Local land charges information

A local land charge is a restriction or prohibition imposed on a piece of land. Its purpose is to either secure the payment of a sum of money, or limit the use of the land. These charges are binding on future owners and occupiers of the land.

Normally, when a property or piece of land is either:

  • purchased
  • leased
  • mortgaged 
  • or, a valuation is carried out on it

a request for a local land charges search is sent to the relevant local authority. These search requests are mostly (but not always) submitted by a solicitor or licensed conveyancer.

Local land charge searches seek to identify any planning; statutory orders; highways, housing or environmental health matters which might impact the property.

How do I apply for a search?

You can apply for a local land charges search online.

You must provide:

  • the full postal address of the property you wish to search on
  • an up-to-date OS location plan, which shows the search site outlined in red
  • payment (when prompted) via debit or credit card

LLC1 searches

An Official Search Certificate (LLC1) is currently provided by Land Registry. Search for local land charges via the government's national register.

CON29 and EIR enquiries

We continue to respond to CON29 and EIR enquiries.

CON29 consists of two parts - CON29R and CON29O. They are in place to answer any queries that potential purchasers may want to know before buying a property, or a piece of land.

CON29R contains enquiries that we must provide. They reveal information about:

  • who maintains the roads where the property is located
  • the planning history of the property
  • the building control history of the property
  • traffic schemes
  • compulsory purchase orders
  • proposed tree preservation orders (TPOs)
  • other notices which may affect the property

CON29O contains optional enquiries that can be requested for an additional fee. They reveal information about:

  • road proposals
  • public footpaths
  • noise abatement orders
  • pollution notices
  • common land and village greens

Box C

Box C of the CON29R form is a free text space which allows purchasers to nominate up to three additional roads to be checked, as part of their requested search. These roads need to be identified by name (the name(s) must also be clearly displayed on the location plan provided), or by marking the roads with a colour and mentioning the colour in Box C.

Location plans

A location plan is used to establish the location of a search site. Any search that contains a poor quality or unacceptable plan will be rejected and returned. This will delay the search process.

Any developer's plot plan must be accompanied by a location plan (the two can be submitted together).

The better the quality of the plan provided, the better quality of answer(s) we can provide you with.

Additional enquiries

We do not answer solicitors' additional enquiries. Any enquiries not covered by information by CON29 will need to be sent to the relevant team. Charges may apply.