Local land charges

Official local land charges searches are carried out and certified by the council on behalf of a person buying land or property. A full local authority search consists of LLC1 and CON29 Forms ‘Required’ and ‘Optional’.

How to apply for a search

Make sure that when sending your search application to us, you include:

  • two LLC1 forms
  • two CON29 forms
  • a site location plan of the area you are searching enabling accurate identification of the land and property

The LLC1 and CON29 forms are held by solicitors or conveyancers and can also be obtained from law stationery suppliers.

How much does it cost?

CON29 enquiries are subject to VAT at the standard rate (20%)

These fees apply when requesting a search:

  • a full residential search (LLC1 and CON29) costs £245.50 (inc. VAT)
  • a full commercial* search (LLC1 and CON29) costs £293.50 (inc. VAT)
  • LLC1 only search costs £56.50 and then £2 for each additional parcel of land up to a maximum of £32.00
  • Residential CON29 Required (questions 1-3.13) costs £189.00 in total (inc. VAT)
  • Commercial* CON29 Required (questions 1-3.13) costs £237.00 in total (inc. VAT)
  • CON29 Optional (questions 4-22) costs £57.50 per question (inc. VAT)
  • additional parcels of land** on a full search cost £36.50 each (inc. VAT)

*A commercial fee is applicable to any land or property used for commercial or industrial purposes (property where business rates rather than Council Tax are charged. Any sites containing a mix of residential and commercial/industrial will be charged at the commercial rate.

**An additional parcel of land is a separate part of a building (for example a flat above a shop) or a building adjoining the property being searched upon.

Personal searches

Please email llcservice@befirst.london to make a booking to inspect the Local Land Charges Register or for enquiries regarding the Register.

There is currently no facility to inspect the register on site and copies of the register are being emailed.

There is no charge for this service.

Please note that information supplied is subject to sections 12 and 13 of the Environmental Information Regulations and the Local Government Act 2003 where applicable.

What happens next?

All standard searches should be completed within 5 working days.

A typical search completed by the Local Land Charges Section will tell you information about the property that you are buying.

The information provided includes:

  • planning history of the property
  • conservation areas
  • tree preservation orders
  • listed building status
  • certain legal agreements
  • improvement grants
  • financial charges imposed by the council
  • council or state road or rail schemes within 200 metres of the property
  • the designation of the property in our Local Development Framework
  • maintenance of roads given in the property address
  • compulsory purchase orders made by the council
  • smoke control orders

Useful links

For more information about the Local Land Charges Process

The National Land and Information Project