Guide to buying land & house in Nigeria

Buying land in Nigeria involve various legal requirements and key procedures to be followed. The first key step towards purchasing a land in Nigeria is to engage a lawyer who can conduct a land search in respect of the property and investigate the title document of the land.

It is really important to have a lawyer who is grounded in property law practice before embarking on a land purchase. This is so because a lawyer would ensure one does not run into legal troubles with land documentation after purchase, and also by virtue of Nigerian laws it is only a legal practitioner that are actually allowed to prepare legal documents (instruments) for conveyancing or transfer of an interest in a land for a fee.

SUMMARY OF STEPS FOR BUYING LAND & HOUSE IN NIGERIA

The following steps are important and must be carefully followed for buying land in Nigeria:

• First, the buyer must demand and obtain all relevant land title documents from the seller.
• Buyer may engage a lawyer to investigate the title of the seller and also conduct a due diligence in respect of the transactions.
• Buyer’s lawyer will conduct search at land registry and investigate the land’s title accordingly.
• If satisfied, seller or buyer may go ahead to prepare a contract of sale, which shall be signed by both parties. Buyer can go ahead and make deposit or pay all the property sum at this point.
• Upon competition of the entire payment, seller or buyer may prepare and sign the document transferring the interest in the land, which could be deed of assignment or conveyance.
• Buyer may go ahead and perfect the title of the land with government immediately.

(SOURCE: Lexology)