Many people do not know that there are some statutory laws that have been enacted and established by both the state and federal government to regulate, guide and govern all forms of land and landed properties’ transactions in Nigeria which could make such transaction illegal or even lead to forfeiture whenever the parties to the transaction do not adhere to the provisions of such statutory laws as been laid down or stipulated.

Land and landed properties are static in nature and because they are immovable, hence the Latin maxim “Quicquid plantatur solo solo cedit” (meaning; whatever is affixed on the land belongs to the land).

Land and landed properties’ transactions (ownership, sales, acquisition, lease, mortgage, alienation, assignment/conveyance, sublease) are a contractual relationship between two or more persons for exchange and release of interest they have on land and landed property in consideration for a compensation which is usually of monetary value in nature.

For the protection of all parties involved in any or all of the above mentioned transactions as well as making such transactions legal and tenable in any court of law, the government (state and federal) of the federation has enacted some statutory laws to guide, govern and protect all persons who find themselves embarking on any of these land and landed properties’ transactions in Nigeria.

There are so many reasons why government enacts statutory laws to govern and guide land and landed property transactions in Nigeria. Some of which are:

• To help generate additional revenue for government
• To add up to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the economy
• To endeavour government carry out one its constitutional statutory function of protecting lives and properties
• To protect land/property investors and owners against fraud
• To have a detailed record of all land and property transactions in the country
• To assist government in planning towards adequate provision of infrastructural facilities in the country

The first part of the statutory laws governing land/property transactions in Nigeria which I will write on are:

1. Land Use Act
2. Land Instruments Registration Laws
3. Registration of Titles Acts
4. Rent Control and Recovery of Premises Acts
5. Tenancy Law of Lagos state
6. Tenement Rate Laws
7. Land Use Charge Law of Lagos state

1. LAND USE (1978) ACT CAP L5 LFN 2004

This is the foremost and most widely recognized statutory law guiding, regulating and governing all matters relating to land/property ownership and transactions in Nigeria.

It was promulgated on March 29^th, 1978 by the then Military head of state; Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo.

The Act vested all land compromised in the territory of each state (except land vested in the Federal government or its agencies) solely in the Governor of the State, who would hold such land in trust for the people and would henceforth be responsible for allocation of land in all urban areas to individuals resident in the state and to organisations for residential, agriculture, commercial and other purposes while similar powers will with respect to non urban areas are conferred on Local Governments.

The major objectives of the Act among other things are:

• To create a uniform land management and administration system by absorbing the various land tenure laws in each state of the federation by promulgating a single land law
• To make everybody have equal rights and access to land throughout the federation
• To curb land speculation activities in the country
• To break up the traditional land holding system by making land readily available for everybody irrespective of their ethnic background or religious beliefs

The Act made the governor of each state of the federation to be the chief custodian of land within the territory of that state for the common benefit of all Nigerians.

The major sections that relate to matters regarding land/property ownership and transactions in Nigeria are: Sections 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 15, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 and 26.

Section 1 of Act states that “Subject to the provisions of this Act, all land comprised in the territory of each State in the Federation are hereby vested in the Governor of that State and such land shall be held in trust and administered for the use and common benefit of all Nigerians in accordance with the provisions of this Act”

What this implies is the vesting of land management and administration on the governor of each state of the federation who is seen as the only statutorily recognized person to allocate land to whosoever requires it for different purposes.

In so doing, a form of landlord-tenant relationship was created by the promulgation of the Act as the governor is seen in law as the landlord and every other persons that needs/wants land for varying uses as tenants.

Section 5 (1) (a) (b) of the Act states that “It shall be lawful for the Governor in respect of land, whether or not in an urban areas-

• to grant statutory rights of occupancy to any person for all purposes
• to grant easements appurtenant to statutory rights occupancy”

What the Act grants an holder of land be it an urban or non-urban land in Nigeria is just a mere right to use the land for a predetermined period/term (99years) after which such land will automatically revert back to the governor at its effluxion except such holder of land renews his/her right of occupancy at its expiration.

