Quick answer
Download the title register from HM Land Registry for £7: it names the current owner, and often the price they paid and any mortgage lender.1 Search by address, postcode or map; HM Land Registry covers more than 90% of the land mass of England and Wales.2 If the property is unregistered, the search gives no result.3 HM Land Registry does not store original paper deeds, and if a home is registered you do not need them to prove ownership.4
Key takeaways
- Title register and title plan: £7 each to download from HM Land Registry.1
- The register shows the owner, any mortgage lender and rights or restrictions on the land.
- HM Land Registry holds titles for more than 90% of the land mass of England and Wales.2
- Downloaded copies are not proof of ownership; official copies cost £11.1
- Property Alert is free and tells you when someone applies to change a register you are watching.5
Who owns the house matters more often than buyers think: a seller who is not the registered owner, a lender's charge you did not expect, or a strip of garden on someone else's title. The register answers all of these for the price of a coffee.
This guide covers England and Wales. In Scotland, ownership is recorded by Registers of Scotland, searchable through ScotLIS.
How do you find out who owns a property?
Use HM Land Registry's Search for land and property information service. You can find a property by postcode, street and town, on a map, or by title number.3 The property summary is free; the title register and title plan cost £7 each to download, and you need an account.1
The online service only covers registered property.3 If nothing comes up, the land may be unregistered: an official search of the index map tells you whether any part of an area is registered, for a fee of £8 where up to five titles are disclosed.6
What does the title register show?
The register has a property register and a proprietorship register and, where needed, a charges register; restrictions usually appear in the proprietorship register.7 For a buyer, the proprietorship register is the key part. The seller named in the listing should match the registered owner. If it does not, there may be a simple reason (probate, a recent marriage, a company) or a problem: ask the agent before you go further.
If the seller is an executor selling a home from an estate, they can accept your offer before probate is granted, but completion has to wait for the grant. Settle's guide to selling a property during probate explains that timeline from the executor's side.
| Part | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Property register | The address, a description of the land, and rights that benefit it, such as a right of way |
| Proprietorship register | The registered owner, the class of title, any restrictions on selling, and often the price paid |
| Charges register | Mortgages and other charges, plus other matters that affect the land, such as covenants |
| Title plan | The extent of the land on a map; the boundaries shown are general, not exact |
Worked example: what £14 can tell you before an offer
You are interested in a cottage listed by its owner. For £14 you download the title register and plan. The register shows the seller as owner since 2014, a charge to a bank, and a restrictive covenant against building more than one house on the plot. The plan shows the garden boundary stopping short of the fence at the back.
None of this stops a purchase, but each point is a question: is the back strip owned by a neighbour, and is the covenant a problem for the extension you had in mind? Your conveyancer will check the title in full after your offer is accepted, but these are worth knowing before you pay for a survey.
Do you need the title deeds?
For registered property, no. The register is the proof of ownership. HM Land Registry does not store original paper deeds; it keeps scanned copies only of documents marked as filed on the register, and copies of deeds cannot be used to prove ownership.4 Old deeds can still be worth keeping, because they can show history the register does not, such as old boundary plans.
If a home is unregistered, the paper deeds are the proof of ownership, so the seller must produce them, and the sale will trigger first registration. Lost deeds for unregistered land can make a sale slower.
How do you protect your own home from title fraud?
Once you own the home, sign up to HM Land Registry's Property Alert. It is free, covers up to 10 properties, and emails you when someone applies to change the register, for example to register a mortgage. It does not block changes automatically, so act quickly if an alert is not expected.5
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Frequently asked questions
How can I find out who owns a house?+
Download the title register from HM Land Registry for £7. It names the registered owner. Search by address, postcode, map or title number.
Is it free to find out who owns a property?+
The property summary on HM Land Registry is free, but the owner's name is on the title register, which costs £7 to download.
What if the property is not registered?+
The online search will not find it. An official search of the index map costs £8 and confirms whether land is registered; unregistered land is proved by its paper deeds.
Does HM Land Registry hold my original deeds?+
No. It does not store original paper deeds. For registered property, the register itself is the proof of ownership.
Can I use a downloaded title register as proof of ownership?+
No. Downloaded copies are for information only. Official copies, which can be used as evidence, cost £11.
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OfficialThe figures and rules on this page are drawn from the official UK government sources below. Rates are the confirmed 2026/27 amounts. Each link opens the relevant official page in a new tab.
- GOV.UK: Search for land and property information www.gov.uk/search-property-information-land-registry Title register and title plan £7 each; downloads are not proof of ownership; official copies £11.
- GOV.UK: About HM Land Registry www.gov.uk/government/organisations/land-registry/about Over 27 million titles covering more than 90% of the land mass of England and Wales.
- GOV.UK: Finding information held by HM Land Registry www.gov.uk/guidance/finding-information-held-by-hm-land-registry Search by postcode, street, map or title number; registered property only.
- GOV.UK: Copies of deeds www.gov.uk/get-information-about-property-and-land/copies-of-deeds HM Land Registry does not store original paper deeds; copies cannot prove ownership.
- GOV.UK: Protect land and property from fraud www.gov.uk/protect-land-property-from-fraud Property Alert is free, covers up to 10 properties and does not block changes.
- GOV.UK: HM Land Registry information services fees www.gov.uk/guidance/hm-land-registry-information-services-fees Official search of the index map: £8 where up to five titles are disclosed.
- GOV.UK: How to read a title register www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-read-a-title-register-and-title-plan/how-to-read-a-title-register The parts of the register, restrictions and classes of title.
Verified against published UK government guidance. See also Methodology and Editorial standards.