Land Registration - December 26, 2008
On December 1, 2004, Halifax Regional Municipality came under the new Land Registry system. The Land Registration Act was passed as part of an initiative designed to move the previously paper-based process for tracking land ownership, into an electronic, streamlined system. Land became parcel-based rather than names-based as had been the case.
The intent of the system is to create a record for each parcel of land in Nova Scotia that will allow a person to view every interest pertaining to that parcel using only the unique parcel identification number, the owner’s name or the civic address.
Once the parcel is migrated into the land registration system, no more root of title searches is required! The new land registration guarantees title to the property owner. It does not however guarantee the boundaries of a parcel.
Pursuant to s.46(1) of the LRA, there are some transactions which trigger a mandatory migration from the old system into the new parcel-based system. These are “transfer for value”, mortgaging, and subdivision of three or more lots or any certificate of title pursuant to the Land Titles Clarification Act or the Quieting Titles Act. If the transaction falls under one of the above, then the property in question will have to be migrated or converted to the Land Registration system..
Basically, there are two major components of the migration process: the Parcel Description Certification Application and the Application for Registration.
Parcel Description Certification Application (PDCA)
In order to convert parcels of land into the new land registration system, each land parcel must first be identified by a unique Parcel Identification Number (PID). The land owner must then ask the Land Registration Office staff to certify the match between the legal description for the parcel and its unique PID. This is known as the Parcel Description Certification Application (PDCA).
Application for Registration (AFR)
Once the parcel description has been certified, a final search of the historic title of the parcel is performed and an Opinion of Title is prepared for that parcel of land. This Opinion of Title certifies who owns the property and names all others who have an interest in the parcel, either registered (easements) or recorded (mortgages/judgments).
More information with regards to the migration process may be found at www.gov.ns.ca/snsmr/property/registry
Thanks for your great work helping us with the new property. We can't tell you how pleased we are with the way you've handled things.
- Jeff and Samantha White