Hello there! I am back here to share vital information that helps keep you on the right course in Land transactions. Now, in the course of business last week we encountered a challenge with a client who had wanted to buy land but everything fell within Acquisition of the Ogun State Government. We advised accordingly and he was relocated by the same family to another of their properties in the city. This time it was one that was around a High Tension Cable. I told him to just say NO.

You see, there are critical things to look at before buying a property you like in a location. We take you through these professionally if you seek our advisory service before purchasing a property(bare land or building) and then we can guide your decision so you can have rest. We look at the risks from the financial point of view, where we say is it worth the cost in the short or long term? We also look at the location and its encumbrances present or potential as well as measuring all these factors against your goal. There are locations where, as a rule of thumb you should never even try to buy land except otherwise strongly advised by a Land Advisor, Estate Surveyor or Lawyer.
Having said that, let us get right into it, these are places you should NEVER try to buy a plot of land for Private development.

AROUND A HIGH TENSION TRANSMISSION CABLE: First of all I think you should be very afraid when you hear that buzzing sound (they call it Corona Discharge) from the High Tension Power lines. You should consider the possibility - even if rare, of the lines snapping or the pylons collapsing and landing on your house or whatever you own. But beyond that there are standard set backs and if your land is up to 20metres close to a Powerline your structure may not get approved or you may have to take another 9metres setback(which eats into your buildable area). So take your surveyor along and find out the right of way set back rules. We have distinct rules depending on the KVA rating of the transmission line.


CLOSE TO A WATER BODY OR ALONG A FLOODPLAIN: No matter how small it is, there is a strong case for not buying private property around a water body especially if you want to buy a really small plot of land. And this is again first related to your safety, you do not want to lose your property to flooding as many residents and developers along the Niger River and Ogun River (Lagos and Ogun state). These areas tend to be flooded almost annually with attendant depreciation of property values. Also, there will be a standard setback of not less than 9/15 metres (for streams and rivers) and as high as 100/150metres(if it is by the Ocean), this can mean your entire plot is unbuildable if the bounding area of the land is shorter than the specified lengths. In simple English, your Property will not be approved and your C of O will not even cover it in some cases. So just avoid plenty story and don't buy land there, please.

PIPELINES AND RAILWAY LINES: We all must be aware of the issues with the residents of Arepo in Ogun State who often have been victims of pipeline explosions and infernos same with Abule Ado and the likes. You may also be aware of the issues that the Government had when building the new railway lines. Here is a rule of thumb, do not buy land or build anything that is not more than 25 metres away from a Petroleum Pipeline or a Railway Line. O di kwa very risky O!

GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS AND PROJECTS: You may have seen one of our previous posts on Instagram where we talk about how Governors can acquire land at their whims as a result of the power vested in them by the Land Use Act. So whenever you see a Federal or State institution such as A University, Ministry Secretariat or outpost, Irrigation Scheme, Housing Project or whatever it may be, just take special care to investigate that they have not acquired neighbouring lands recently or previously. I am aware of a few cases in Ogun and Lagos today where people bought landed properties after the governor had acquired them and they cannot get legal papers for the property till date. So please, if it falls within 1 km radius of a government-owned institution BE VERY WARE

EXPRESSWAYS (TRUNK A ROADS): As a rule, you cannot build or get construction permits and other statutory approvals for private projects along major Roads without taking setbacks as low as 9/15 metres(for Trunk B Roads) and up to 45metres for Federal Trunk A Roads such as Lagos-Ibadan or Sagamu-Ore-Benin Expressway). Also, most state governors acquire lands along important communication routes for security and commercial purposes so it will not be very wise to acquire such property without making investigations.

INTERSTATE BORDERS AND INTERNATIONAL BOUNDARY AREAS: Many of such areas between states and countries like Nigeria and Cameroon are currently disputed. Also, you don't want tax authorities from two states fighting over who has the right to tax you like it used to happen between Ogun and Lagos in the recent past. So until you are absolutely sure, please abstain from such purchases.

Well that is it for now, you may ask questions or send comments below and I will respond to you. Keep your Property transactions smooth so you have peace of mind!

Avoid ogun state, na so so acquisition land full everywhere

It's not as bad as that boss, but truly it is bad... This is why one must always chart

timibare:
Avoid ogun state, na so so acquisition land full everywhere