1. Right of Occupancy: The Land Use Act refers to it as Customary Right of Occupancy under Section 6. It is a land title given to a person or organization who is allocated land by a local government (in a non-urban area) for residential purposes, agricultural purposes, grazing purposes, and other purposes which are ancillary to agricultural purposes. The maximum size of land that can be allocated for agricultural purposes is 500 hectares, while for grazing purposes it is 5,000 hectares, except the Governor of the State permits the local government to allot a higher size.
Before one can alienate ownership of this kind of land, whether through assignment, mortgage, transfer of possession, or sublease, one must get the approval of the local government that allocated the land to them. Furthermore, if the land is to be sold by an order of the court, (under the provisions of the Sheriffs and Civil Processes Law of the State), then the land owner must get the consent/approval of the state Governor. It should also be noted that one’s legal title to such land can be revoked by the Governor on the ground of overriding public interest. Such overriding public interest arises where the government needs the land for mining purposes or oil pipelines. Such owner will however be entitled to compensation from the government in line with the provisions of the Minerals a Mining Act, or the Petroleum Act, or any Act replacing them.
One good thing about a customary right of occupancy is that it is easier to get such land allocation from the local government, as against getting such land from the state government. Furthermore, once one gets the land, they can upgrade its value by applying to the state Governor for a Certificate of Occupancy.
2. Certificate of Occupancy: The Land Use Act refers to it as Statutory Right of Occupancy under Section 5. It is the land title granted by the Governor to a person for all purposes (in an urban area), whether residential, commercial, agricultural, or industrial. Upon the successful grant of the land by the Governor,the person to whom the land is granted will be given a document called Certificate of Occupancy, which serves as evidence that he/she owns the land.
Having a Certificate of Occupancy gives its holder the sole right to all improvements on the land, as well as, absolute possession of all improvements on the land for a period of 99 years. Nevertheless, before one can alienate ownership of a land, whether through assignment, mortgage, transfer or possession, or sublease, one must get the consent/approval of the governor.Failure to do so can lead to a revocation of the certificate. Failure to pay ground rent is another reason why a Certificate of Occupancy made be revoked. For these two grounds of revocation, no government compensation is available. Overriding public interest is another ground for revocation. Where the government needs the land for mining purposes or for oil pipelines, this constitutes over-riding public interest. However, upon such revocation, the land owner will be entitled to compensation from the government in line with the provisions of the Minerals and Mining Act, or the Petroleum Act, or any Act replacing them.
3. Deed of Assignment: A Deed of Assignment refers to an agreement/document
showing the transfer all of rights and duties over a piece of land from the current owner (Assignor) to new owner (Assignee), in exchange for a payment of an agreed amount of money. It usually grants the assignee the remaining number of years left from the 99 years granted over the Certificate of Occupancy for the land, to the Assignor.
A typical Deed of Assignment contains the following details
-The day the agreement was entered into
-The names and addresses of the current owner, and new owner
-A brief history of past ownership of the land
-The description of the land
-The amount paid for the land
-The Covenants or terms and conditions on the land
- The details of the witnesses to the Agreement
- The details of the Governor consenting to the Agreement
It is usually prepared by a lawyer, and after the application for the Governor’s consent and stamping of the Agreement, it should be registered at the Land Registry of the State. The benefits of registering it at the lands registry is that not only will it confer legal estate on the new owner, it will give the new owner priority over anybody who might subsequently come to register the Agreement.
4. Land Excision Gazette: A land excision gazette is an official document issued by a state government in its periodic gazettes, stating that it has released a portion of land, back to its original owners/historic owners. This is premised on the fact that, prior to the promulgation of the Land Use Act of 1978, lands were under the ownership and control of communities and traditional institutions.
However with the promulgation of the Act, by the provisions of Section 1 ‘All land comprised in the territory of each state in the Federation is hereby vested in the Governor of that State, and such land shall be held in trust and administered for the use and common benefit of all Nigerians…’. By getting such Land Excision Gazette, the owners then have full ownership of the land. Such document is a valid legal title, and can thereafter be used in applying for a Certificate of Occupancy.
5. Deed of Gift: A Deed of Assignment refers to an agreement/document showing the transfer all of rights and duties over a piece of land from the current owner (Donor) to new owner (Donee), without any payment of money. A typical Deed of Gift will contain the name and addresses of the Donor and Donee, the day the Deed of Gift was made, the intention of the donor (stating that it is without force or coercion), the details of the property, as well as the witnesses to the Deed.