Section 8 of the Act states that “Statutory right of occupancy granted under the provisions of section 5 (1)  (a) of this Act shall be for a definite  term and may be granted subject to the terms of any contract which may be made by the Governor and the holder not being inconsistent with the provisions of this Act”

Evidence of the governor granting a statutory or customary (depending on the scenario as spelt out in Section 2 (2) (a) and Section 3) right of occupancy is the issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy to the holder of such right of occupancy.

Section 9 (1) of the Act states that “It shall be lawful for the governor-

• when granting a statutory right of occupancy to any person or
• when any person is in occupation of land under customary right of occupancy and applied in the prescribed manner; or
• when any person is entitled to a statutory right of occupancy, to issue a certificate under his hand in evidence of such right of occupancy”

Section 9 (2) states that “Such certificate shall be termed a certificate of occupancy and there shall be paid therefore by the person in whose name it is issued, such fee (if any) as may be prescribed”

The Act also grants a holder of a statutory right of occupancy the exclusive right and possession of all the improvements on such land as well as the right to alienate, mortgage, sub-lease, transfer, and assign any improvements he/she enjoys on the land subject to the consent of the governor to make such transaction legitimate.

Section 15 (a) (b) states that “During the term of a statutory right of occupancy, the holder-

• shall have the sole right to and absolute possession of all the improvements on the land
• may, subject to the prior consent of the Governor, transfer, assign or mortgage any improvements on the land which have been effected pursuant to the terms and conditions of the certificate of occupancy relating to the land”

The Act does not permit or give any holder of a statutory right of occupancy the exclusive power to embark on any form of transaction on the land he/she has been granted a right of occupancy without the consent of the governor, but where such transaction is undergone and completed, it will be regarded as null and void except as otherwise stated in Sections 21, 22, 23, 24 and 25 of the same Act.

Section 26 of the Act states that “Any transaction or any instrument which purports to confer on or vest in any person any interest or right over land other than in accordance with the provisions of this Act shall be null and void”

2. LAND INSTRUMENT REGISTRATION LAWS

The law was enacted to regulate registration of instruments that are executed prior to and after the establishment of the Act in Nigeria. Registrable instrument includes an estate contract, a deed of appointment or discharge of trustee containing expressly or impliedly a vesting declaration affecting any land.

The law seeks to guarantee genuine land title documents that have been investigated and registered by the Registrar of Titles in each state of the federation.

Land registration Act 1924 of Nigeria defined “registrable instrument as a document affecting land whereby one party called the grantor confers, transfers, limits, charges or extinguishes in favor of another party called the grantee any right or title to the interest in land and includes a certificate of purchase, a power of Attorney under which any instrument may be excluded but does not include a will”

Therefore, it is generally agreed that a registrable instrument is a document, which transfers or creates a right, title or interest in land to or in favour of the grantee. But a will is expressly excluded from the ambit of registrable instruments. Consequently, a sales receipt, purchase receipt is not a registrable instrument if it is a mere acknowledgment of sales or payment and does not confer or transfer interest in land.

What this simply means it that it is compulsory and mandatory for any holder of an interest in land who wishes to transfer same to another person to have registered such document at the appropriate land registry office been established by government as it will greatly help purchasers of such land in determining if the owner/seller has the genuine land title document to sell the property and all encumbrances that are attached to the land.

To authenticate the transfer of title in any land transaction, the law requires the holder of such title to apply for the governor’s consent to the Deed of Assignment which is been executed by both the seller and buyer in such scenario.

After approval of the governor’s consent, the Deed of Assignment document will then be stamped at the Stamp Duties office and thereafter registered at the Lands Registry office.

To hasten the registration of instruments in Nigeria, the law established in each state of the federation a Land Registry with the appointment of a Land Registrar charged with the responsibilities of registering documents affecting land transactions and keeping same in the book of instruments register.

