Lagos collapses existing land registration laws into one to fast-track transactions

On the back of last week’s issuance of an executive order slashing charges on land in what is aimed at encouraging investors and property developers to look in the direction of Lagos, the governor, Babatunde Fashola, has moved a step further, signing a new law that gives fillip to ease of land transactions in the commercial city.
Analysts speaking recently with BusinessDay had expressed optimism that the cut in the land transaction rates from 13 percent to 3 percent would draw further investments to La¬gos and boost the property market in a state with over four million housing deficit.
The new law harmonises all existing laws relating to land registration in the state. It is titled, ‘Law to Consolidate all Laws Relating to Registration of Land in Lagos State’. The law will enable members of the public hav¬ing land dealings to register their properties in a seamless manner.
Hitherto existing laws now harmonised in the new law include: The Registered Land Law Cap R1; Registration of Titles Law and Registration of Titles (Appeals) Rules. Cap. R4, the Land Instruments Registration Law Cap. L58 and the Electronic Document Management Systems Law 2007.
Fashola at the signing of the law, Wednesday, ob¬served that it was important to secure land as an asset because of its importance to the prosperity of people, adding, “In basic economics, land is a very important as-set to capital formation.”
He said it was the responsibility of government to maintain a registry of titles to land with the highest level of integrity in view of the fact that land registration helps to create the divisions of land registry; decentralises the process and improves access to land.
“In our basic economics, land is a very important as¬set to capital formation. You can’t start a bank, you can’t
start a business, you can’t farm; you can’t even extract crude oil without identifying a particular piece of land or oil well. So it’s the basics of capital formation, it’s the basics of prosperity; it’s the basics of economic well being and the basics for job”, he said.
He believes that the prosperity of the advanced economies around the world has some root in their land assets and the way the tittles are registered, stressing that the new law would indeed enhance the process of land registration in Lagos such that a prospective land buyer would not need to see anybody but go to the registry and know whether or not he should buy that land.
“So you don’t need somebody to come and tell you the history of how the land evolved from 20 families and one owner, once you go to the library registry you will see all the transactions there and your lawyer would be able to advise you whether to go on or not to go on”, said Fashola.