Locating The Owner Of An Asset
Once you have found sports facility that you feel, on first viewing, might be appropriate, finding out who owns it should be the next step.
- Talking to a neighbour, local shop, pub etc. might let you know who the owner is as well as useful additional information about its history or current use.
- The local council should be able to tell you if they own it and which department it falls under. Some councils have a specific (free) service to do this.
For example, have a look at Wolverhampton Council’s service. - To check that a property is not privately owned, a supplementary search can be carried out with the Land Registry for a fee.
A First Approach
It is important to establish that you have identified the right owner, that there are no other conflicting plans for the facility (eg it is being sold for retail) and that the owner is open to the possibility of transfer. Write down your initial plans - eg you want to use it as a basketball centre for people with disability and you would be interested in a long-term lease with full management responsibilities. Once you are clear on these basic details, make the initial call and gauge their reaction. If they are positive about your ideas, give a specific time by which you will get back to them to discuss it further. This will give both parties the opportunity to do necessary research to see how viable the basic proposition is.