This law has been re-enacted in most states of the federation.

3. REGISTRATION OF TITLES ACT

Registration of Titles Act of 1935 now referred to Registration of Titles Law of Lagos State Cap R.4 of 2003 was introduced to correct the inadequacies in the registration of instrument Act of 1924 now known as the Registration of Instrument Laws in various states.

The basic principle of the Registration of Titles law is that ownership of title to land is based on the fact of registration, that is, it operates to register dealings and transactions over titles in land when such titles have been registered.

The object of the law is to substitute a single established title guaranteed by the state for the traditional title which must be separately investigated before purchase. And, must be proved by several documents of title each time the title is in issue. Transactions in respect of registered land such as leases, creation of charges, and transfer of interest in land are also required to be registered.

The law further encouraged all those involved in any land transaction to investigate the genuniety of the title documents of the land at the appropriate land registry where there exists a copy of the registered title document of the land before embarking on concluding the deal.

4. RENT CONTROL AND RECOVERY OF PREMISES ACTS

The Rent Control and Recovery of Premises Act is enacted in each states of the federation to guide and regulate all matters relating Landlord-Tenant relationship in any residential property lease transactions.

The main purpose for the enactment of this law was to restrict the common law rights of a landlord with the intent of regulating the recovery and restraining unlawful eviction of the tenant from the landlord’s premises.

The law spells out the proper procedure which a landlord can/should take in recovering possession of his residential property from the tenant after expiration of the rent period. These procedures are primarily spelt out so as to protect the tenant against that of the landlord.

The procedures for the recovery of residential leased premises by the landlord as spelt out in Rent Control and Recovery of Premises Acts in Nigeria are:

• The landlord must give a Notice to quit to the tenant
• The landlord must give Notice of Owner’s intention to recover possession of the rented premises to the tenant
• The landlord must apply for a Writ of Possession at the appropriate court of law
• The landlord must obtain an Order of Possession from the appropriate court of law

The grounds for which the landlord can rely on in obtaining an order of possession from the court of law to recover possession of his/her rented premises from the tenant are:

• Arrears of rent
• Breach of any covenant or agreement by the tenant
• Where the property is required for personal use by the landlord
• The premises is been used for illegal or immoral purposes by the tenant
• The premises has been abandoned by the tenant
• The premises is unsafe and unsound as to constitute a danger to human life or property
• The tenant or any person residing or lodging with him being his sub-tenant constitutes by conduct, an act of nuisance or induces a breach of the tenancy agreement

5. TENANCY LAW 2011 OF LAGOS STATE

As the name implies, the Tenancy Law 2011 is a Law of the Lagos state House of Assembly enacted to “regulate rights and obligations under tenancy agreements and their relationship between the Landlord and the Tenant including the procedure for the recovery of premises and for connected purposes”

This law is basically enacted by the Lagos state government in other to regulate and guide all matters relating to residential properties’ lease transactions between the landlord and tenant in some parts of the state excluding Apapa, Ikeja GRA, Ikoyi and Victoria Island.

The law automatically fixed all residential properties’ lease transactions to that of yearly tenancy for new tenants as well as regards it as unlawful for any existing yearly tenant occupying a residential apartment in the state to pay more than a year rent to the landlord.

Section 4 (1) of the Law states that “It shall be unlawful for a landlord or his agent to demand or receive from a sitting tenant rent in excess of six (6) months from a monthly tenant and one (1) year from a yearly tenant in respect of any premises without prejudice to the nature of tenancy held at the commencement of the tenancy

(2) It shall be unlawful for a sitting tenant to offer or pay rent in excess of one (1) year for a yearly tenant and six (6) months for a monthly tenant in respect of any premises

(3) It shall be unlawful for a landlord or his agent to demand or receive from a new or would be tenant rent in excess of one (1) year in respect any premises”

Some of the reasons for the enactment of the law are as follows:

