Before purchasing land in Kenya it’s highly advisable to determine the former or current owner of the land as registered at the Lands Registry in the respective county offices. This is important to avoid fraudsters and conmen perpetrating to own the land and after payment will either vanish or give you a hard time to get a title deed.
The process of searching and determining the actual legal land owner is known as Land Search.
How can you ensure the real estate company is legally registered?
· Once you obtain the company number, the company search can be done through E-citizen.
· Log-In your credentials and click on the Business Registration Service Link. Click on the Make Application tab and choose the option Official Search CR12.
· You will be directed to the find business page where you will input the name of the company or the company number.
· You will also be required input your details after which you make a payment and the document is ready for download. The CR12 contains all the details you need for the company such as the date of registration, physical address and details of the directors and shareholders.
Note: An investor has the right to request for certifications of registration of a company. If the company is not willing to provide these documents, that is a red flag for you as an investor.
So how do you conduct a land search in Kenya?
In this blog we cut across 2 simple and stress-free processes that will unleash the full details to enable you deal with the real land owner be it an individual or real estate company.
Note: During the actual land search be keen to confirm the following:
Title Deed Number Exists at the Lands Registry
Beware that with advanced technology, Title deeds can be faked. Documents are molded by fraudsters to perfectly resemble a legit sample and blind the eyes. The first move during the land search is to confirm if that Title deed number is registered and acknowledged by the Land Registry.
Full Names of Owner(s)/History of Land Ownership
Upon existence of the Title Deed number, check keenly the current land owner(s) and confirm their names as per official Government IDs. It is important to know who owned the land before current owner(s) thereby enquire full history of ownership before purchase. Unfortunately land ownership in Kenya has been a major conflict factor between families and colleagues hence when sold to you unaware, you can be involved in the wrangles later on. To avoid these instances, buy land that has zero ongoing court cases or was acquired on good terms from former sellers.
Actual Size of Land
It is equally important to know the size and location of land you are about to purchase. Land can be sold as plots measured in hectares or larger portions measured in acres. Involve a surveyor during site visits by any chance you acquire land from an individual owner. Good news is that AMCCO Properties Limited makes this easier as we have a professional surveyor who measures and sub – divides our plots for sale into significant 1/8 upfront. Therefore we cut off the cost and stress for you to hire a surveyor.
Location of Land
Confirm the county trailing down to the sub location in which the land is located in. These details are essential to determine the residential area you will relocate to or setup your investment such as apartments or farms. Moreover, you get to know the area development and urbanization i.e. Road networks, Towns and Government offices near the land property.
Property Clearance
Don’t be a victim of unpaid land taxes after purchasing land. To avoid being on the wrong side of the County Government, matters regarding taxes and rents should be cleared by the current owner before the land is sold to you.
Do an intensive property clearance check and only buy land that has been cleared and certificate provided for confirmation. With the details above, a land buyer counterchecks and affirms the details shared by the seller hence proceeds on or not.
1. Online Land Search
It is the simplest since it can be conducted remotely using a smartphone/computer and internet.
Note: The Title Deed should be scanned and be ready for upload in soft copy form.
Using Google or Opera Mini, log in to your E-citizen portal and specifically select Ministry of Land, Housing and Urban Development tab on the menu.
Click the Land search option to input the actual Title Deed number then fill in the online land search form. Thereafter confirm the details and submit.
A pop up option to pay for the search follows whereby you have a variety of payment options, the easiest being M- Pesa or Debit Card.
Upon payment, a results sheet is produced for printing or future referral. The document stays on the portal long enough if you prefer not to print it and can be accessed anytime you log in.
2. Manual Land Search
It is the common known way of conducting a land search before technology was introduced to perform the search online. Basically, you visit the nearest land registry in the county where the land is located in.
Carry alongside a hard copy of;-
Title Deed
Seller’s KRA Pin Number document
Seller’s National ID
Upon arrival at the offices, request for a Land Search Form (form RL 26) and fill in the details required.
Attach a copy of the land title, National ID and KRA Pin.
Submit the form and wait as directed by the Registry officials.
The search results will be out in between from 3 hours to even 3 working days based on various factors.
Either way, the search results are produced and issued back to you and based on the information you have a decision to proceed on with your Land buying process or not. As the year progresses, we devote our energy to making this process easier for you. Our plots for sale in Kikuyu have undergone the full legal transfer process from their former owners and are registered to AMCCO Properties Limited at the Kiambu County Land Registry. This guarantees you risk free deals with us to own your next piece of land in Kikuyu.
Visit our offices today at TH Arcade in Gikambura along Dagoretti Road to view on our Title deeds and their specific plots. Contact us via 0701 293 199 or Email us at amccoproperties.co.ke
