The deal may have completed, but the work of a property lawyer continues

The day of completion is the finishing line that many a property lawyer is judged by. Weeks and months of negotiations and due diligence finally yield fruit, and the purchaser or tenant is handed the keys to their new premises. 

However, until the transfer deed or lease is registered at HM Land Registry in the client’s name, they are not the registered legal proprietor. It is therefore essential that any application to HM Land Registry is actively monitored, until registration has been successfully completed.

According to HM Land Registry’s January 2026 published processing times: 58% of its complex applications (such as new leases or transfers of part) are completed within 12 months, 15.4% within 18 months and 1.5% within 18 months plus. The processing times for registering a purchase or transfer of a whole are reportedly much shorter. From my own experience, these processing times look about right and are an improvement on those in the aftermath of COVID. That said, intermittently checking on the progress of an application for 12-18 months, does incur time and cost and this should not be trivialised. 

It is possible on a case-by-case basis to apply to HM Land Registry to expedite an application. On the occasions I have needed to do this, the processing time has been reduced to days and weeks, rather than months; I have yet to be let down using this route. There must be a legitimate reason for an expedited request, the main reason being that the delay is causing a legal or financial problem. For example, if my client was seeking to buy a property, I would strongly insist that the seller’s own registration application had been concluded without issue. I could therefore be certain that the seller could be the registered legal proprietor and that their registration application had no defect; any lender’s solicitor would likely take a similar view.

It has become normalised within the industry that these service levels will be with us for some time to come. Frequently articles refer to this ‘registration gap’, and the practical impact this has on the management of properties. It has now become standard practice that drafting is inserted into a sale contract to deal with the management of the property during the registration gap.

Fundamentally, until the client is the registered legal owner of the property at HM Land Registry, a number of management actions that the client takes pending registration could be invalid. For example, the service of a s.25 notice or a break clause, could be invalid if signed and served by the buyer. A buyer of a property would therefore need its seller to serve such notices on their behalf, and it is commercially expected, that the buyer should cover the seller’s legal costs in doing so. 

Should the status quo continue, there will continue to be an additional time and financial cost to all parties due to the registration gap. Perhaps HM Land Registry will continue its improvement on processing times, or if there is no further uptick in performance, the question of privatisation will again be publicly mooted. Until such time, property lawyers will quietly and diligently monitor their HM Land Registry applications and reply to any requisitions or queries that HM Land Registry have, long after the premises have opened and started trading. 

Christopher Edwards is a senior associate in the real estate, planning and construction team, advising on a wide range of property and landlord and tenant matters for clients from private individuals to major brands, and is known for his clear, pragmatic approach, strong legal drafting and commercially focused advice.