• To regulate the tenancy period which the landlord or his/her agent should demand rental money from a new tenant (i.e 1 year rent as against the popular demand of 2years rent)
• To stipulate how much rent money a new tenant should pay the landlord
• Mandate landlords to issue a rent payment receipt to a tenant in respect of such payment made by the tenant. The receipt to be issued by the landlord to the tenant must include the names of both the landlord and tenant, full description of the rented property, amount of rent paid and period for which the rent relates.
• Mandates landlord and tenant to always prepare a tenancy agreement which will spell out the rights and obligations of both parties on the rented property by employing the services of a professional and paying same in the preparation of the tenancy agreement
• Spell out ways and conditions by which a landlord can evict a tenant from his/her property as well as recover full possession of same
• Encourage all parties involved any form of tenancy disputes to seek redress in a competent court of law or Alternative Dispute Resolution centre

6. TENEMENT RATE LAWS OF NIGERIA

Tenement or property rating is a form of tax levied on landed properties by local government authorities in Nigeria to raise additional revenues required for specific developmental projects within such local government area.

The law is enacted to impose tax on built up landed properties in Nigeria which is collected at the local government level on owners of such built-up properties.

The premise for enacting of the law is to levy property owners towards contributing to raising additional funds for infrastructural development projects been embarked upon by the local government authority where such built-up property is situated.

Every state in Nigeria has their own tenement rate laws at the local government level applicable to built-up hereditaments.

7. LAND USE CHARGE LAW 2001 OF LAGOS STATE

The Land Use Charge law of Lagos state is synonymous to the tenement rate laws that are exists in every state in Nigeria, but just that it abolished all other taxes such as tenement rates, ground rents and neighbourhood improvement charges levied on land and landed properties in Lagos state to create a single property tax law.

The main purpose for the enactment of the Land Use Charge law by the Lagos state government on all land and landed properties in the state is to enable the government generate additional revenues needed to carry out continuous infrastructural development projects as well as improve the existing ones to cater for the growing population of people in the state.

Through the enactment of the Land Use Charge Law (LUCL) of Lagos state, all rates and charges which were initially imposed on land and landed properties seized to be effective as there now exists a single property tax law called Land Use Charge imposed on all land and landed properties in Lagos state.

“The responsibility for payment of the Land Use Charge resides primarily with the property owner; however, there is provision in the law establishing the charge, for payment to be made by the occupier who is then empowered to look to reimbursement of the charge from the property owner.”

………..to be continued

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Obviously, we cannot consider all of these property laws here. But some important and critical ones are worth mentioning to keep you well informed so you can make the right choices, make the right investment, and make money. It also ensures you don’t make the sort of mistakes that can cost you your real estate investment in the long run.

It is important to note that this is not a legal site and so the laws will be explained in simple terms so the average person can understand them.

The first law that comes to mind is the most popular of them all, “the land use act”.

The land use act essentially states that all land in Nigeria belongs to the government. And that the government only lease the land to individuals or corporate bodies as appropriate for a period of 99 years.

This means that when the government issues a certificate of occupancy or C of O to you for a property purchased, the C of O is only for a period of 99 years. What happens after 99 years?

That question is still the subject of great debate among Nigerians. As it is, the first set of C of O were issued sometime in 1976 when the land use act came into effect. Let’s see what happens when the first set of certificate of occupancy issued by the government expires.

This real estate law is often responsible for the question by potential real estate buyers, “what is the quality of the title on the property?” By that they mean how old is the C of O?

A new C of O has a life of 99 years before the government withdraws it or demand renewal. A property that has a C of O that is 30 years old has a life of only 69 years left.

Some people don’t consider this when considering buying homes for sale in Lagos Nigeria whereas some try to negotiate a lower sale price based on the life of the C of O. This is entirely up to you.

Another real estate law or property law to consider is “the right of way”.

This basically states that “the government has right of way” . . . the right to create roads as appropriate for economic development.

