Identifying the Tenement Steading Extent

What is an acceptable existing extent for a tenement steading?

In each of the following scenarios, the Keeper is deemed to already hold an acceptable extent for the tenement steading and the application should proceed based on that extent.

A tenement steading cadastral unit has already been set up on the cadastral map through a previous 2012 Act registration (PR) of a flat within that tenement.		There is no requirement for the current application to include a plan or full bounding description of the tenement steading extent as we have an acceptable existing extent. If the current application is to register a flat within the existing tenement steading cadastral unit, and all rights and pertinents (exclusive and common) of the flat fall within the tenement steading, the application can proceed using the existing tenement steading cadastral unit. The tenement steading cadastral unit will be shown on the cadastral map. If plans references are required for the extent of the individual flat, or for any of the rights or pertinents of that flat, these references will be shown on a grouping containing supplementary data.
A previous 1979 Act registration (PR) of a flat within that single tenement was mapped using the site plan method (described as being "within the land edged red"), and the extent of the single tenement steading is delineated on the index map. Please note, a site plan extent from a 1979 Act PR that includes multiple tenements is not an acceptable extent.		There is no requirement for the current application to include a plan or full bounding description of the tenement steading extent as we have an acceptable existing extent. If the current application is to register a flat within the existing tenement steading site plan extent, and all rights and pertinents (exclusive and common) of the flat fall within the tenement steading, the application can proceed using the existing tenement steading site plan extent to define the tenement steading cadastral unit. The tenement steading cadastral unit will be shown on the cadastral map. If plans references are required for the extent of the individual flat, or for any of the rights or pertinents of that flat, these references will be shown on a grouping containing supplementary data. Any previous 1979 Act registrations for flats within the tenement will be converted at a future date as part of a conversion process so that they also refer to the tenement steading cadastral unit. Therefore no action is needed now to amend their title sheets to refer to the tenement steading cadastral unit number.
A research area (RA) has previously been set up for a single tenement or block, and the extent of the tenement steading is delineated (usually with a blue edge) on the index map. Please note, an RA extent that includes multiple tenements is not an acceptable extent.		There is no requirement for the current application to include a plan or full bounding description of the tenement steading extent as we have an acceptable existing extent. If the current application is to register a flat within the existing RA extent for the single tenement, and all rights and pertinents (exclusive and common) of the flat fall within the RA extent, the application can proceed using the existing RA extent to define the tenement steading cadastral unit. The tenement steading cadastral unit will be shown on the cadastral map. If plans references are required for the extent of the individual flat, or for any of the rights or pertinents of that flat, these references will be shown on a grouping containing supplementary data. Any previous 1979 Act registrations for flats within the tenement will be converted at a future date as part of a conversion process so that they also refer to the tenement steading cadastral unit. Therefore no action is needed now to amend their title sheets to refer to the tenement steading cadastral unit number.
The parent title for a TP of a flat comprises only the single tenement or block, and the extend of the tenement steading is delineated (usually with a red edge) on the index map. Please note, a parent title extent that includes multiple tenements is not an acceptable extent.		There is no requirement for the current application to include a plan or full bounding description of the tenement steading extent as we have an acceptable existing extent. If the current application is to register a flat within the existing parent title extent for the single tenement, and all rights and pertinents (exclusive and common) of the flat fall within the parent title extent, the application can proceed using the existing parent title extent to define the tenement steading cadastral unit. The parent title cadastral unit will be converted into the tenement steading cadastral unit. The tenement steading cadastral unit will be shown on the cadastral map. If plans references are required for the extent of the individual flat, or for any of the rights or pertinents of that flat, these references will be shown on a grouping containing supplementary data.

Does the application contain a satisfactory definition of the full extent of the tenement steading?

If we don't already have an acceptable extent of the tenement steading, we need to check to see if the applicant has provided a satisfactory definition of the tenement steading in their application.

The definition of the tenement steading provided in the application can be:

• shown on a new deed plan attached to the DIR;
• by inclusion in the application as a separate plan; this plan may be referred to in the application form although it is not essential for the application form to include the reference;
• shown on a previously recorded or registered deed plan; or
• a verbal or bounding description contained in a previously recorded or registered deed.

Guidance pages Acceptable deed plans and Acceptable bounding descriptions cover the requirements for deed plans and descriptions in much more depth.

If the application does contain a satisfactory definition for the single tenement steading, and all rights and pertinents of the flat fall within the tenement steading, the application can proceed using the application information to define the tenement steading cadastral unit. The tenement steading cadastral unit will be shown on the cadastral map. If plans references are required for the extent of the individual flat, or for any of the rights or pertinents of that flat, these references will be shown on a grouping containing supplementary data.

Can we use the information in the application combined with the information already held by the Keeper to identify the full extent of the tenement steading cadastral unit?

