Property Now! Ghana

NOW

Price Free | ISSUE #1 | 2015

www.lamudi.gh

PropertyP.10 – 11

INTERVIEW WITH ANTHONY BOATENG

STRATEGIZING TO WIN IN GHANA

Cover Story P.6 – 9

INTERVIEW WITH PS GLOBAL

P.12 – 13

BUILDING SUSTAINABLY

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

IN GHANA

P.16-19

P.22-23

Ghana’s Best Real Estate Website

http://www.lamudi.com.gh/ghana-prime-properties-limited/

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US +1 817 908 8639


GH +233 - 20 11111 51+233 - 20 11111 50

US +1 817 908 8639

Welcome to the inaugural issue of Lamudi’s magazine, Property Now, a quarterly publication dedicated

to highlighting the Ghanaian property market. We have decided to launch this magazine in order to

inform, educate and provide insight into a popular, yet not always transparent, sector. We thamk our

members, experts and other major players in the industry that provided us with resources and interviews.

We hope those of you reading this magazine will find it a useful resource. If you have any comments or

suggestions for our next edition, please contact us at [email protected].

We hope you enjoy the first edition of Property Now!

Kind regards,

Designed byI.M.N.I.D.A0201655217/0207345778

WELCOME…

Lamudi Team

CONTENT ISSUE #1:

P. 6 – 9

P. 10 – 11

P. 12 – 13

P. 16 – 19

P. 20 – 21

P. 22 – 23

P. 24 – 26

P. 28 – 29

P. 32 – 33

P. 36 – 37

Strategizing To Win In Ghana

Interview With Anthony Boateng

Interview With PS Global

Building Sustainably

How Can Real Estate Help?

Energy Efficiency In Ghana

Lands Commission

Real Estate Pricing Mistakes

Interview With Peach Properties

Featured Agencies

100% ENTREPRENEURSHIP, 100% AFRICA

Demand for executive housing has risen remarkably and it is at this point that real estate developers seek to meet such needs. A number of developers come to mind, and Beaufort Properties ranks as one of the top.

Beaufort propert ies focuses on developing functional and luxury homes at lower price points than its competitors. The real estate developer has carved its niche in the increasingly competitive marketplace through value engineering, a detailed development design process, and a data-driven approach to developing properties.

CEO Ernest Hanson stressed the importance of pricing to establishing success in the real estate industry.

“I realized that there were vast opportunities in the real estate sector. However I also noted that there was a huge gap between what people were building and what property seekers could actually afford. I lived in East

Legon and buying a house there could cost you something between $400,000 and $500,000 due to the development of large executive houses,” he said.

Mr. Hanson saw this gap as an opportunity to fulfill the needs of the growing middle class in the country. He thus co-founded Clifton Homes to realise this dream.

“I took a plot and half (1000 sq. m. of land) and used it to construct 8 townhouses. The price for those were $150,000 and I found out that people who could actually buy were predominantly Ghanaians. Approximately, seven out of eight of my clients were Ghanaians and this was a confirmation that those were the kind of prices I should be hitting, so I jumped with it.”

Raising funds has proven difficult for most real estate startups. With this in mind, Mr. Hanson sought to explore alternatives and turned to friends in the banking sector to fund his first

STRATEGIZING TO WIN IN GHANA:

Accra, one of the fastest growing cities in Africa, has witnessed significant growth in its real estate sector over the past decade. With an ever growing Ghanaian economy, led primarily by its young oil sector, the demand for real estate investment has burgeoned substantially.

6 / Lamudi Magazine

project. Asantewaa Gardens proved to be a major success for Ernest, allowing him to raise equity funding to cofound Clifton Homes.

“The reason I [was able to start] with the first project was that I raised £80,000from friends in the UK. Most of them were into banking and had bonuses to fall on, enabling them to invest £20,000 each. I used that to launch my first project – Asantewaa Cabin and that successfully yielded about $1.2 million in revenues.” he said.

Unique Approaches To Sustainable Building

Rising demand for property, unstable home construction practices, and other limiting infrastructural factors have all compounded pressure on Ghana’s nation grid and energy supply.

Beaufor t has demonstra ted i t s passion towards sustainable building by designing its homes to promote insulation, leading to cooler rooms and cutting down on the need for air conditioners.

7 / Lamudi Magazine

“We live in a hot climate and putting in place standard ways to build is a priority for us. For example, we use cavity walls which is intended to keep apartments cooler. It reduces the reliance on air conditioners and cuts down on residents’ energy bills.”

The Real Estate Market In Ghana

Recently, the real estate market in Ghana has improved due to the country’s political stability and sustained economic success. Despite Ghana’s recently slowed growth in relative terms, the property market continues to see promising gains.

Mr. Hanson said that real estate is a viable investment tool that ultimately works to the benefit of an economy.

“I believe it’s a long-term investment and economic history shows that real estate is a great product for emerging markets. It’s a good hedge against

inflation and currency depreciation.

Ultimately, real estate in Ghana is a dollar asset and for me I believe it’s an aspect that will promote wealth creation and protect the savings of individuals.”

Challenges In The Sector.

Real estate in Ghana does not go without its set of challenges. One of the main challenges has to do with demand, especially in reference to accessing mortgages.

Mr. Hanson believes that it is a major setback for his company as only a few individuals can afford to pay the cash up front to purchase a property.

“It would be easier to leverage and buy a $100,000 property using only 25% deposit rather than paying cash for the entire amount if the mortgage market was bigger and rates were cheaper.