The government has a master plan for every area of Lagos Nigeria. In the same vein, every other state of the federation, as well as the federal government, have master plan for different locations in the country. Each location has provision for road and utilities like pipe borne water, telephone lines, underground waterway, high tension power line, oil pipeline route etc

If you build residential real estate or commercial property on any of these government development areas, the government will eventually pull down your property.

It will be very sad to lose your property, built with hard earned money, because you failed to investigate the ownership of a property as appropriate with the Lagos state government.

A third real estate law or Lagos property law to bear in mind is what I call the “distance to government road rule”.

In effect, this law states that each property owner should leave a distance of at least 30 metres between the walls of his property fence and the road. (Some say its 50 metres. Please confirm from your real estate attorney ).

If you don’t obey the distance to road rule, nothing may happen immediately. The government is usually slow in reacting to such violations.

However, when the government decides to expand the road, your fence will be taken down without apology if you have violated the “distance to road” rule.

Know some more property laws?

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1. Expensive, cumbersome and complicated land tenure and transfer of legal title in land procedures.

1. Expensive cost of funds with high interest rates for construction and mortgages in comparison to the long term rentals expected by an investor in the real estate market.

1. Rent control legalisation for the mass residential rental market.

1. High rate of Tenants default in paying their rentals on schedule due in some cases to diminishing purchasing power.

1. Technical, cumbersome and expensive recovery of possession of premises legislations.

The effort of the Federal Government of Nigeria to address this problem by proposing a Rent Control legalisation has met with criticism as a result of the failure of the supply side of the real estate market and also, the failure of prior and subsisting Rent Control legislations and home ownership schemes to address the problems of minimum housing in Nigeria.

This Alert would provide up-to-date legal information on the last two factors of rent control and recovery of possession of premises which have and continue to challenge and inhibit investments in the real estate market.

Rent Control Law

Rent Control is a residual matter under the 1999 Constitution. As a result, most of the States in Nigeria have their individual Rent Control Laws which for the most part have similar provisions as the Rent Control Law of Lagos State.

In Lagos State of Nigeria, the applicable Law is the Lagos State Rent Control & Recovery of Residential Premises Law, 1997 (\”Lagos Rent Control Law\”).

The Lagos Rent Control Law is intended to mandatorily regulate the rentals that can be charged for residential apartments in certain areas of Lagos State whose residences were at the time of the enactment of this Law not charging annual rental value in excess of N250,000 (Two Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira).

This Law prescribes the standard rent for each type of residential accommodation in different locations of the State with the caveat that the standard rent shall only be subject to upward review of not more than 20% every three years or at such other duration as the Governor of Lagos State may prescribe.

The Lagos Rent Control Law makes it unlawful for the Landlord or his agent or the Tenant to demand or pay rent in excess of the standard rent. It is also unlawful for a Landlord to demand or receive the prescribed standard rent for a period in excess of six months from an incoming/new Tenant. Equally unlawful is the action of a sitting Tenant offering to and paying the standard rent in excess of a period of three months in respect of any type of residential accommodation to which the Lagos Rent Control Law applies.

Any person who receives or pays rent in excess of the standard rent that is prescribed by Law is guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine of N50,000.00 (Fifty Thousand Naira) or to a term of six months imprisonment.

Agency & Legal Fees

The Lagos Rent Control Law requires that Solicitors and estate agents must not charge more than 5% as Solicitors fees for preparing Tenancy Agreements and 5% as agency fees respectively. Where a higher percentage of fees is charged and received, it shall be unlawful. The penalty on conviction for this unlawful charge is a term of imprisonment for two years.

Recovery of Possession of Premises

Cases of abuses by Landlords in unlawfully evicting their Tenants necessitated the Rent Control & Recovery of Residential Premises Law of Lagos State, like prior legislations before it, to seek to protect all tenancies to which this Law applies.

The protection afforded tenancies by this Law is not intended to deprive a land owner of the fruits of his or her or its investment in real estate.

The protection only requires that a Tenant should only loose his tenancy after due recovery procedure and processes are complied with by the Landlord.