There will be occasions when between the information already held by the Keeper on the index map and the information provided in the current application, the full extent of the tenement steading cadastral unit is clear.

The simplest scenario is the "final flat scenario". An example of this could be a tenement block fronting the road and comprising 3 flatted properties, all of which have exclusive rear ground and rights to common rear areas. Two of the flats are already registered in the land register, having been registered under the 1979 Act and having been mapped using tinting method (in other words, not mapped "within the land edged red"). The third and final flat is submitted for registration with a deed plan showing the ground, etc pertaining to that final flat. The applicant, however, does not supply a plan or description defining the extent of the tenement steading cadastral unit. Taking the plotted areas already shown on the index map and the areas in the extent deed for the third (and final) application, the "jigsaw" is completed and it should be possible to create a tenement steading cadastral unit that follows the external boundaries of the ground pertaining to the three flatted properties.

This scenario most commonly occurs with 4-in-a-block or split villa style properties, but can also be applied in other tenement types where the 1979 Act PRs have been mapped using the tinting method. A more detailed guidance page has been created showing how this scenario applies in 4-in-a-block and split villas, but a straightforward example of another tenement style is provided here:

Final flat example
Registered titles. 2 of the 3 flatted properties comprising the block have already been registered under the 1979 Act using the tinting method of mapping.	Extent of current application. The deed plan for the current application to register the third and final flat in the block agrees with all the previous registrations. This deed plan completes the picture of the full extent of ground pertaining to the block.	Tenement steading cadastral unit. Combining the information already held by the Keeper on the index map for the 2 registered properties with that supplied in the current application, the tenement steading cadastral unit can clearly be identified as the area edged red on the plan (above).

• If your application fits this final flat scenario, and the extent of the tenement steading cadastral unit is clear from the existing registrations and the current application, proceed with the application using the tenement steading cadastral unit you have derived.
• The tenement steading cadastral unit will be shown on the cadastral map. If plans references are required for the extent of the individual flat, or for any of the rights or pertinents of that flat, these references will be shown on a grouping containing supplementary data.

• If you are in any doubt that your application does fit the scenario, or you believe there is a potential issue with the mapping of the titles involved, please speak with a referral officer.

There are other scenarios with tenements where the full extent of the tenement steading cadastral unit is clear from the information already held by the Keeper on the index map and the information provided in the current application.

Again, these scenarios most commonly occurs with 4-in-a-block or split villa style properties, but can also be applied in other tenement types where the 1979 Act PRs have been mapped using the tinting method. A more detailed guidance page has been created showing how these scenarios apply in 4-in-a-block and split villas, but a straightforward example of another tenement style is provided below:

Such a scenario could be a tenement block comprising four flatted properties, all with exclusive garden ground and rights to common areas. Two of the four flats are already registered in the land register, having been registered under the 1979 Act and having been mapped using tinting method (in other words, not mapped "within the land edged red"). The two registered flats comprise the flats with the "outer" areas of garden ground. A third flat is submitted for registration with a deed plan showing the ground, etc pertaining to that flat. The applicant, however, does not supply a plan or description defining the extent of the tenement steading cadastral unit. Taking the plotted areas already shown on the index map and the areas in the extent deed for the current application, the external edge of the "jigsaw" can be seen and it should be possible to create a tenement steading cadastral unit that follows the external boundaries of the ground pertaining to the block.

Or, another scenario where the Keeper has enough information to derive a tenement steading cadastral unit is described here. One or more of the four flats are already registered in the land register, having been registered under the 1979 Act and having been mapped using tinting method (in other words, not mapped "within the land edged red"). One of those registered flats comprises a flat with "outer" areas of garden ground. Other properties surrounding the tenement are also already registered helping to define the perimeter of the block's steading. The next flat is submitted for registration with a deed plan showing the ground, etc pertaining to that flat. The applicant, however, does not supply a plan or description defining the extent of the tenement steading cadastral unit. Taking the plotted areas already shown on the index map and the areas in the extent deed for the current application, the external edge of the "jigsaw" can be seen and it should be possible to create a tenement steading cadastral unit that follows the external boundaries of the ground pertaining to the block.

Outer boundaries example - combination of outer gardens & neighbouring properties already registered
Registered titles. 2 of the 4 flatted properties comprising the tenement block have already been registered under the 1979 Act using the tinting method of mapping. These two registered flats have garden and common areas that define parts of all four of the outer boundaries of the tenement steading, and identify the north west and south east corners. One or more of the external boundaries of the tenement steading are defined by neighbouring registered titles - in this example, the east boundary is defined by the registered title to the neighbouring house.	Extent of current application. The deed plan for the current application to register a third flat in the block agrees with the previous registrations, and also defines further parts of the external boundaries - in this example, it confirms the north west and south east corners of the tenement steading. The extent of the current application effectively completes the picture of the full extent of ground pertaining to the block.	Tenement steading cadastral unit. Combining the information already held by the Keeper on the index map for the registered flats and surrounding properties with that supplied in the current application, the tenement steading cadastral unit can clearly be identified as the area edged red on the plan (above).

