Case studies: land searches

EAQE Part II gives you one or two case studies and 20 linked questions, and a land search record is a common exhibit. You need 24 of the 40 Part II marks as well as 36 of 60 in Part I. This guide sets out a reading routine and a manager-level checklist for company owners, non-residential property, priority and charges that rank ahead of the bank.

Part II · Land search & case studies7 min read7 sections

Checked against the EAA Examination Handbook (paper-based), August 2026, paras 2.3, 4.1 to 4.4 and Appendices 3 and 4; Land Registration Ordinance (Cap. 128), sections 3 to 5A; Practice Regulation (Cap. 511C), section 13 and Form 1; EAA Practice Circulars Nos. 05-07, 09-06, 13-01, 13-03, 15-02 and 17-02 (CR); Buildings Ordinance (Cap. 123), sections 24 and 33; Legal Aid Ordinance (Cap. 91), section 18A; Extension of Government Leases Ordinance (Cap. 648); EAA, A Study Guide to Estate Agency Law and Practice, Part 4; checked 11 Oct 2026.

Must-know for the exam

EAQE: 50 questions in 3 hours, paper only. Part I: 30 questions, 60 marks. Part II: 20 questions on one or two case studies, 40 marks (EAA Handbook, Aug 2026).
You must pass both parts in the same sitting: at least 36 in Part I and 24 in Part II. No calculators are allowed.
Read the register in order: Property Particulars, Owner Particulars, Incumbrances, Deeds Pending Registration. Pair every charge with its release and every order with its compliance letter.
Priority runs from registration; registered within one month of execution, it runs from execution (Cap. 128, ss.3, 5). Charging orders and lis pendens: from the day after registration (s.5A).
BO s.33 cost certificates and Legal Aid charges (Cap. 91, s.18A) are first charges, ahead of any bank.
Company owner: company search for directors, receivers, liquidators and status; signatory's authority by board resolution or power of attorney; otherwise warn, advise legal advice, stakehold (Circular 09-06 (CR)).
Vendor owned under five years: historical and current search, and check for a deed of gift or nil-consideration assignment (Circular 13-01 (CR)).
Price below the vendor's purchase price with a live mortgage signals possible negative equity: all deposits to solicitors as stakeholders (Circular 05-07 (CR)).
Non-renewable Government lease: state the unexpired term and recommend legal advice; Cap. 648 (from 5 Jul 2024) may extend it 50 years unless on the Non-extension List.

On this page · 7 sections

Traps that cost marks

Assuming a company can still sell freely until a liquidator is appointed.
Taking the registration date, or the date of the order, instead of the date the petition was presented.
Treating a director as entitled to receive the company's money personally.
Accepting a director's personal guarantee instead of stakeholding the deposit.
Treating supervision as paperwork that shifts liability rather than a system that stops a risky deal.
Treating proof of the signatory's authority as if it cured the petition on the register.
Thinking oral instructions are enough to advertise, or that a 'teaser' price is acceptable.
Sending suspicious transaction reports to the EAA instead of the JFIU.

Why this matters in the exam

Part II carries 40% of the EAQE marks and has its own pass mark, so a strong Part I cannot rescue a weak Part II. The case study runs to several pages and may annex documents; the EAA's own sample case attaches a land search record. Expect a cluster of questions to hang on that one record: who must sign, whether title is clean, what must be disclosed, how to protect the deposit and what the office should have done.

At EAQE level the search is usually harder than in the SQE: a company owner, a shop or office rather than a flat, two charges, an order with a compliance letter for a different order, or a court document registered last week. The answer often depends on dates, so read them carefully.

A six-step reading routine

•1. Read the questions first, quickly. Note which ones need the search, so you read it with a purpose.
•2. Property Particulars. Lot and share; address (roof, flat roof, car park?); Government lease term, start and renewability; Government rent. Is the property residential (Practice Regulation and Form 1 apply) or non-residential (circulars only, including 17-02)?
•3. Owner Particulars. Who owns, in what capacity (sole, joint tenants, tenants in common, executor, trustee, company), when acquired and for how much. Compare that price with the case price.
•4. Incumbrances, top to bottom. Pair charges with releases (full or partial) and orders with compliance letters. Mark anything left unpaired as live.
•5. Deeds Pending Registration. Treat anything here as live.
•6. Lay the search against the narrative. Who instructs the agency, who will sign, what price, which dates. Most marks come from a mismatch between the two.

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