The most common mistake is purchasing land with a forged title or land that is said to have a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) but does not have such a title on record.
Many people have been affected by this scandal in the past. Surveyors are dangerous in situations like this. Having no credible surveyor can cause more harm than good. Surveyors like this can create a survey plan of government-reserved land and present it to you with an original title and fabricated coordinates.
It is not enough for the seller to tell you that the land you want to buy has a specific title (a government excision, for example) without you carrying out your own due diligence. The best way to determine whether the land has an excision that has been covered by a gazette is to have a credible surveyor chart that site and take it to the surveyor general's office to confirm whether it falls within the gazette and spell out the exact location where the land can be found.
Another thing to think about is requesting the land survey plan.
The following information must be present to confirm the authenticity of a survey plan:
- The name of the landowner who was surveyed.
- The amount of land surveyed.
- The address/description of the surveyed land.
- the beacon identifiers
- A stamp indicating whether or not the land is subject to government acquisition.
- The surveyor who drew the map
- The date the survey plan was created. The drawn-out portion of the land survey that is mapped out on the survey document.
One important consideration is to use a trusted surveyor to assist you in going to the exact land site to ensure the coordinates on the survey plan match the coordinates on the land. Don't just rely on the information provided by the seller's surveyor because there have been cases of dubious coordinates on fraudulent survey plans.
A land with a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) in Lagos, for example, can be verified by taking the C of O number to the land registry at Alausa to confirm if the C of O is still valid.
Request a printout of their database so you can compare it to the one you already have. You can take it a step further by requesting to see and retrieve the original copy of the C of O that was uploaded to their database.
Governor's consent land is appealing, but it can be dangerous if the title is not verified. Most land with a Governor's consent is worth millions of Naira, so you can imagine the loss if such land with this title is later proven to be a forgery.
There are procedures that must be followed in order to obtain a Governor's Consent title for a piece of land. You must determine whether or not they were legitimately followed, as well as the All of the required documents used to process the title were authentic, beginning with:
a. Certified True Copy (CTC) of the root of title
b. Deed/Instruments of transfer
c. Survey plan d. Letter of authority by the applicants
e. Site photographs with dates
Basically, you should conduct a thorough background check before rushing to purchase any land with a Governor's Consent.
To alleviate unnecessary stress, here are THREE valuable starter packs you must have before purchasing any land in Nigeria today.
A real estate consultant and analyst, II a lawyer, and III a surveyor.
This trio will take you a long way in your real estate journey. Remember that credibility is an important consideration when choosing a lawyer, surveyor, or real estate agent.
All of the required documents used to process the title were authentic, beginning with: a. Certified True Copy (CTC) of the root of title b. Deed/Instruments of transfer c. Survey plan d. Letter of authority by the applicants e. Site photographs with dates
Basically, you should conduct a thorough background check before rushing to purchase any land with a Governor's Consent.
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