Bona vacantia land valuations move to London and regional fee bands

Prospective buyers of land handled by the Government Legal Department’s Bona Vacantia division face a revised District Valuer fee schedule. The BVC2 guidance replaces its inside/outside-M25 bands with London Borough and Regional Borough categoriesGOV and gives new amounts for garden land, commercial land and freehold reversions, and overage, development land and ransom strips.

For garden land, the indicative charge in Regional Boroughs is £2,000 plus VAT, totalling £2,400GOV. In London Boroughs it is £2,250 plus VAT, totalling £2,700GOV.

For commercial land and freehold reversions, the Regional Borough figure is £2,650 plus VAT, or £3,180 in totalGOV. The London Borough figure is £3,000 plus VAT, or £3,600 in totalGOV.

For overage, development land and ransom strips, the Regional Borough figure is £3,300 plus VAT, totalling £3,960GOV. The London Borough figure is £3,700 plus VAT, totalling £4,440GOV. These amounts are indicative and may be higher in individual casesGOV.

The division usually instructs the District Valuer on value and the best means of disposal if it decides to consider a sale. The prospective buyer must pay the valuation fee in advance, and the payment is non-refundable. Funding a valuation gives no guarantee that the land will be offered for sale to that person. The division normally sells at open market value and will not sell for less than £1,000 plus its costs.

The valuation is only part of the acquisition costs. A buyer must also pay the division’s legal costs of £998.75 plus VAT and disbursements incurred, including District Valuer fees. For a transaction costing £10,000 or more, the division asks for proof of identity and address under its anti-money-laundering procedures.

Before progressing a case, the division checks evidence that the dissolved company owned the land and decides how to dispose of it; it may disclaim rather than sell. Applicants must check that the division is the correct office and send the mandatory referral form with the stipulated attachments. Information requested includes occupation, planning applications or consents, access to adjoining land and any mortgage or charge.

Purchasers also need to assess title risk: the division gives neither full nor limited title guarantee, sells subject to existing third-party rights, and leaves the purchaser to arrange release of any mortgage or charge and registration of the sale.

The fees and sale conditions are set out in BVC2 guidance, within the bona vacantia and Crown-disclaimer framework in sections 1012 and 1013 of the Companies Act 2006.