No map provided with copy title of new build property within a residential development

The Conveyancing Committee has been contacted by members of the profession and has been requested to give guidance where no map of the property in sale is being made available with Contracts for Sale of a new build property within a residential development, and the purchaser is expected to enter into a Contract for Sale in circumstances where no map has been provided to show the location of the unit in sale or indeed the size of the site in sale.

The committee is of the view that this practice is not in keeping with good conveyancing practice and that a purchaser is entitled to receive, at the very least, a suitable map clearly identifying the property in sale and its location within the estate at contract stage.

The approved scheme map should be available on closing and practitioners are reminded of the Practice Note from 5 November 2004: Land Registry-approved maps.