti-fraud restriction on the register (called a Form LL Restriction).

Id be calling the solicitors as soon as they opened tomorrow. Sounds worrying

Are you not able to see what type of application has been lodged? If not, it could be an application to obtain the registration details for a party wall notice from a neighbour. Or, as someone suggested, if you have an outstanding judgement debt someone might be trying to get a charge registered. On the other hand is there any clue of a neighbour encroaching on your boundary or disputing a boundary as they might be looking at the land registry records for this or to make an adverse possession claim. Make sure the Land Registry has your up to date contact details if your address is different to the property address (e.g if you aren't living there) so that you receive any notices and are able to object or respond if you need to.

I have no debt, my house is detached so no party wall. I’ve downloaded all the documents available to me on the land registry website and there is no mention of the application.

I have emailed the solicitor and I await their reply.

There seems to be some confusion here. You don’t get notified if someone downloads your deeds etc. We own a field and get regular enquiries about purchasing it from developers, who have got our details from the LR deeds , we never get notified of this by LR.
We did get a notification whenDH transferred half of another property to me as the solicitor was doing amending the ownership .
@BeeCucumber you need to check with the solicitor about the work they are doing in case there is something dodgy going on.

Edited to say crossed post , glad you have approached the solicitor. My parents and several neighbours had someone tell his bank he was their Freeholder and tried to use this as collateral for a loan. Thankfully they were made aware of this and were able to deal with it as they owned their freeholds.

You absolutely need to chase this up - if you aren’t expecting an application to be submitted, it’s precisely the sort of situation the alert is for. The bottom of your email from Land Registry should have this info

“If you are unsure about any of the information provided in this alert, please contact the Property Alert Support team on 0300 006 0478 (Call charges may apply).

If you were not expecting this alert and the activity within it appears suspicious you should take action. You may find that you need to seek legal advice to decide on your next steps.

Possible next steps you may wish to take are:

Contact a solicitor, Citizens Advice or Action Fraud.

Fill in our fraud reporting form, available on our website (www.landregistry.gov.uk/contact-us/report-fraud) and we will call you back during office hours.”

Quoting you to remind me to do this. Thank you!

Don’t wait too long for that reply. This all sounds very suspicious and you don’t want that application being processed while you’re waiting weeks for a response.

How odd. Hope all ok

Any news, OP?

I’ve had a reply from the solicitor. They state that they have no idea why the LR sent me an alert. They also enclosed a copy of the title relating to my alert and it’s not my land. The reference numbers do not match.

Do you think that it’s just a simple typo and therefore I have nothing to worry about?

@BeeCucumber Yes I do. I would just forget it

I'd clear it up with the LR - get something on record.

This.

Could you have made a typo when you set up the alert or have you signed up for a second alert somehow on a different piece of land?

Which numbers do not match?

Do not ignore this. Could be a very worrying indication. Radio 4 (you and yours) did investigation into this sort of thing, whereby some crook steals your property. Original item on radio about chap (clergyman?) who had house in Luton/Dunstable, no mortgage, but he lived (I assume to do with his job) in Wales. Turned up to see his house (was told by his neighbours there was work being done) to find strangers/builders in his property after they had (legitimately) bought property from crook. Look up on BBC sounds. But do not ignore this.

I had a notification from LR that I didn't recognise so contacted LR. They were able to confirm that it related to a change in the ownership of my mortgage company and they'd had several similar enquiries. While that doesn't sound like your circumstances, I would suggest a conversation with LR as they might be able to shed some light.

Thanks again - I’m going to contact the LR.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0025cr4
bbc radio4 “you & yours”, Property
You and YoursFive Ways They Get You

How can someone possibly steal a house from under your nose?
Reverend Mike Hall makes an astonishing discovery when neighbours tell him there's someone in his property

Hey OP - did you hear back from LR? We’ve had basically an identical scenario here today too.
Application made and a local law firms details. We plan to call them tomorrow and will contact LR but we’re very confused about it!!

My advice to everyone is Land Registry has two free tools to prevent fraud.

1. Home owners - update your Land Register contact details to include an email address. You can have up to 3 addresses Land Registry serve notice on. Email is much harder to intercept. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/updating-registered-owners-contact-address
2. Property Alert - you can watch several addresses e.g. elderly relatives.

https://propertyalert.landregistry.gov.uk

quite a few years ago now....late 90's IIRC there was a newspaper article about a similar theft. It was a female TV presenter who owned a London flat that she rented out. I can't remember the details but a tenant managed to sell the flat.