Registrar-Generals-Department-Annual-report-1957-1958 — Page 8

PART II

Functions

LAND REGISTRY

3. The principal function of the Land Office is the registration in accordance with the provisions of the Land Registration Ordinance (Cap. 128) of deeds and other instruments relating to land in Hong Kong, Kowloon, New Kowloon, and a few lots in the New Territories which have been exempted from the provisions of Part II of the New Territories Ordinance. The Ordinance provides that all such deeds, etc., so registered shall have priority according to the priority of their respective dates of registration, and also that all such deeds, etc., other than bona fide leases at rack rent for any term not exceeding three years, which are not registered shall, as against any subsequent bona fide purchaser or mortgagee for valuable consideration, be absolutely null and void. No notice, actual or constructive, of any prior unregistered instrument affects the priority of any duly registered instrument. Legally the system is one of registration of deeds and not of title, but in view of the above provisions instruments relating to land are always register- ed promptly after execution, and the Land Registers show the devolution of title to cach property and all incumbrances on it. The result is that in practice the system is regarded as virtually equivalent to registration of title.

4. Among the other functions of the Land Officer are the checking and registration of Conditions of Sale, Grant, Exchange and Extension of Crown land, the issue, renewal, variation and termination of Crown Leases, the granting of Mining Leases, and advising the Government generally on matters relating to land.

Deeds Registration

5. The building boom of recent years continued throughout 1957/58, but towards the end of the year there were signs that buyers of flats were becoming more cautious and speculators less daring. The number of land transactions jumped from the previous year's total of 12,609 to a new record total of 15,426, and the total considerations from $681,747,000 to $902,671,000. Table I shows the number of instruments registered and the total considerations involved in these transactions

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