• If your application fits a variation of these outer garden/neighbouring titles scenarios, and the extent of the tenement steading cadastral unit is clear from the existing registrations and the current application, proceed with the application using the tenement steading cadastral unit you have derived.
• The tenement steading cadastral unit will be shown on the cadastral map. If plans references are required for the extent of the individual flat, or for any of the rights or pertinents of that flat, these references will be shown on a grouping containing supplementary data.

• These outer boundary guidelines work particularly well with 4-in-a-block properties as they often follow the same pattern of multiple blocks with regular layouts. In other scenarios (split villas, traditional tenements, etc) please ensure we have enough information available from the application and registered titles - our job is not to guess the extent of the tenement steading extent. It may be that your application fits best with a restricted extent tenement steading cadastral unit instead - see section, below.
• If you are in any doubt about whether your application fits this kind of scenario or not, or if you believe there is a potential issue with the mapping of the titles involved, please speak with a referral officer.

Can we use the information in the application combined with the information already held by the Keeper to identify a restricted extent for the tenement steading cadastral unit?

Whenever possible, the tenement steading cadastral unit will comprise the extent of all flats in a block, their rights and pertinents. By reflecting the full extent of the tenement steading, the requirement to do later updates of registered titles will be greatly reduced. If, however, this is not possible from the information available to the Keeper, consideration should be given to setting up the tenement steading cadastral unit with a restricted extent that comprises, as a minimum, the extent of the tenement building, all registered flats, their rights and pertinents.

• A scenario when it may not be possible for the applicant to identify the full extent of all rights and pertinents relating to all flats in the block could be when not all flats in the block have been sold on as individual flats yet by the original builder and there is no deed of conditions identifying all the areas concerned. This scenario most often happens in areas of local authority or housing association accommodation where not all the flats in the block(s) have been sold off, and are instead occupied by tenants. In these developments, the rented flats and their pertinents have never been defined on a deed plan so the information is not available to the applicant or to the Keeper.
• Another scenario may be when the flat is located within a block that forms part of a large development of multiple blocks, with exclusive parking spaces located throughout the development. Not all parking spaces are registered yet, and the deed of conditions does not identify which parking space pertains to which flat. It would be unreasonable of the Keeper to expect the applicant to investigate numerous unregistered properties to establish all the spaces that pertain to all flats in a block.

In scenarios such as these, a restricted extent for the tenement steading cadastral unit can be set up based on what is known to the Keeper & the applicant at the time of registration (ie, the areas defined in the current application plus any existing PRs). 

Section C of the Tenement Scenarios page contains illustrated examples of restricted extents, including one in a large multi-block development, but a more common, straightforward example is shown here:

• If your application fits a variation of the restricted extent scenario and the extent of the restricted tenement steading cadastral unit is clear from the existing registrations and the current application, proceed with the application using the restricted extent tenement steading cadastral unit you have derived.
• The tenement steading cadastral unit will be shown on the cadastral map. If plans references are required for the extent of the individual flat, or for any of the rights or pertinents of that flat, these references will be shown on a grouping containing supplementary data.
• If you are in any doubt about whether your application fits this kind of scenario or not, or if you believe there is a potential issue with the mapping of the titles involved, please speak with a referral officer.

Verbal references and restricted extent tenement steading cadastral units

Any verbalised references in the application to exclusive rights and pertinents, or to common rights to areas shared only by flats within the tenement block, must be located within the existing or proposed restricted tenement steading extent. If it is apparent from the application that these verbalised rights do not fall within that restricted tenement steading extent, then the application should be rejected. This is because without knowing where those areas are, the Keeper would be unable to derive an extent for the tenement steading extent cadastral unit that includes a minimum of the tenement building and all pertinents (exclusive or common) of the flat being registered.

If you are in any doubt about whether your application contains a verbally described area that does not fall within the existing or proposed restricted tenement steading extent or not, or if you believe there is a potential issue with the mapping of the titles involved, please speak with a referral officer.

Common areas outwith the restricted extent tenement steading cadastral units

Any references to areas outwith the existing or proposed restricted tenement steading extent that are owned in common with other blocks or houses must be capable of being mapped, otherwise the common areas policy will be applied to them. If such common areas are mappable, then consideration should be given to whether they should be set up as shared plots, mapped as pertinents or mapped under the transitional provisions of schedule 4 of the 2012 Act. Complex applications such as these should be discussed with a Plans HEO to ensure the correct approach is being followed.