Where there is a default by a Tenant in respect of any aspect of his Tenancy and the Landlord intends to terminate the Tenancy and have possession of his property revert to him the Landlord, a proper notice to quit must be personally served on the Tenant. This is the first and most technical of the procedures for recovering possession of premises.

The length of notice to be given to a Tenant to quit is usually determined by the tenure of the tenancy where no express unequivocal provision is made in a written Tenancy Agreement to such effect. Thus, where the Tenant pays his rent on a weekly basis, a week\’s notice to quit would be valid.

Similarly, where the rental is paid monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or yearly, a month, quarter or half yearly notice as appropriate would be valid to determine the Tenancy.

It is mandatory that the notice to quit must be issued and served personally on the Tenant. It is also mandatory that the notice to quit must be served to expire at the anniversary or expiration of the Tenancy.

Thus, a notice to quit in respect of a tenancy that begins in January of a particular year and expires in December of the same year must be served on the Tenant on or before the end of June of that year so that from 1st July to the end of December of the same year, the mandatory six months notice would have been properly served on the Tenant. This was the holding of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in the matter of African Petroleum v. Owodunni (1991) 11-12 SC 56 @ 71 lines 5-15.

The inability of most Landlords to comply with the technical requirement of serving the statutory notice to quit to expire at the same time with the tenancy drew the displeasure of the Supreme Court in the above cited case where for twelve (12) years, the Respondent Tenant could not be evicted because the notice of eviction was not properly served by the Landlord on the Tenant.

The view of some Solicitors that a tenancy for a fixed term does not require a notice to quit but only a notice of the owner\’s intention to recover possession of his premises is too risky a position to implement should the matter be placed before a court of law for adjudication.

Unlawful Eviction or Recovery of Premises

The frustration with applying the legal process to evict an unwilling Tenant has lead to many Landlords attempting other unlawful procedures to evict such an unwilling Tenant whose tenancy has been properly determined in accordance with the Rent Control & Recovery Premises Law.

The Lagos State Rent Control & Recovery of Residential Premises Law prohibits any form of demolition, alteration, modification, harassment or molestation of a Tenant where the principal objective is the forceful ejection of the Tenant. Contravention of this provision by the Landlord or his agents or privies is an offence which on conviction attracts a fine of N20,000.00 (Twenty Thousand Naira) to N50,000.00 (Fifty Thousand Naira) and a term of imprisonment of three months.

Business Premises

Up-market residences, that are not listed in the schedule of the Lagos Rent Control Law, with business premises are regulated by the Recovery of Premises Law No. 9 of 1976 (\”Recovery of Premises Law\”).

The provisions of the 1976 Recovery of Premises Law are very similar to those of the 1997 Rent Control Law with the distinct difference being that business premises do not have a mandatory chap on what the land owner can charge as periodic rentals. Up market residences and business premises also have a higher rental collection history as opposed to downtown residences. Investors would therefore do well to ensure that all the provisions in relation to recovery of possession of premises are adhered to whenever the situation arises.

Lagos Mediation Centre

The Lagos State Government has established a Citizens Mediation Centre where disputes including those of Landlord and Tenant disputes are resolved through mediation. Where mediation fails or any of the parties refuses to submit to mediation, the parties would be advised by the Centre to seek redress in Court.

Conclusion

The provisions of the rent control and recovery of premises laws in Nigeria have been held more in disobedience than in obedience for many years as a result of the scarcity of new apartments or the maintenance of existing apartments.

The attempt to regulate rental values for properties in Nigeria has reduced the interest to invest in real estate in Nigeria. Research also shows that rent control schemes in other parts of the world that are not indexed against market forces of demand and supply usually do not maintain the minimum acceptable human standards for good housing.

The Nigerian government must review the land tenure system in Nigeria such that the original owners of so-called communal land and private sector investors are able to collectively work towards meeting the developmental goals set for the people of Nigeria.

