Private legal practitioner Prof Kwame Gyan has cautioned prospective homeowners to conduct thorough checks before buying land, warning that a seemingly attractive plot could expose buyers to flooding, land litigation and ownership disputes.

He said prospective buyers in the Greater Accra Region, in particular, must consider the location, accessibility, flood risk, history of land disputes and the status of ownership before committing their money.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Friday, September 11, during a discussion on how people can start small and work towards owning their dream homes, Prof Gyan, a leading legal expert and academic specialising in land law, immovable property, and natural resources law in Ghana, said the location of a plot should be among the first considerations for anyone planning to build.

“The land part, when you are considering where you would reside, is very important,” he said.

Consider proximity and traffic

Prof Gyan said buyers should consider how close a prospective home is to their workplace, particularly if they expect to remain at the same workplace for many years.

“You are looking at proximity. You may probably want to look at where you work,” he said.

He said buyers should also consider the traffic situation and the amount of time they would spend commuting between home and work.

“And if that is going to be your permanent place of work till you retire, you begin to ask yourself, how do I get from here to there in view of the traffic situation that we have?” he asked.

Don't overlook flood risk

Prof Gyan also warned against buying land in flood-prone areas simply because such plots may be cheaper.

He said recent flooding had challenged the assumption that some areas previously considered relatively safe were immune from flooding.

“Given our environmental situation, you have to take into account floods,” he said.

He cited parts of Tse Addo, which he said had been affected by recent flooding.

“The last floods that we encountered have shattered the myth that there were some areas that were not flood-prone, because some areas in Tse Addo went underwater,” he said.

Prof Gyan said buyers attracted by lower land prices in flood-prone areas must consider the potential cost of flooding to their homes and property.

“The flood-prone areas, some of those areas, the land values may be lower in terms of price to pay, but the flip side [is] when the floods come,” he said.

He also cited communities around the Densu floodplains, including parts of Amanfrom, where residents had been asked to move to higher ground.

“You can move your body and maybe some items or property to higher ground, but you cannot move the land. You cannot move the house to higher ground and bring it back when the floods recede,” he said.

Check for land litigation

Another major concern, according to Prof Gyan, is the risk of purchasing land that is already the subject of a dispute.

He advised prospective buyers to seek professional advice and establish the history and ownership status of a property before paying for it.

“Then, litigation. There are particular parts of town which are litigation-prone,” he said.

“So, you have to get some expert advice. You can't say there is a place that is foolproof.”

Prof Gyan said even areas generally regarded as established and secure are not completely immune from ownership disputes.

“Even in Cantonments and Ridges, which are government areas, there's still the possibility that some mistake would be made by the Lands Commission or somebody, and you could encounter a multiple transaction which would result in litigation,” he said.

He therefore urged buyers to investigate whether an area has a history of land disputes before committing their money.

“Is the area you are going towards a litigation-prone area? Otherwise, you are not getting land; you are getting litigation,” he warned.

He said such disputes could have serious consequences for people who had already started developing their plots.

“Before you start, your walls are demolished,” he said.

Peri-urban areas require extra caution

Prof Gyan said the risks were particularly significant in peri-urban areas, where land is rapidly being converted from agricultural use to residential, commercial or industrial purposes.

“The litigation-prone areas are normally the areas we call peri-urban, where land conversion is taking place, where land is moving from agrarian, agricultural, to commercial, industrial, residential,” he said.

He explained that disputes could also arise where family-owned land was being sold by different parties without a clear central authority overseeing the transactions.

According to him, prospective buyers must therefore establish who legally owns the land and whether the person offering it for sale has the authority to do so.

Caution over parts of Accra's outskirts

Prof Gyan also raised concerns about transactions involving large tracts of land in parts of Accra and its outskirts.

He said much of the land along the coastline, from Kokrobite towards Tema Port and beyond, had already been allocated, meaning many transactions in those areas were secondary or tertiary sales rather than first-time allocations.

He suggested that areas where ownership disputes had already been settled through the courts could offer greater certainty, although much of such land had already been taken.

Prof Gyan identified parts of the Amasaman-Pokuase corridor and surrounding peri-urban communities as areas where prospective buyers should exercise particular caution.

He said some state lands around John Tei and Asofan had already been allocated through the Lands Commission.

“Those state lands were allocated by the Lands Commission. They are all finished,” he said.

He alleged that disputes persisted in areas beyond Pokuase and Amasaman, including Busumafise, partly because of conflicts arising from the conversion of agricultural land to other uses.

“There are people who got the lands for farming, who are trying to convert from farming to other uses. They are having issues with their grantors,” he explained.

Prof Gyan also alleged that some state lands acquired for agricultural purposes around Weija had been illegally sold to unsuspecting buyers.

“There are large tracts of land that are state lands which were taken for agricultural purposes around Weija. Some of those lands have been stolen and sold to private people who are unsuspecting buyers,” he said.

He raised similar concerns about areas around Dawhenya and Central University, alleging that some vested lands were being traded illegally.

Exercise caution around Akuapem corridor

Prof Gyan further cautioned prospective buyers looking towards the Akuapem side of Accra, saying some prime areas were expensive and that plots were sometimes sold in large parcels.

He also pointed to uncertainty around parts of the boundary between Greater Accra and the Akuapem area.

“The boundary between Greater Accra, the Ga boundary and the Akuapem boundary is fluid. The boundary is steeped in by the day,” he said.

He mentioned communities including Ayimensa, Teiman and Damfa, extending towards Ammrahia and Dodowa, as areas experiencing significant pressure from peri-urban development.

“All that area is in turmoil because of the peri-urban interface,” he said.

Prof Gyan's advice to prospective land buyers was therefore straightforward: conduct proper due diligence and seek expert assistance before paying for a plot.

“For those areas, the principle is clear that the buyer must beware,” he said.