Property due diligence on restrictive covenants: identification, registration, enforceability and risk mitigation—practitioner checklist (England and Wales)

Published by a LexisNexis Property expert

Checklists

This Checklist

Land title documentation—registered or otherwise—may indicate that the current owner, or a prior proprietor, has agreed covenants affecting all or part of the land. These obligations can be positive (for example, to keep a boundary fence in repair) or restrictive (for example, a promise not to build alongside a boundary). While covenants invariably bind the original contracting parties, the law treats positive and restrictive covenants differently when assessing their impact on successors in title to those parties. This Checklist is intended for use during due diligence where a property is burdened by and/or enjoys the benefit of one or more restrictive covenants. Such covenants may be:

imposed for the landowner’s own benefit; they are personal and enforceable only by the original parties unless expressly assigned to a third party
part of a scheme, such as a building scheme, where mutual enforceability is intended—see Practice Note: Restrictive covenants—nature and characteristics—Building schemes
imposed on one parcel of land with the intention of benefiting or protecting a separate parcel

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Web page updated on 22/05/2026

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