The post Real Estate Investments & Rent Control Laws in Nigeria. appeared first on 9japroperty.

Obviously, we cannot consider all of these property laws here. But some important and critical ones are worth mentioning to keep you well informed so you can make the right choices, make the right investment, and make money. It also ensures you don’t make the sort of mistakes that can cost you your real estate investment in the long run.

It is important to note that this is not a legal site and so the laws will be explained in simple terms so the average person can understand them.

The first law that comes to mind is the most popular of them all, “the land use act”.

The land use act essentially states that all land in Nigeria belongs to the government. And that the government only lease the land to individuals or corporate bodies as appropriate for a period of 99 years.

This means that when the government issues a certificate of occupancy or C of O to you for a property purchased, the C of O is only for a period of 99 years. What happens after 99 years?

That question is still the subject of great debate among Nigerians. As it is, the first set of C of O were issued sometime in 1976 when the land use act came into effect. Let’s see what happens when the first set of certificate of occupancy issued by the government expires.

This real estate law is often responsible for the question by potential real estate buyers, “what is the quality of the title on the property?” By that they mean how old is the C of O?

A new C of O has a life of 99 years before the government withdraws it or demand renewal. A property that has a C of O that is 30 years old has a life of only 69 years left.

Some people don’t consider this when considering buying homes for sale in Lagos Nigeria whereas some try to negotiate a lower sale price based on the life of the C of O. This is entirely up to you.

Another real estate law or property law to consider is “the right of way”.

This basically states that “the government has right of way” . . . the right to create roads as appropriate for economic development.

The government has a master plan for every area of Lagos Nigeria. In the same vein, every other state of the federation, as well as the federal government, have master plan for different locations in the country. Each location has provision for road and utilities like pipe borne water, telephone lines, underground waterway, high tension power line, oil pipeline route etc

The post Real Estate Law Lagos Nigeria – Nigeria Property Laws Explained appeared first on 9japroperty.

The post REAL ESTATE LAWS IN NIGERIA appeared first on 9japroperty.

So, what happens after 99 years?
That question is still the subject of great debate among Nigerians. As it is, the first set of C of O was issued sometime in 1976 when the land use act came into effect. Let’s see what happens when the first set of certificate of occupancy issued by the government expires.
“What is the quality of the title on the property?” By that they mean how old is the C of O? This question is always asked by potential real estate buyers.
A new C of O has a life of 99 years before the government withdraws it or demand renewal. A property that has a C of O that is 30 years old has a life of only 69 years left.
Some people don’t consider this when considering buying homes for sale in Lagos Nigeria whereas some try to negotiate a lower sale price based on the life of the C of O. This is entirely up to you.

lamudi.com.ng

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2There are so many reasons why government enacts statutory laws to govern and guide land and landed property transactions in Nigeria. Some of which are:

• To help generate additional revenue for government
• To add up to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the economy
• To endeavour government carry out one its constitutional statutory function of protecting lives and properties
• To protect land/property investors and owners against fraud
• To have a detailed record of all land and property transactions in the country
• To assist government in planning towards adequate provision of infrastructural facilities in the country
The first part of the statutory laws governing land/property transactions in Nigeria which I will write on are:
1. Land Use Act
2. Land Instruments Registration Laws
3. Registration of Titles Acts
4. Rent Control and Recovery of Premises Acts
5. Tenancy Law of Lagos state
6. Tenement Rate Laws
7. Land Use Charge Law of Lagos state

The post 15 statutory laws governing land/property transactions in Nigeria appeared first on 9japroperty.

• To help generate additional revenue for government
• To add up to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the economy
• To endeavour government carry out one its constitutional statutory function of protecting lives and properties
• To protect land/property investors and owners against fraud
• To have a detailed record of all land and property transactions in the country
• To assist government in planning towards adequate provision of infrastructural facilities in the country
The first part of the statutory laws governing land/property transactions in Nigeria which I will write on are:
1. Land Use Act
2. Land Instruments Registration Laws
3. Registration of Titles Acts
4. Rent Control and Recovery of Premises Acts
5. Tenancy Law of Lagos state
6. Tenement Rate Laws
7. Land Use Charge Law of Lagos state

The post 15 STATUTORY LAWS GOVERNING LAND/PROPERTY TRANSACTIONS IN NIGERIA appeared first on 9japroperty.