Updating a restricted extent tenement steading cadastral unit after further applications

When a restricted extent tenement steading cadastral unit has previously been set up, it will need to be considered whenever a further flat or unit within that block is registered to check whether the cadastral unit extent should be expanded to include additional areas of ground. This check will be needed upon each further application until such times as all flats or units are registered, and the cadastral unit represents the full extent of the tenement steading.

The normal consideration of the current application should be completed -

• does it meet the requirements for registration?
• is the description of the flat acceptable?
• can we map any exclusive or common pertinents, or are there suitable verbal descriptions for them?

In addition, if the current application includes ownership rights to additional areas not yet included in the restricted extent tenement steading cadastral unit, you will need to check it if is possible to identify what the new, extended extent will be?

• Can the additional area be identified and mapped from the information in the application?
• Or is there a plan showing the new, extended extent of the tenement steading cadastral unit in the application?
• If the new extended extent can't be identified, the application should be considered for rejection.
• Remember to take into account the guidance in the section above relating to verbal descriptions and when they can be accepted/when an application should be rejected?
• If you are in any doubt about whether your application needs a new cadastral unit extent or not, or if you are unsure if you have enough information to identify the new extent, or if you believe there is a potential issue with the mapping of the titles involved, please speak with a referral officer.

If the new extent can be identified, the current applications should proceed with the newly extended cadastral unit extent mapped on the cadastral map, and the references pertaining to the flat and its rights in a grouping or groupings showing Supplementary Data.

All existing 2012 Act PRs must also be updated to reflect the new extent of the tenement steading cadastral unit.

• An MU request should be completed and sent to Mapbase Maintenance to update the tenement steading cadastral unit extent of all earlier 2012 Act PRs in the block - please ensure that the updated extent is available in, for example, a DCU or COF file and available for MBM to copy & paste. Please note, if requesting an MU for increasing the extent of a restricted tenement steading cadastral unit, an email to MBM with the header “Tenement Steading Update Request” is sufficient. No Plans HEO approval required in this particular scenario, although AO plans officers should get EO approval for this type of MU request. There is no requirement to notify the owners or agents of the earlier 2012 Act PRs in the block as no change has been made to their title sheets or the extent of their rights, etc. 
• An LRS title note should be added to the current application explaining the update and which earlier titles have been updated (for example, MU created over MIDyyyy & MIDzzzzz to update tenement steading cadastral unit extent to include additional ground identified in MIDxxx).

When do we reject an application because the tenement steading extent is not identifiable?

Although we do try to establish a tenement steading extent from the application and from information already available to the Keeper from other registered titles, sometimes there are applications where this is just not possible. It is not our responsibility to guess the extent of a tenement steading as we do not know the situation "on the ground". Rather, the applicant and their solicitor are better placed to be able to establish the situation and supply the information. Therefore, if we cannot identify a full or restricted extent for the tenement steading cadastral unit from the information in the application combined with the information the Keeper already has in other registered titles, the application will be rejected, and the applicant will need to submit a new application that includes a suitable plan or description of the tenement steading extent.

• No suitable extent for the tenement steading cadastral unit is already available, and
• no suitable extent for the tenement steading cadastral unit is supplied in the application, or
• the existing PRs in the block and neighbouring registrations do not provide enough information to define the external boundaries of the tenement steading cadastral unit.
• Either the current application or the PRs include areas of ground (exclusive or common) that are verbally described - this means it is not possible to draw around the extent of these to create a restricted tenement steading cadastral unit.

If your application and the available information from previous registrations do not allow a full or restricted tenement steading cadastral unit to be identified, the application should be considered for rejection.

If you are in any doubt about whether your application should be rejected or not, please speak with a referral officer.

What to do if there are differing extents shown for the tenement steading between PRs, or between a PR and the application.

When there are differing extents shown for the tenement steading between PRs, or between a PR and the application, you may need to refer the application to a plans HEO for consideration on how to proceed.  It may be that the difference is simply due to the Keeper holding a restricted extent for the tenement steading cadastral unit (see above), and the current application includes rights to additional areas of ground that should now be included within an updated tenement steading cadastral unit extent. However, there will be other reasons for the differing extent, such as an area of ground having been incorrectly included previously in the tenement steading cadastral unit, and these more complex scenarios should be considered by a referral officer before a course of action is decided upon.

Additional guidance for referral officers can be found on the page - Tenement Steading Extent - Guidance for Referral Officers.

What if my application is in a very complex block of flats that doesn't fit the scenarios on this page?

There will be times when tenement applications are particularly complex, perhaps straddling several blocks, and these more complex scenarios should be considered by a referral officer before a course of action is decided upon.

Additional guidance for referral officers can be found on the page - Tenement Steading Extent - Guidance for Referral Officers.