16/08/2022
A-Z OF LAND TITLES IN NIGERIA PART 1
A MUST READ !!!!!!
I get questions from clients and prospects, they ask questions like :
1. Does a land have a certificate of occupancy?
2. Hope my building wonโt be demolished ?
Firstly we have to note that a land can either be free or under acquisition
acquisition in Nigeria is divided into committed and global.
A land is Said to be free when the government has not registered any interest on that land from inception ,when you acquire a land that is free from every known government encumbrances it is easier for you to obtain a certificate of occupancy on that land whereas a land that is under committed acquisition ,the government has registered interest on it either for drainage system, hospitals, schools, defense purposes ,airports e.t.c acquiring a land under committed acquisition is like getting yourself an ultimate headache that no panadol can cure , firstly you wonโt be able to process your land titles secondly you canโt process your building plan and this land will certainly be demolished at anytime without due compensation from the government.
On the other hand a land is said to be under global acquisition if the land has been acquired in the past by the government but till date they have no plans such land could later be free by a process called EXCISION I know you must have heard this and the next question you might want to ask is are land under excision safe to buy ? it is a 50/50 thing you may only increase your 50%if you acquire the land from a reputable real estate company that has many estate to their name ,the reason being that land under global acquisition government still have the right to release that land or not , but if you buy it from a reputable real estate company if the government doesnโt release the land the company can take you to their other estates of your choice though it may be more expensive and you will have to pay more so that is why I advice you stay away from land under excision ,but if you insist in acquiring a land under excision make sure it has a file number
A file number could either be klm/123/the local government , an excision file number means that the government has registered the application and the process to get this land excised is on the way
The simply meaning of excision is a government releasing a large or parcel of a land from a land that has been under global aacquisition in the past when they release this land to the individual it now becomes an EXCISION so the title of this land could later turn to a GAZETTE
The second case where land under global acquisition could be released is called RACTIFICATION What is ractification?
To be continued!!!!
A-z of land titles in Nigeria part 2
Still your real estate vigilante
If you learnt something new feel free to like and comment on the comment session
Happy new weekโค๏ธโค๏ธ
