Land Dispute: 10 INDICATORS OF A LAND UNDER DISPUTE, PART 2

With this part 2, I intend to conclude on the possible indicators of land dispute so you know what to look out for in order not to lose your hard earned money when buying land. Enjoy it.

3. Negative report on vendor/agent
You must ensure the agent introducing the land to buy, your own agent helping you to source for what to buy and the vendor (that is, the principal who wants to sell his landed property) are credible.

There are a lot of fraudsters in this business as it is typical of any venture where people stand to make money and they will do anything to present themselves as experienced and credible.

Such people always fall into the trap of making so many claims. Start by noting those claims and discreetly verifying them independently.

Where you find any to be false, it should trigger an alarm on land dispute and you better be very careful if you still want to deal with the party involved in the false claim.

Purchasing land from dubious or fraudulent agents may lead to land dispute in future.

If the report on the agent is negative, my admonition is that you purchase your land from a credible source (individual or corporate). Doing otherwise could be costly to your dream of becoming a landlord.

For agents, you may want to stick to using professionals who are answerable to a professional body/association they must have signed up a code of ethics with.

4. CONSIDERABLE LOW OFFER OR CLOSING PRICE
The price of land varies from area to area depending on location.

You should seek to determine the fair price of what you want to buy through market survey and be very weary of properties with ridiculously low prices.

Dupes will always come up with framed stories of the vendor needing money urgently to do a thing or the other.

In as much as there are such genuine cases, it is usually not an everyday occurrence, so you must ensure to ascertain that your case is not a makeup story to avoid land dispute crisis.

5. PERSISTENT DEMAND FOR PAYMENT
It usually comes with the threat that another interested party will out smart you by paying up if you fail to pay in time. They will like to rush you up into payment.

Even though it may be true that you are not the only one interested in the property and trying to make a buy decision, patience, thoroughness and the element of time is needed here.

Where the agent or owner is putting pressure on you to pay on time, my advice to you is to either beat a retreat or follow the person with caution to avoid land dispute.

Do not let anyone rush you up into not doing your due diligence to avoid land dispute.

6. STRONG PREFERENCE FOR CASH PAYMENT
Money has wings they say, for me cash in an eagle, it soars not just fly so avoid concluding transactions like that of properties in cash.

Thank God for the regime of a cashless society that Nigeria is pushing for seriously now. Cash transactions are most of the time without trace.

Worse case scenario, only pay cash into a bank account that has relevant with the vendor or authorized agent, otherwise, insist on paying with traceable bank instruments like your cheque, Banker’s Cheque or draft, etc.

Obtain receipts for all your payments immediately.

Where you are asked to pay cash instead of cheque into a certain account, honestly mounting pressure on land matter anywhere in the world is a sign of 419ers or fraudsters at work in most cases. So never make payment for your landed property in cash.

7. SIGNS OF PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT
When there is some signs of prior physical possession on land you intend to buy, whether you were told before the inspection or not (although it is a No- No for me if you were not told during the preliminary discussion about the property before inspection) it should put you on serious alert as it may just means that someone else has bought the land before and he may not be the person trying to sell it.

Make independent conclusive investigations about whatever the reason they give for the development on the land before making payment.

8. SIGNS OF STRUCTURAL DEMOLISION
This is also an indication that the said land may be in contention if there is no suitable or verifiable explanations.

Here is another possible signs of 419 activities or fraudulent dealings on landed properties.

9. ADVICE/CAUTION FROM YOUR ENVIRONMENT/NEIGHBORHOOD INVESTIGATION
I place serious premium on findings from the neighborhood about any property. People around usually have some facts about a property that may introduce a whole new perspective to the whole transaction.

I do not suggest you joke with carrying out such discreet findings and ensure you deal with whatever it throws up conclusively.

If your investigation from the neighborhood where you intend buying the land indicates signs of land dispute, then you must shine your eyes so you don’t get into unnecessary crisis.

10. ANY OTHER MEASURE GEARED AT ACHIEVING HASTY CLOSING
Vendors and their agents will always want to get their money from you as soon as possible, you owe yourself a duty of care as land transaction is always with the proviso “Caveat Emptor” (buyers beware).

While this is not to suggest that you take all the time in the world doing your due diligence, it is to impress on you the important of due diligence in property transactions generally.

Any attempt whatsoever at achieving a hasty closing should set you on your toes.

In conclusion, these 10 indicators of a land in dispute are not inexhaustible. There are a thousand and one reasons why a land may be in dispute. And it is not limited to Nigeria or the so-called developing countries alone.

In advanced countries like the United States of America, United Kingdom etc, they all have their fair shares of the issues at stake.

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