Nigeria’s real estate sector is grappling with a silent crisis of a significant decline in property title registrations. Over 90 per cent of land in Nigeria is said to remain unregistered, rendering it economically inactive and inaccessible for development.

Experts claim this situation has resulted in an estimated $300 billion in ‘dead capital’ as landowners cannot leverage their properties for loans or investments. A reason development experts warn that this trend could have far-reaching consequences, including stunted housing delivery, limited access to credit, and the entrenchment of informal land ownership practices.

Worthy to mention is that despite ongoing reforms and digital initiatives aimed at streamlining land administration, challenges such as high registration costs, bureaucratic delays, and corruption continue to hinder progress.

Across the states, from Lagos to Abuja, Rivers, Ogun, Kano, and Adamawa among others, the processes are often complex and time-consuming. Even when some of the property owners are willing to pay the rates and go through the process, they are often at the mercy of the approving agencies and its personnel, who mount several bumps on their path.

A fellow of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers, Dr. Esther Oromidayo Thontteh, in a chat with The Guardian, recently, said officers deliberately make the process very cumbersome, citing an instance of a renovation cum re-modification, which her company wanted to do around Ikeja GRA. According to her, even though necessary payment was made and documents were presented, for six months the approval was not granted.

“We applied for the planning permit, we paid, and we actually used one of the officers of the agency whom we paid extra for her service. Six months later, nothing was done in terms of getting the approval. And we had removed the roof and others in preparation for the re-modification and renovation.

“We kept asking, what are the issues? They said they wanted to verify the approval payment receipts, which were discovered to be original as the money was paid into government coffers. One of the officers even said why did they collect money from us and that if the payment had not been genuine, it would be very difficult to get the approval.”

The Guardian findings also revealed that some of the encumbrances to the process include stringent conditions, where applicants are asked to provide comprehensive documentation, including survey plans, proof of land ownership or allocation, tax receipts, and sometimes environmental or land use permits. Also, inconsistencies or lack of any of these documents delay the process.

Even when a landowner can provide these documents, the charges, he or she is, expected to pay at the multiple regulatory agencies often discourage them from coming forward for approval.

A property developer was recently asked by the Lagos State Safety Commission to pay N450,000 for safety approval. The breakdown showed that he was to pay N300,000 for hazard risk assessment and control; N50,000 for safety plan evaluation and N100,000 safety compliance certificate. This is after he must have provided different ten safety items listed by the agency on the construction site including insurance for building under construction.

In many states, there are concerns about multiple fees at different stages official corrupt practices plaguing the system, improper documentation and bureaucratic bottlenecks in government offices.

In instances where the state governments provide timelines to procure land and property titles, including C-of-O’s, it is usually just on paper, as it often takes a longer and very tiring process to get the documents. Sometimes, it required knowing very highly placed persons in governments.

The estimated time for completion of the process for land registration varies and is often a long process. In places like Ondo and Ekiti states, it could take six months, while in Lagos, it could be three months or over a year. In Edo, it takes about 60 days, Ogun about three to four years, while in Osun, it takes one to three years while in Oyo, two to three months or more.

The Nigeria Living Standards Survey (NLSS) report showed that 71.4 per cent of landlords sampled across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are without titles. The report further revealed that while 13.2 per cent of the country’s property owners have title deeds, only 8.1 per cent have a Certificate of Occupancy (C-of-O) issued by both federal and state governments.

It was, therefore, not out of place when a former Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, during a recent summit on building permits, implored governments not to see building approvals as revenue generation avenue. He also kicked against the multiple approving and regulatory agencies, asking it should be reduced. In Lagos, a property owner would need to visit and get approval from about 17 agencies to get permit approvals.

A testament that the bumps mounted by the different layers of multiple regulations and payment, as well as bureaucratic process were discouraging property owners from processing their titles was the revelation by the Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor on Electronic Geographic Information System (e-GIS) and Urban Development, Olajide Babatunde, just last month, that in the last six years, only 246 Certificates of Occupancy (C-of-Os) were applied for, while there were 649 applications for regularisation of C-of-O’s.

