When does the registered buyer become the legal owner?

• A. On completion
• B. After discharge of mortgage
• C. When registered at HM Land Registry
• D. On exchange

Answer: (C)

In registered land, the person who is the legal owner is the one named on the Land Registry title. The act of exchanging contracts places the buyer in actual beneficial or equitable ownership, and completion handles the transfer of money and documents. But the legal title only passes when the transfer is registered at HM Land Registry. Once the Land Registry update is made to show the buyer as proprietor, they become the legal owner. If there’s a mortgage, registration will also reflect the loan security, but it does not by itself create legal ownership.