Establishing ownership of house - most cost effective way

Quartet

antoinolachtnai wrote: »

Exactly, and maybe this guy wants to know if he needs to have his spade ready!

I think it makes sense for him to know where he stands. no one will know that he has checked (other than the clerk in the office, or the searcher)

Yup but they could end up digging a big hole instead....:rolleyes:

old boy

Quartet wrote: »

Granted Antonilachtnai...

However it would appear that the OP friend knows most of what would be likely give in a folio (even if it registered)



Now if it is really owned by someone esp in his family then where he invokes a search and publication of title it may get very nasty...

On the other hand as you said he could spend his days there without doing this. He could look at it as a bonus that he has lived in a propery Rent Free for 27 years (unlike the rest of the muggins who pay rent & mortgage;))

Leaving the morals of this issue aside, and knowing someone who went down this route, and lost then I can only advise that they be mindful of the huge pitfalls that the next going down this route can result in....

the place was delerict, 4 walls and a roof, no water or sewrage, esb in 1 room 1 light i plug, he has spent his lifetime repairing and updating this place.

old boy

ok folks the legal advise recieved is,
a)stay as he is, do not upset the apple tart,
b)if he can contact children of the relatives family ask them to sign off their claim,
c)if there is an effort to evict him he must be reimbursed for the works carried out since he took up residence.
he will now seek a second opinion on this advice, but he is happy with the advice especially (a) and (c),

antoinolachtnai

did he find out if the house was actually transferred into the name of a living person?

It is good that he is getting a second view. It would be interesting to get some views on whether, if push came to shove and someone tried to put him out, he would have a chance at adverse possession.

He would probably never get around to doing this, but it might be a bargaining chip. Also, if someone knows that they will eventually get the house, if they don't mess around, that might keep things out of court as well.

This is all a hypothetical debate though, if he doesn't need to own the house it will probably be as well to leave well enough alone.

Carawaystick

It'd be an idea to make sure the second opinion is not in any way connected to the other parties - or even the first opinion. sulduggery can be involved amoung m'lerned friends - not that I'm suggesting anything like it is though.

Quartet

I reckon the advice is good. I dont think that skulduggary is involved in that part. That would appear to be similar to what was involved in the case I refered to previously....

Quartet

old boy wrote: »

the place was delerict, 4 walls and a roof, no water or sewrage, esb in 1 room 1 light i plug, he has spent his lifetime repairing and updating this place.

Fair enough...

That said people who pay rent and mortgage spend considerable amounts on making / keeping their homes habitable.

It is a bonus when can get a house for free without paying any rent or mortgage for 27 years.

Did your friends ever encounter any problems from others knowing that someoneelse owned the property?

Hope they get a positive outcome anyway

old boy

about 20 years ago a son of the origional owner tried to evict him, he had lived outside the state for a lifetime, but the legal advice the guy got was he had to be reimburse the inhabitant, there are no living brothers or sisters of the originial owner alive, no sons or daughters either, there are many grandchildren alive of whom my friend is one, some in ireland some in england and some in the u.s. the youngest of them at a guess would be in their mid 40s.

antoinolachtnai

If they tried to evict him, failed and gave up, that could be very significant. It means that he asserted possession all that time ago and has not heard anything since. Presumably there are papers to prove this.

I think it would be pretty tough going to shift him now.

I think the advice at (b) should not be taken, or only with a lot of further advice. Asking for the thing to be signed off could seriously weaken the claim that he had asserted possession and was not challenged.

I suppose he will probably sit tight, but if does decide to do anything, this is turning into serious senior counsel stuff.

As Quartet pointed out, it is possible to weaken that taking action could make things worse rather than better.

Ste.phen

If i'm reading that correctly the man in question is living in his grandfather's house, and one of his uncles (or dad) tried to evict him 20 years ago but is now deceased.

Unless there's something else to suggest one of the other grandchildren will try to claim the house, he's probably fine to live out his days there. I doubt he'd be able to safely leave the house to anyone in his will due to the ambiguity about ownership, and that's probably the only reason to go to the effort of trying to be named the official owner...

Treora

Quartet wrote: »

http://www.landregistry.ie/eng/Land_Registry_Services/


The instrument can only be inspected by the registered owner of the property, his personal representative and any person authorised by such persons or by an order of the court or by the Land Registration Rules 1972.

True but it is only the name, address and folio that is needed. And the website in question states, directly above that paragraph,
"Land Registry Searches

Who is entitled to inspect documents?

Names Index, folio and map can be inspected by anyone on payment of the prescribed fee.
" :cool: