Press Release

Friday, September 26, 1997

Released by Nova Scotia Department of Housing and Municipal Affairs

Property Registry On-Line November 3

Halifax, NS -- A new Personal Property Registry system will be on-line in Nova Scotia this fall. Housing and Municipal Affairs Minister Guy Brown said the government has proclaimed the new Personal Property Security Act and regulations effective November 3.

The Personal Property Registry is a centralized computer registry that will serve all of Nova Scotia. It allows individuals and institutions to record their financial interest in personal property such as cars and boats.

The minister said the registry was developed in response to the financial and legal communities that have for years expressed frustration over the existing paper registry. That system offers no automated search capability, and registration is done in each county at a registry of deeds office. A consumer checking for outstanding liens on a newly bought car, for example, would have to conduct a manual search at 18 registry offices.

The computerized service will be available province-wide November 3 and delivered through Atlantic Canada On-Line, a service providing electronic access to information maintained by the four provincial governments in Atlantic Canada.