Whether you’re considering selling your home or applying for a loan, it’s essential to know if a charge exists on your property. A “charge” is a legal claim placed by creditors, which can affect your ownership rights until the debt is repaid.
Over the years at Property Rescue, we’ve helped thousands of homeowners navigate the process of selling properties with various charges attached. This guide draws on that experience to explain what charges are, how they affect you, and exactly how to find them.
What is a Property Charge?
A property charge is a legal interest registered against your property that secures a debt. According to HM Land Registry, charges appear in the “Charges Register” (Section C) of your title register and may include mortgages, financial charges secured on the property, and other rights or interests that limit how the property can be used.
The most common types of charges we encounter include:
Mortgage charges – The most familiar type. When you take out a mortgage, your lender registers a legal charge against your property as security for the loan. This gives them the right to sell the property if you default on payments.
Charging orders – These arise from unpaid debts. According to GOV.UK guidance on charging orders, when someone has a County Court Judgment (CCJ) against them and fails to pay, the creditor can apply to the court to place a charge on the debtor’s property. As Citizens Advice explains, this secures the debt against your home, meaning if you sell or remortgage, money from the sale goes towards paying it off.
Equitable charges – These may arise from court orders or situations where a legal charge wasn’t properly executed. Unlike legal charges, they don’t automatically give the holder power of sale, though they could seek a court order to force a sale.
Restriction notices – While not charges in the strict sense, these are often found alongside charges and restrict what can be done with the property without certain conditions being met.
How Charges Affect Sellers
If you’re planning to sell or refinance your property, any existing charges will need to be addressed. Here’s what we’ve learned from helping homeowners in this situation:
The charge must typically be cleared at completion. When you sell, your solicitor will use proceeds from the sale to pay off any registered charges before you receive the remaining funds. This happens automatically as part of the conveyancing process.
Multiple charges are paid in order of priority. If you have both a mortgage and a charging order, the mortgage (as the first registered charge) typically gets paid first. Any remaining proceeds then go towards subsequent charges.
Charges can affect your equity calculation. Before listing your property, it’s worth understanding exactly what you owe. We’ve seen cases where homeowners didn’t realise the full extent of charges on their property until they came to sell.
Some buyers may be deterred. While charges themselves don’t prevent a sale, a complicated title with multiple charges can slow things down. Cash buyers and property purchasing companies like Property Rescue are often better equipped to handle these situations quickly.
How Charges Affect Buyers
If you’re buying a property, your solicitor should conduct thorough searches to identify any charges. However, it’s worth understanding why this matters:
Charges run with the land. Under the Land Registration Act 2002, registered charges bind successive owners. This means if a charge isn’t properly discharged before you buy, you could become responsible for it.
This is why you need a solicitor. A competent conveyancer will identify all charges on the title and ensure they’re discharged at completion. The seller’s solicitor provides undertakings (legally binding promises) to clear any mortgage or charges from the sale proceeds.
If you’ve completed and discovered charges… This is rare but can happen if searches weren’t done properly. In this situation, you may need to seek legal advice about whether your solicitor failed in their duty of care.
How to Find Out if There’s a Charge on Your Property
1. Search the HM Land Registry
The most reliable way to check for charges is through HM Land Registry’s official search service. Here’s exactly how to do it:
Step 1: Visit the GOV.UK “Search for land and property information” service.
Step 2: Search by address or postcode to find your property.
Step 3: You can view a free property summary, which shows basic information. However, to see full details of any charges, you’ll need to purchase the title register.
Step 4: Download the title register. As of December 2024, the fee is £7 for an electronic copy downloaded directly from GOV.UK. Be aware that third-party websites may charge more for the same information.
What to look for: The title register is divided into three sections:
- Section A (Property Register): Describes the property and any rights it benefits from
- Section B (Proprietorship Register): Shows the current owner(s) and any restrictions
- Section C (Charges Register): Lists any charges, including mortgages, charging orders, and other interests
If there’s no Section C on your title register, this generally means no charges are currently registered against your property.
2. Local Authority Search
A local land charges search reveals different information from the Land Registry. According to local authority guidance, this search (known as an LLC1) shows:
- Financial charges where money is owed to the council (such as for works carried out on the property)
- Tree preservation orders
- Listed building status
- Conservation area designations
- Planning obligations and enforcement notices
- Improvement grants that may need repaying
These charges are separate from those held at the Land Registry and are binding on successive owners. The search is free to conduct yourself, though an official certificate costs £15.
3. Instruct a Solicitor
For a comprehensive picture, particularly if you’re planning to sell or refinance, instructing a solicitor to conduct full searches is advisable. They will:
- Search the Land Registry for registered charges
- Conduct local authority searches
- Check for unregistered interests that might affect the property
- Verify that any charges can be cleared from sale proceeds
Conveyancing costs vary, but you can expect to pay between £500 and £1,500 for a full service. Many solicitors offer fixed-fee quotes, so it’s worth shopping around.
Can I Sell a Property with a Charge on It?
Yes, you can sell a property with charges on it. This is something we deal with regularly at Property Rescue, and in most cases, the process is straightforward.
How it works in practice:
When you accept an offer on your property, your solicitor will calculate exactly what’s owed on each charge, including any redemption fees or early repayment charges. At completion, they’ll use the sale proceeds to clear these charges in order of priority. You receive whatever remains after all charges and selling costs are paid.
What if the charges exceed the property value?
This is known as negative equity. In this situation, you’d need to make up the shortfall from other funds, or negotiate with your creditors. Some lenders will agree to a “short sale” where they accept less than the full amount owed, though this can affect your credit rating and may have tax implications. If you’re in this position, we’d recommend speaking to a debt advisor through Citizens Advice or StepChange.
Selling with a charging order:
GOV.UK confirms that a charging order doesn’t mean you have to sell, but if you do choose to sell, the charge typically needs to be paid from the proceeds. In our experience, this rarely causes problems—the charge is simply paid off during conveyancing like any other secured debt.
How to Sell Property Faster with Charges
If you need to sell quickly and have charges on your property, working with a cash buyer can significantly speed up the process.
At Property Rescue, we specialise in purchasing properties directly from homeowners, including those with existing charges. Because we buy with cash and use our own panel of solicitors, we can often complete in as little as 2-4 weeks.
Here’s how it works:
- You contact us for a free, no-obligation valuation
- We make a cash offer based on the property’s condition and market value
- Our solicitors handle everything – including liaising with your charge holders
- At completion, charges are cleared from the sale proceeds
- You receive your money – whatever’s left after charges are paid
We cover all legal fees, so there’s no upfront cost to you. And because we’re experienced in handling properties with charges, there are no nasty surprises or last-minute complications.
This guide provides general information about finding and understanding property charges. For advice specific to your situation, particularly regarding debt, we recommend consulting a qualified solicitor or contacting Citizens Advice for free, impartial guidance.
