Overreaching—sales by trustees of land


Published by a ÀÏ˾»úÎçÒ¹¸£Àû Property expert
Practice notes

Overreaching—sales by trustees of land


Published by a ÀÏ˾»úÎçÒ¹¸£Àû Property expert

Practice notes
imgtext

Broadly, the doctrine of overreaching enables purchasers (which includes tenants and mortgagees) in good faith for money or money’s worth to rely solely on the legal title. In the case of registered land, this means the entries entered on the register of title, as it records ownership of the legal estate and is not concerned with equitable interests.

A buyer of a legal estate in land from trustees will not be affected by any of the trusts on which the land is held if the purchase price is paid to all the trustees (of whom there must be at least two) or to a trust corporation. Payment of the price in this manner means that the interests of the beneficiaries are said to be ‘overreached’. This is commonly known as the 'two trustee' rule.

Overreaching also occurs in sales:

  1. •

    under the powers of the Settled Land Act 1925

  2. •

    by a mortgagee (see Overreaching by a mortgagee) or personal representative

  3. •

    under a court order

This Practice Note deals only with sales by trustees of land.

What

Powered by Lexis+®
Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
Related legal acts:
Key definition:
Overreaching definition
What does Overreaching mean?

The transfer of beneficial interests from land to the proceeds of sale.

Read more

Popular documents

Contracts for the sale of land—formation, signature and variation

Contracts for the sale of land—formation, signature and variationIntroductionA contract for the sale, or other disposition, of an interest in land is void unless it complies with section 2 of the Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989 (LP(MP)A 1989). This provides that it must:•be in

Establishing a beneficial interest (joint ownership)

Establishing a beneficial interest (joint ownership)Where two or more people together own real property, they hold it under a trust of land. Where property is held on a trust of land, the legal estate and equitable estate are separate. The legal estate must be held by the co-owners as joint tenants.

Death of the seller or buyer between exchange and completion

Death of the seller or buyer between exchange and completionStatus of the contractDuring the process of buying a property, exchange of contracts is when the parties exchange signed contracts, and the buyer pays the deposit. Once this has taken place, the agreement becomes legally binding and major

Where a freehold is unregistered, how can a five-year lease be noted or protected at the Land Registry?

Where a freehold is unregistered, how can a five-year lease be noted or protected at the Land Registry?Compulsory registrationThe Land Registration Act 2002 (LRA 2002) provides for the compulsory registration at the Land Registry of an estate in land upon the occurrence of certain events. LRA 2002,