The questions people ask

Short answers in plain words, each ending at the document that settles it.

• Who is responsible for a fence or boundary wall?

  There is no rule that the left-hand fence is yours. The title plan does not say; a deed the register refers to sometimes does. How to find out, and what to order.

• How to find out who owns a property

  The registered owner is named on the title register, with the price paid and any mortgage. What is free, what costs £7, and what an official copy adds.

• Proof of ownership of a property

  An official copy of the title register is the evidence a court accepts. A GOV.UK download is not one. What to order and when you are asked for it.

• How long is left on my lease?

  The leasehold title register states the date and term of the lease; subtract the years that have passed. Why eighty years matters, and what the lease itself adds.

• Title deeds explained: the register, the plan and the filed documents

  What HM Land Registry hold for a property, what each document shows, and which one answers which question.

Not legal advice. A check supports, and does not replace, a buyer's conveyancing.