Buying and selling homes is to become easier for Bermudians with the introduction of a land title registry, the House of Assembly heard on Monday.

Finance Minister Paula Coxtold Parliament that plans for the registry were ?well advanced? and that it would eventually become self sufficient through fees.

The Government has set aside $1.4 million in this year?s Budget to set up the scheme, first announced last March. The registry will be the Island?s first property database.

?One of the biggest challenges to good land management in Bermuda is the lack of title registration,? said Ms Cox. ?I am pleased to report that plans for the creation of a land registry for Bermuda are well advanced.

?The project plan will require the re-mapping of Bermuda at a larger scale.?

?The land title registry will be a transparent and effective land management system,? she said, adding that it would make it simpler, quicker and less expensive to transfer land.

?In keeping with international best practice, it will establish security of tenure for owners and others with rights over land. The simplified and faster determination of legal ownership will make it easier to find those who allow valuable residential resources to lie derelict and unused.?

Initially, all Government properties will be registered and there will be compulsory registration for properties upon conveyance. Voluntary registration will be extended to all other properties.

Former Opposition Leader Grant Gibbons said he welcomed the scheme but added: ?The question is when can we expect to see that being rolled out so that the public are able to use that. It would be nice to know specifics.?

The Ministry of Works and Engineering is carrying out an audit of encroachments on the Railway Trail and the foreshore this year. It is also developing a digital index map of Government land.