Getting a property through a Deed of Gift excludes its new owner from paying capital gains tax, as well as reduces the time for perfecting the title (especially when compared with a grant of probate or letter of administration). However, certain grounds can lead to the revocation of a Deed of Gift. The grounds upon which a Deed of Gift can be invalidated include if it is gotten through mistake, misrepresentation, duress and undue influence, or if it is done with the intention of evading tax or defrauding creditors.
6. Court Judgment: Where there is a legal dispute over land between two more parties, and the court gives judgment in favour of one party over the other(s), the court judgment (its certified true copy), becomes a valid land title, and can be used to transfer ownership land from the victorious party in the matter, to a willing buyer. Nevertheless, there are various factors that should be considered before relying on a court judgment.
The first factor is to know which court delivered the judgment. The first court that usually delivers such judgment is the High Court. Although it is valid, the decision can be appealed against at the Court of Appeal, and even up to the Supreme Court, and these courts can over-rule the decision made by the High Court, and then give the land to the party that lost at the High Court. Hence, one should be sure that the parties that lost the case are not appealing against the judgment, because if they do appeal, and win the case, the money one spends on purchasing the land will be lost.
Furthermore, if you want to buy land from a party selling a land through a court judgment, approach a lawyer to help you verify the authenticity of the court judgment. This is because on certain occasions, sellers forge court judgments and brandish them as valid to buyers. Also, what the seller may be presenting to you as a court judgment may not be actually be a court judgment, but rather a court ruling; a court ruling is a temporary decision of a court given the course of a matter, and it doesn’t determine who the real owner of a land is.
7. Deed of Mortgage: A Deed of Mortgage is a document showing the temporary transfer of property from the mortgagor (borrower) to the mortgagee (lender), in exchange of money/loan from the lender to the borrower. The reason it is temporary is because once the mortgagor repays the principal and interest on the loan, the ownership of the property goes back to the mortgagor. However, if the mortgagor fails to repay the loan at the expected, and exhausts all other legal remedies available, the mortgagee can sell the land to willing buyers, and such Deed of Mortgage will serve as a valid land title.
8. Grant of Probate: A Will is a document made during the lifetime of a person called a Testator, stating how the testator will want their property to be shared upon their death. The person who is usually given the duty of carrying out the wishes of the Testator stating in the Will is called the Executor. Where after the death of the Testator, there is no contention about who the rightful executor is, the executor will apply to the Probate Registrar of the High Court for a grant of probate.
A Grant of Probate is a document given to the executor of a Will, empowering the executor of the Will to deal with the assets/property of the dead person in the manner stated in such Will. Such Grant of Probate is a valid legal title empowering the executor to transfer the ownership of such land to new owners. Other persons who could be granted probate (in order of hierarchy) include the following;
a residuary beneficiary holding in trust for other persons (a Trustee)
a residuary beneficiary for life
a beneficiary whose legacy is vested in interest.
9. Letter of Administration: A Letter of Administration is a document granted by
the Probate Court to a person called administrator, empowering such administrator to administer the estate/property of a person that died without making a Will. This is what differentiates a Grant of Probate from a Letter of Administration; for a Grant of Probate, the deceased person made a Will before their death, while for a Letter of Administration, the deceased person did not make a Will before their death.
Such Letter of Administration can be used by the administrator to transfer legal
title in land to a willing buyer. In order of hierarchy, those that could be appointed
as administrator(s), are the spouse of the deceased, the children of the deceased, the parents of the deceased, the siblings of the deceased, the half/self-siblings of the deceased, the grandparents of the deceased, uncles and aunts of the deceased, creditors of the deceased, then lastly, the Administrator General.
10. Assent: An Assent is a legal document used to transfer title in land from an executor of Will, or an administrator, to the beneficiaries of such Will, or the properties of the person that died without making a Will. Usually, it is given alongside the grant of probate, or letter of administration. A point to note is that it can be used only to transfer title to beneficiaries, and not general third party. In the case of Re Stirrup’s Contract, the court held that ‘it is common ground that the mechanism of an assent was not available to the bank and that the documents that should have been used in order to pass the property to Ruth Jones was a conveyance’. Hence, if executors/ administrator want to transfer the property to a third party purchaser, who is not the beneficiary, the right document to use is a Deed of Conveyance/ Deed of Assignment.
In conclusion, these are valid land titles that can be used in any property transaction.
Nevertheless, contact a lawyer to do a legal search for you before you purchase any
property.
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