Questions to ask before you buy or build in Ghana.
These answers reflect recurring questions found across Ghanaian land, legal, regulatory, banking, tax, construction, professional, and diaspora sources. They are ranked qualitatively by decision importance and recurrence—not by claimed search volume.
Before you pay
The questions to resolve before a deposit, reservation fee, land payment, or construction advance leaves your account.
01How do I know the plot or home shown to me is really owned by the seller?
Match the seller’s identity and authority, the legal interest, original instruments, approved plan, and the actual site. Request the appropriate Lands Commission search and have a licensed surveyor reconcile the plan with the ground. A search is essential evidence, but it does not by itself settle every boundary, occupation, authority, planning, or off-register dispute risk.
SourcesLand Act, 2020 (Act 1036)Lands Commission: Certificate SearchLands Commission: Title RegistrationLegal 500: Purchasing Land or Property in Ghana
02Can the same plot be sold twice, and how do I reduce that risk?
Documents shown by a seller do not eliminate the risk of another claim. Combine official record searches, original-document review, plan-to-ground verification, seller-authority checks, occupation and neighbourhood inquiry, and lawyer-directed checks for relevant restrictions or disputes. Use a written agreement that identifies the exact parcel and conditions payment on agreed evidence.
SourcesLand Act, 2020 (Act 1036)Dora Boateng v Mackeown InvestmentsLegal 500: Purchasing Land or Property in Ghana
03How do I request an official Lands Commission search from abroad, and what does it prove?
Use the process for the parcel’s region and submit the required plan or supporting information. An official search is a vital record check, but it is not a universal title guarantee and does not replace physical survey, authority, possession, court, collateral, customary-concurrence, or planning checks.
SourcesLands Commission Client Service CharterLands Commission: Consolidated SearchLands Commission: Certificate SearchLands Commission Online Portal
04Is an indenture, certificate copy, or acknowledgement slip enough proof that I own the land?
No single document proves every required fact. An indenture must agree with the plan, grantor authority, interest, and official records. The Lands Commission states that an acknowledgement slip for a submitted deed is not registration. Ask for the final registered instrument or certificate and confirm the application status.
SourcesLands Commission Client Service CharterLands Commission: Title RegistrationLands Commission: Deed Registration
05As a foreign national or Ghanaian abroad, can I buy freehold land in Ghana?
“Diaspora” is not a legal status. Ghana’s Constitution prohibits a non-citizen from holding a freehold interest and limits a non-citizen leasehold interest to no more than 50 years at a time. Citizenship, dual citizenship, land category, corporate ownership, and the proposed instrument all matter.
SourcesGhana Constitution: Lands and Natural ResourcesLand Act, 2020 (Act 1036)
06Can I let a relative or lawyer act for me under a power of attorney?
A power of attorney can be valid, but it should be property-specific, limited in scope and duration, and independently reviewed. Lands Commission guidance says a representative must provide the required stamped power of attorney and that a power executed outside Ghana requires notarisation. Keep control over final approvals, payee changes, original records, and final registered evidence.
SourcesLand Act, 2020 (Act 1036)Lands Commission Client Service Charter
07How can I tell whether an agent, broker, marketer, developer, or company is legitimate?
Verify an agent or broker through the current Real Estate Agency Council process. For a company, obtain an Office of the Registrar of Companies entity search and reconcile the legal name, company number, officers, beneficial-owner information, contract signatory, and payment beneficiary. These checks do not prove title, approvals, solvency, quality, or completion.
SourcesReal Estate Agency CouncilOffice of the Registrar of Companies: Entity SearchReal Estate Agency Act, 2020 (Act 1047)
08Should I pay a deposit or send money before all checks are complete?
A bank transfer creates a record; it does not make payment safe. Avoid cash and independently verify any payee change. Use a lawyer-reviewed written agreement that identifies the property, authorised payee, conditions, receipts, refund or default terms, and evidence required before each release.
SourcesReal Estate Agency CouncilReal Estate Agency Act, 2020 (Act 1047)Legal 500: Purchasing Land or Property in Ghana
09Do I need title registration or deed registration, and is a receipt the same as registration?
Do not choose a route because a seller calls a document a “title” or “deed.” Ask the relevant Lands Commission office to confirm the applicable process based on location, interest, record status, and plan. A submitted application or acknowledgement is not the final registered result.
SourcesLands Commission Client Service CharterLands Commission: Title RegistrationLands Commission: Deed Registration
10What extra checks are needed for family, clan, stool, or skin land?
Customary land is not automatically unsafe, but it needs a separate authority review. The root of title, landholding group, authorised grantor, required principal-member or customary concurrence, and available records should be investigated. A Customary Land Secretariat may provide local context, but it does not replace registration, a survey, or legal review.
SourcesLand Act, 2020 (Act 1036)Dora Boateng v Mackeown InvestmentsOffice of the Administrator of Stool Lands
11How do I check for a court case, mortgage, caveat, or other restriction?
Ask your Ghanaian lawyer to define the search scope in writing. It may include the relevant Lands Commission or registry search, caveat or restriction review, collateral or security-interest inquiry, targeted court-registry inquiry, and physical or neighbourhood inquiry. A public judgment portal cannot prove that no pending case exists.
SourcesLand Act, 2020 (Act 1036)Legal 500: Purchasing Land or Property in Ghana
Choose and contract the right property
Questions that help compare completed homes, land-and-build projects, off-plan purchases, finance, and total cost.
