5 Important Documents When Buying A Land

Do you know the important documents when buying a land, that you need to demand for?

Do you know that most people are only in possession of properties but can’t claim ownership right? This is because possession is different from ownership. To be in possession means to occupy. For instance, a tenant is in possession of the house but the owner-landlord has the ownership documents.

Now, that’s how important it is to have the right documents. So below are five (5) very essential documents to have when buying a property.

CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY

This is considered the most important land title document. So what’s it for? It is to certify the legal and ownership status of any land in Nigeria irrespective of its usage. The document simply indicate that an owner of any land has been granted a statutory right of occupancy by the executive governor of the state where the land situates or the customary right of occupancy by the local government chairman if the land is situated in a rural area.

Note: Statutory right of occupancy is different from a customary right of occupancy.

RIGHT OF OCCUPANCY (R of O)

Important documents when buying a land includes The Right of Occupancy system in Nigeria was introduced by The Land Use Act. This is not to be used in place of ownership of the land. The right of occupancy is simply the right given to occupy land in accordance with the provisions of The Land Use Act.

Again, the right of occupancy is given for a period of time; and the maximum given is 99 years lease for  residential purpose, while others uses range from 35 to 70 years depending on the value of improvements.

This right of occupancy is also be granted by the Governor or the minister in case of a land that is under the control and management of the Federal Capital Territory.

Note: certificate of occupancy is the only means devised by the Land Use Act to link a person to a rigt of occupancy.

DEED OF ASSIGNMENT/CONVEYANCE

Another one of important documents is the deeds of assignment/conveyance. This document is very important and must be demanded for and given to the purchaser after the conclusion of any land or property transaction between both parties.

“A conveyance includes any assignment, appointment, lease, settlement and other assurances and covenants to surrender made by deed on sale, mortgage, demise or settlement of any property or on any other dealing with or for any property; and convey, unless a contrary intention appears, has a meaning corresponding with that of conveyance”, as provided by Section 2(v) of the Conveyancing Act 1881.

“A Conveyance is a mortgage, charge, lease, assent, vesting declaration and every other instrument except a will”, as also stated in Section 2(1) of the Property and Conveyancing Law, 1959.

In a nutshell, conveyancing is the process by which ownership of land is transferred between a seller and buyer and may include both residential and commercial land transactions.

It can be referred to as the mutual agreement an owner/seller of a land and the purchaser/buyer of such a land/property showing that the owner/seller of the land has willfully transferred all his/her ownership, interest, rights and title on the land/property to the purchaser/buyer who has made payments.

LAND CERTIFICATE:

This is a document that shows the title of ownership of parcel of land. It is usually issued by a land registry for registered freehold or leasehold lands in Nigeria prior to the promulgation of the Land Use Act of 1978.

This refers to the Prima facie evidence of land ownership prior to the promulgation of the Land Use Act which vests on lands in the governor of each state of the federation.

SURVEY PLAN

Finally the survey plan is among the important documents when buying a land that the purchaser must demand for, from the seller. This is a very important document. If a particular land is under any government acquired or committed lands area, the survey plan will reveal it. A lot of people has bought lands that has generated so much controversies because they did not check the survey plan.

So when next you want to acquire a piece of land, you know exactly the documents to demand for. Hope you enjoyed the reading and if you do, kindly share with others using the social media buttons below.

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