Also, sometime last year, Lagos State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Dr. Oluyinka Abiodun Olumide, said less than 25 per cent of the buildings in the state were approved, stating that the state government is bothered about the low number of approved buildings. Despite this, Lagos leads with the highest prevalence of ownership certificates in Nigeria put at 22.9 per cent.

For instance, in Taraba State between January 2012 to December 2021, the total C-of-O’s registered was 392, while in Oyo State, the total applications received for C-of-O’s between 2020 and 2022 was 6,779 with 4804 certificates issued. Also, in Borno State, in 2019, the state issued 1,000 Certificates of Occupancy in a single year, surpassing the combined total of the previous two decades where 1,722 certificates were issued between 1999 and 2019. In addition, between 2020 and 2024, 2,500 Certificates of Occupancy were issued by the Borno State government.

The National Bureau of Statistics-social statistics report 2023, which provides an in-depth analysis of the number of Certificates of Occupancy (C-of-O) issuance within Abuja Area Councils from 2020 to 2022 indicates that the total number of C-of-O issued was 980 in 2020, 894 in 2021, and 931 in 2022. The number of C-of-O issued in Abuja according to the report issued in 2024 suggests a slight decrease looking at the trend from 2020. This decrease could be attributed to a decrease in demand, improved efficiency, or regulatory changes.

From 2010 to 2023, the Federal Capital Territory Administration signed only 8,400 C-of-O’s. The Federal Capital Territory reportedly issued 5,481 C-of-O’s from May 2023 to December 31, 2024. The figure is 2,919 less than the total number of C-of-O printed and signed by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) in 13 years.

Statistics from the Ekiti State Bureau of Land Services/Ekiti State Geospatial Data Centre indicate that 1,703 certificates of occupancy were issued from January 2012 to December 2021. Since the launch of the Ogun State Land Administration & Revenue Management System (OLARMS) in 2021, about 700,000 identifiable structures have so far been registered in its land administration system.

However, to improve land registration and documentation and promote investment in the property sector, experts have urged authorities to remove the bureaucratic bottlenecks in land administration that make it difficult to register property.

Commenting, the immediate past President of the Association of Town Planning Consultants of Nigeria (ATOPCON), Muyiwa Adelu, said the most recognisable property title is the C-of-O, followed by the Governor’s consent. However, he expressed concerns over the delay in the timeline for such property title applications in major states, which could be over one year. This, he said, is unacceptable.

“When people apply and don’t get results on time, this will make others stay away. Deployment of technology should enhance the system and not make it worse. It should assist the system and not drag or kill it.

“We have been processing some titles for a while and had to tell several stories to the client due to delays. That is why people’s interest in applying for C-of-O’s and Governors’ Consent and others has dropped,” he said.

He suggested that the state authorities should endeavour to make the process seamless. “If the relevant agencies don’t have the right personnel, the government should engage the right professionals. Many qualified people are looking for jobs in this country, if it is the manpower that is the issue, the government needs to sit up and ensure that the right things are done,” he said.

On his part, President, Real Estate Developers Association (REDAN), Akintoye Adeoye, said the process of land titling, registration and obtaining C-of-O’s is often marred by delays, inefficiency, and a lack of transparency, disclosing that while the Land Use Act (LUA) provides a clear legal framework, poor implementation by government officials remains a major obstacle.

Adeoye also appealed to the government to simplify, digitise, and streamline the processes to ensure timely and cost-effective access to land and title documents. He stressed that land should serve as a tool to promote housing development, not merely as a revenue-generation mechanism for states.

President, International Real Estate Federation (FIABCI)-Africa and Near East Region, Adele Adeniji, said a potential drawback is the bureaucratic bottlenecks associated with the process.

Adeniji said: “There are bottlenecks in terms of land information. The civil servant contributes to the challenges. Your files can be in the application office for weeks without attention. The government is trying to digitise the process but needs to do more by providing an enabling environment for businesses, particularly the real estate industry to thrive.

“For instance, if you are buying land, you need land documentation, which should be seamless. You need a title to secure collateral from the banks as a form of security for loan advancement.

He added: “If you don’t have title documents, no banks or financial institutions would be willing to lend you money. The bank might lend you money but not a substantial amount of money that could be used to do a big development.” (The Guardian)