He stated that the abuse and distortion of building and town planning regulations, such as building or farming on water ways, erecting toxic and dangerous structures or carrying out dangerous activities near residential buildings increased the impact of disasters.

Sidi, who was represented by the Zonal Coordinator, Minna Operations Office, NEMA, Mr. Slaku Bijimi, stated this during NEMA’s workshop on ‘Better implementation and enforcement of law for safer cities,’ in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital.

He stated that the recurring cases of building collapse, building along or close to water courses, environmental degradation resulting from either flood or illegal mining among others in Nigerian cities called for a rethink.

He said there should be better implementation/enforcement of laws such as building codes and regulation, planning and environmental laws to mitigate disasters.

Sidi said, “The world is witnessing a rapid increasing impact of disasters caused by the combination of natural hazards and vulnerability, which constantly threaten people’s lives and sources of livelihood.

“Town planning, building and environmental management lawmakers should be sensitised on the importance of disasters and most of the existing laws need to be reviewed to suit the changing trend in urbanisation, development and civilisation.

“This cannot be left in the hands of the government alone; communities, private sectors, non-governmental organisations and individuals must join hands to know and implement them for safer cities.”

The Kwara State Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed, said the abuse and distortion of building and town planning regulations such as building or farming on water ways, erecting toxic and dangerous structures or carrying out awkward activities near human habitations would aggravate the impact of disasters.

PUNCH.

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She stated that this would fast-track timely and cost-efficient housing delivery in the country.

Olatunji said, “‘The real estate sector needs a one-stop shop in order to remove ambiguity, overlapping or contradicting laws and functions, and to take into consideration the pressing development needs of a fast urbanising nation.

“It is imperative, therefore, that the federal and state building laws are consolidated in a simpler format and streamlined according to the current needs and trends.”

She also canvassed the resolution of the perennial conflicts among inter-governmental agencies over which of them had the supreme authority on the approval of procedures and perfection of titles.

The Grenadines Homes’ boss added that the multiplicity of regulatory bodies was a major hindrance to business and that the situation was creating room for corruption.

Olatunji said undue bureaucracy usually encountered in the course of seeking approval was the bane of the country’s real estate sector.

According to her, the condition under which players and investors in the real estate sector operate currently is unfriendly, cumbersome, anti-business and generally very ambiguous.

She said, “Rules and processes are in place for the protection of the real estate sector, but what we actually want is for somebody to give us timely updates on the approval process. We want to know if the title applications are being processed or if there are issues.

“We want to know if the designs meet the specifications; we want to know if everything is okay. What we don’t want is to go half way down the development journey only to find out that there are issues.”

She also noted that the non-delegation of authority and the consequent needless long wait because of the absence of some officials in charge of approvals was a setback in the running of government business.

Olatunji added, “They will tell you the governor has sent the engineer somewhere; so, this week, nothing is happening and these are the things that really do frustrate us. When we are being stalled by government processes, it becomes integrity issue for us because we keep giving clients one excuse or the other, because of the engineer who has personalised the office.

“The solution to dealing with this thorny issue is to make the processes very clear from the outset. What the sector really needs are concise guidelines on what we have to do, how much it will cost and how long it will take. If we have that, then we are on a good starting point and this will prevent unscrupulous people from defrauding the system.”

She said parameters for measurement, which should allow for effective planning, should be set up, adding that the industry would be better served when those responsible for processing applications were held up to a high standard where they could state periodically how many applications they received, how many had been processed and how many were pending; and the time to process them.

“That is when the sector can be taken seriously,” she concluded.

PUNCH.

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