Land searches
When you buy a house, your solicitor will make a search of the Council's records to ensure that there are no hidden surprises such as:
- motorways at the back of your garden
- outstanding financial charges served on previous owners
- plans for development within close proximity to the property.
The search is made up of two standard forms; the LLC1 and CON29.
LLC1 Official Requisition of Search
The LLC1 is the Official Requisition of Search, which discloses the registered entries affecting the property. Entries may be conditional planning consents, conservation areas, tree preservation orders, council grants that may need to be repaid, agreement and identification of the property as a building of special architectural or historical interests.
All registered entries place some kind of restriction on the property or area that the property is situated within. This is not necessarily bad, as it is important to know information about your property, for example; that it's been built or converted in accordance with the planning permission issued.
Since Thursday 14th July 2022, we no longer provide a Local Land Charges service (LLC1).
The Local Land Charges Register has been migrated to HM Land Registry and you can access this digital service using your Portal account, Business Gateway or on Gov.uk - Land and property search. We do continue to provide responses to CON29 enquiries.
CON29 Enquiries of the Local Authority
The CON 29 Enquiries of the Local Authority has predetermined questions that concern the following areas:
- Planning
- Highways
- Environmental Health
- Housing
- Building Control.
The CON29 form questions have many that are are always asked and a number that are predetermined yet are optional questions, for which an additional fee is charged. It is advisable to review these questions with your solicitor, before an application is made about the property you're purchasing.
In some cases, it's also possible to ask for an additional enquiry of your own. This would incur an additional fee. Some solicitors already have additional questions that they ask, such as information concerning recent planning applications on adjoining properties, but we'd recommend asking your solicitor for assistance.
You can also ask if particular roads or footpaths in the vicinity of your property are publicly maintained, for example a footpath to the rear or side of your property. Ask your solicitor to identify these roads and footpaths on your search.
After completing the CON29, the Local Land Charges department will return the completed forms and questions to your solicitor within around 4 to 6 working days.
Personal searches
Due to the LLC1 migration to HM Land Registry in 2022, protection under the Land Charges Act 1975 is only available when using the CON29. When conducting a personal search instead of an official LLC1, you will not be able to pursue legal action against the Council if the gathered information is incorrect.
In relation to your personal search, you can use our online map service to obtain information on:
- planning applications
- building regulations
- highways and adopted roads.
Submit a local land search
You can submit a local land search online, by post or using the National Land Information Service. There are fees payable to such searches, which include VAT where appropriate.
LLC1 searches are no longer accepted by Bury Council and should be submitted directly to HM Land Registry.
Current fees:
- CON29: £147.60
- Optional enquiries (questions 4 to 21): £14.40
- Optional enquiry (question 22): £16.80
- Additional enquiries: £20.40
- Additional parcels (CON29): £23.40
Please note the CON29 charges will be applied if individual requests are made through Land Charges.
Pay for a local land search
Payment of a local land search enquiry request should be made using our online payments service. If you have any questions about payment, please contact us.
Since 1st April 2022, we no longer accept cheques for payment of searches.
Submit a local land search by post or email
Search requests can be emailed to landcharges@bury.gov.uk with copies of the CON29 paperwork and OS based plan outlining the boundary of the property/area you wish to search on.
To ensure that we can process your search efficiently and avoid unnecessary delays, we recommend that you:
- always send the completed CON29 form
- supply OS based plans, clearly outlining the property or area of land you wish to search
- ensure optional and additional enquiries are submitted at the time of the original search, as requests received on a later date can delay our response. After your initial request is complete you find that you require further information, we are able to provide answers but do not re-validate your official certificate of search or add the questions to your original application(s). Our answer will be provided by letter
- include other roads or footpaths in 'Box C' of the CON29 form, if you wish. Please identify them by name or if the name is unknown, identify them by hatching or colouring them on your plans
- pay the correct fee, to ensure your application can be processed. Remember to include the fee for any optional or additional enquiries.
When submitting searches on commercial properties, it would be advisable to contact us to check the fees, as they often included additional charges.
If on receipt of an application we find the fee to be incorrect we will notify you by telephone or email.
Common land
The register shows the area of land, details the rights of common held and the ownership of the common.
Common land inspections can be made to Lancashire County Council by:
- writing to: Lancashire County Council, County Hall, Preston, PR1 8XJ
- calling: 01772 263459.
Common land searches have a payable fee of £16.80 and search should be submitted to us at:
- Bury Council, Knowsley Street, Bury, BL9 0SW
National Land Information Service
We accept online search requests made via the National Land Information Service (NLIS) website.
The NLIS is a government initiative that aims to speed up the conveyancing process using electronic transactions. The service connects law firms, conveyancers and data providers such as HM Land Registry, the Environment Agency and Local Authority Local Land Charges Registers. It is designed to provide all land and property related information throughout England and Wales.
Solicitors using the NLIS will enjoy a number of benefits, including:
- quicker response times, as searches are submitted and returned online
- searches can be tracked online, meaning you can monitor the progress of the search
- solicitors do not need to raise cheques as payment is made by BACS to the Local Authority.