01Should I buy a completed home, buy land and build, or buy off plan from abroad?
There is no universal winner. A completed home still needs title, seller-authority, condition, service-charge, and handover review. Land and build adds survey, design, permit, procurement, supervision, and variation risk. Off-plan adds developer capability, approval, specification, delay, and refund risk. Compare verified budget, timeline, finance, desired control, and ability to manage remote decisions.
SourcesAccra Metropolitan Assembly: Building PermitStanbic Bank Ghana: Home PurchaseRehani: Off-Plan Buyer Guidance
02What should I inspect before buying a completed home or apartment?
Inspect the actual unit and relevant common infrastructure, not only a show unit. Record the roof, wiring, plumbing, drainage, water and backup systems, finishes, parking, amenities, estate rules, and service charges. Put agreed repairs, inclusions, defect remedies, and reinspection rights in the contract.
03How can I tell whether an off-plan project is real and likely to be completed?
Independently review the developer’s identity, land-interest evidence, permits and approved plans, written specification, programme, delivery history, and payment terms. Visit the site and, where possible, completed developments. Treat renderings, appreciation claims, warranties, and rental forecasts as claims that need written contractual support.
SourcesLegal 500: Purchasing Land or Property in GhanaRehani: Off-Plan Buyer Guidance
04What should a reservation, sale, or off-plan contract say about payment, delay, refund, and handover?
The agreement should clearly identify the unit or parcel, price and currency, holder of funds, milestones, specification, inspection rights, variation control, programme, delay or default remedies, refund terms, registration obligation, and handover standard. A receipt is inadequate when the contracting party, expiry, deductions, or refund triggers are unclear.
SourcesGhana Revenue Authority: Stamp DutyLegal 500: Purchasing Land or Property in GhanaRehani: Off-Plan Buyer Guidance
05What will the purchase or build really cost beyond the advertised price?
Use a dated line-item budget. Separate price or build cost from search, survey, legal, stamp duty, registration, consent, valuation, lender, insurance, bank or foreign-exchange, permit, professional, repair, furnishing, estate, service, and contingency costs. There is no reliable single Ghana-wide percentage.
SourcesLands Commission: Fees and ChargesGhana Revenue Authority: Stamp DutyStanbic Bank Ghana: Home Purchase
06Can I get a Ghana mortgage while I live abroad, and what should I compare?
Diaspora mortgage products may be available, but approval, loan-to-value, income treatment, credit checks, loan currency, rate, fees, insurance, valuation, and documents are lender-specific. Request dated written illustrations and compare like-for-like offers. Consider the risk of repaying a loan in a currency different from your reliable income.
SourcesFirst National Bank Ghana: Mortgage ProductsStanbic Bank Ghana: Home Purchase
Build and monitor from abroad
The practical controls diaspora owners ask about when permits, contractors, materials, milestones, and quality must be managed at a distance.
01What permits, land documents, and professional drawings are needed before I fund construction?
Start from the assumption that physical development needs prior written approval from the relevant Metropolitan, Municipal, or District Assembly. Requirements differ by site, project, use, and assembly. The baseline includes land-right evidence and professionally prepared site or block, architectural, and structural documents, with specialist reports where applicable. A receipt or submission is not approval.
SourcesAccra Metropolitan Assembly: Building PermitLand Use and Spatial Planning Regulations, 2019Land Use and Spatial Planning Act, 2016
02How do I reduce the chance that a contractor takes money and abandons the build?
Use a project-specific written contract that identifies the parties, scope, drawings, specifications, price basis, programme, milestones, acceptance criteria, variations, delay, remedies, and dispute process. Independently check previous work, references, identity, and claimed credentials. Avoid excessive upfront exposure and link later payments to independently reviewable evidence.
SourcesGhana PPA: Contract Administration Manual for WorksGhana Construction-Risk Factors Study
03Are WhatsApp photos and family updates enough proof that work has reached a payment stage?
No. Treat photos and video as inputs, not certification. For each milestone, require dated site-context media, relevant quantities or measurements, delivery and invoice evidence, issues or defects, programme comparison, and independent technical sign-off for critical stages. Request a live walkthrough when evidence is unclear.
SourcesGhana PPA: Contract Administration Manual for WorksGhana Construction-Risk Factors Study
04Who should inspect workmanship and concealed work before a milestone payment?
Use an independent Ghana-based professional whose reporting line is separate from the contractor’s payment. Match expertise to the work and define project-specific hold points, such as setting out, reinforcement and formwork, waterproofing, roofing, and first-fix services. Check credentials, scope, conflicts, reporting cadence, and escalation authority.
SourcesArchitects Registration Council: Professionals in Good StandingEngineering Council Ghana: Licensed BodiesGhana Institution of Surveyors: Find a Surveyor
05What should I do when there is a delay, urgent extra cost, design change, or defect at handover?
Require a written variation or delay record before accepting a price or time change. It should state the cause, affected scope, drawing or specification reference, quantities or quotation, alternatives, evidence, time and cost effect, and named approval. At handover, compare the result with the signed specification and record defects, remedy deadlines, and reinspection evidence.
SourcesLand Use and Spatial Planning Act, 2016Ghana PPA: Contract Administration Manual for WorksGhana Construction-Risk Factors Study
Turn uncertainty into a documented oversight scope.
Tell us what you are buying or building, where it is, what has already been paid, and what evidence you currently have. We will explain where independent S.E.S reporting may help and where a regulated professional is needed.