Title, Plan and Easement Questions to Send to Your Conveyancer

Start with current registered documents

Obtain a current title search and the registered plan for the exact land being sold. Old purchase documents can guide the search but may not show later registrations. Keep the volume and folio, plan number, lot description and search date together so the conveyancer can identify the same material quickly. A fresh search also reduces the risk of relying on an undated copy saved during the original purchase, when later dealings may now appear against the land.

Read only for questions at this stage. Note unfamiliar notations, instruments, accessory lots and common property references, but do not decide what they mean. Registered interests can be technical and their practical effect may depend on another instrument that is not visible in a casual summary. Ask which referenced instruments must be ordered in full; a brief title notation rarely contains enough information for a seller or agent to understand the registered terms.

Compare the plan with physical use

Walk the property with a copy of the plan and mark fences, driveways, sheds, car spaces, storage and service routes as they appear on site. The exercise is designed to locate possible inconsistencies, not establish a legal boundary. Photographs and a simple sketch can make the question easier to explain. Mark observations in a different colour from registered lines so the working sketch cannot later be mistaken for a survey or an amended official plan.

A fence line, longstanding garden arrangement or separate entrance does not by itself prove ownership or exclusive rights. If the position on the ground needs to be established, ask whether a licensed surveyor should be engaged. Avoid changing campaign copy or promising rectification before the appropriate adviser responds. A surveyor can locate boundaries and improvements on the ground, while the conveyancer can explain the legal documents; neither role should be imitated in advertising copy.

Frame easement questions around practical use

When an easement appears on a plan or title, tell the conveyancer what practical issue prompted the question: proposed photography wording, vehicle access, a structure near the marked area or a buyer query. Include the instrument reference and do not assume the easement’s purpose from its shape alone. If access is the concern, include where vehicles and pedestrians actually travel and whether a gate, turning area or maintenance issue prompted the enquiry.

Useful questions include who benefits, what instrument should be reviewed, whether seller disclosure needs attention and which professional should explain the physical location. Do not state that an easement prevents, permits or has no effect on future work without address-specific advice from the responsible specialists. Drainage and sewerage infrastructure may involve authority information beyond the title material, so ask the conveyancer which service authority or specialist should be contacted.

Separate covenants, restrictions and owners corporation matters

List each restriction by its registered reference instead of grouping everything as a title issue. A covenant, section 173 agreement, mortgage, caveat or owners corporation notation may require a different search and adviser. Precise labels help the conveyancer provide a focused response and identify contract material. Use the exact covenant or agreement reference in correspondence and avoid describing it as “minor”, “standard” or “obsolete” before legal advice supports any such characterisation.

If common property or an accessory lot is involved, ask how parking, storage and shared areas should be described. The visible pattern of use may not match the plan. The campaign should state only the lot components and rights the documents and legal advice support. In an apartment or townhouse sale, the plan may distinguish a car space, storage lot and common property; ensure the questions cover every component shown in the marketing.

Turn the answers into an advertising fact sheet

After advice is received, record which facts can be used, which need qualification and which should remain in the legal documents rather than marketing. Have the seller and conveyancer review any description of boundaries, access, separate title, development opportunity or exclusive use before publication. When an adviser approves wording, retain their actual qualification rather than shortening it into “unrestricted”, “private” or another absolute term that changes the meaning.

Keep the title-question log with the campaign approval record. If a buyer raises a new issue, add it to the log and send it through the same route rather than improvising at an inspection. This protects the distinction between helpful coordination and legal interpretation. Agents can acknowledge the question and provide approved documents, but should not offer an inspection-day interpretation simply because a buyer wants an immediate answer.

Use the conveyancer’s response to create a plain internal instruction: the exact feature that can be described, any qualification that must accompany it, and the adviser to whom further questions should go. Never turn silence on one question into approval of the broader advertising claim. If the physical position remains material and uncertain, arrange the survey or other recommended work before launch rather than expecting buyers to resolve an inconsistency created by the campaign.