8 / Lamudi Magazine

The effect would be a bigger real estate industry in the country,” he said.

Many commentators put the housing deficit at over 1.7 million property units. Mr. Hanson attributes bottlenecks in housing supply to complications in the issuance of land titles and the inefficient regulatory environment. He said this problem is driving away potential investors as it raises the risks associated with real estate.

The expressed goal of the newly added value-added tax (VAT) on property is to yield revenue benefits for the government. Nonetheless, the nascent nature of Ghana’s real estate market and the potential economic multiplier effects the sector could yield to the wider economy imply that over-taxing the sector would represent poor policy. With average property prices already increasing by five percent as a result of the new VAT, affordable housing has become an even more elusive target.

Trade Off Between Space And Location For Young Ghanaians

Mr. Hanson believes young Ghanaian profess iona ls a re ignor ing the classical housing ladder and looking immediately for larger houses in peri-urban locations rather than smaller housing units in more central locations.

He argues that buyers should ensure close proximity to the workplace to reduce travel times, thereby improving overall economic productivity.

“The ideal scenario for a young professional would be to buy a small start-up home in town, like a studio apartment in Osu or East Legon. Such areas offer better rental prospects and should your income increase, you could rent it out and move into a bigger home.

I think the concept of the housing ladder is yet to be developed in Ghana as first time buyers seek larger out of town houses,” he said.

9 / Lamudi Magazine

INTERVIEW WITH ANTHONY BOATENG CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF ISAAC ANTHONY HOMES

“I started on a very small scale but now, Isaac Anthony Homes have diversified to the premium side of the business. We have property from $400,000 and our most expensive property is a warehouse in Tema which is about five million dollars.” Mr. Boateng said.

“Isaac is the name of my first son who is 12 years old and currently in Manchester. I combined his first name and mine to get Isaac Anthony Homes. Isaac Anthony sells properties and we also manage properties – we sort issues with tenants, utilities and repairs,” he added.

We also import solar systems from Europe and America. It is expensive to acquire initially but in the long term, it is cheaper because no running costs on fuel. We have sold the idea to a lot of developers but the idea has not still caught on yet, but at the moment we sell to institutions like schools, clinics, hotels and individuals.”

How The Dream Was Conceived

Prior to becoming a real estate agent, Mr. Boateng used sold cars and phone systems for a company in the United

From real estate agent to alternative energy expert, meet Anthony Boateng of Isaac Anthony Homes. Isaac Anthony Homes is one of the leading real estate agencies in Ghana focusing on the high end property market. Lamudi Ghana had the chance to interview the founder of Isaac Anthony Homes in his office at East Legon.

The Beginning of Isaac Anthony Homes

Anthony Boateng has been working in the real estate sector since 2005. The company started in the United Kingdom where it expanded from a one-man

business to comprise seven branches in Manchester. Mr. Anthony sold the business three years ago when he relocated to Ghana.

Mr. Anthony Boateng

Kingdom. With the commission he earned, he bought a number of properties which he gave to estate agents to manage, but at a certain point, he had acquired quite a number of properties but disliked the services he was receiving from the agents.

“I was always complaining about the services I received from the real estate agent so when I got redundant in at my workplace, I just smiled because I knew it was time to manage my own properties.” Mr. Boateng recalled.

He set up the real estate business to manage his own properties in an office which he described as “small” in Manchester.

“I was managing about 3,000 properties in Manchester. So I had offices in Manchester, Liverpool, Warrington and Leeds.” He said. “It’s been quite a journey but Ghana excites me. Ghana’s property industry is in it’s infancy but people are selling properties. About 15 to 20 years ago, property management was non-existent in Ghana.”

Marketing Isaac Anthony Homes

With a brand as important as Isaac Anthony Homes, Mr. Boateng likes to be associated with advertisers like Lamudi. “We do not want our properties to be seen on just any website. What I like most about Lamudi is the fact that they have the resources to manage the site,” he said.

The real estate agency advertises 80% online and 20% offline. “We find that as a business in today’s age, it’s all about online marketing. We know we can interact with prospective clients more by exchanging information on our website and also with good affiliations with companies like Lamudi,” he added.

Similarities Between The Real Estate Sector in Ghana and UK

Comparing the real estate sector in Ghana to UK’s, Mr. Boateng says, “It is a totally different world but the dynamics are quite the same. In fact in the UK, advertising is more aggressive but here, a lot of agents are a little bit relaxed, stuck in their own way of doing things. Online marketing is very important and you will find out that all the leading real estate agents, especially on Lamudi are people who have stayed abroad, so we appreciate what it takes to do business efficiently.”

Overview Of The Real Estate sector

Even though the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing has recently introduced a housing policy, Mr, Boateng wishes to see more regulations in the sector, “Unfortunately, Ghana is far behind with regards to regulation, though I know there are a few bodies in charge which are all voluntary. Regulating the sector will eliminate unprofessionals and will ensure that serious agents remain in the business. At the moment, anybody can go on some other platforms, load some properties with a mobile number and say they are agents and people will pay monies to such people.”

Choosing Another Profession

Despite the difficulties of the sector, Mr. Boateng expresses enthusiasm for his work. “I always say to my wife that I could talk about other businesses but when it comes to properties, I become a non-stop tune; I could go on and on”.

Mrs. Afua Boateng

Lamudi Ghana (GH): When did PS Global start?

PS Global (PSG): PS Global was established in 2001, but we started working in 2004.

GH: Why did your company go into property development?

PSG: Our objective was to go into land and real estate development. I say land and real estate development because it is one thing doing land development and another doing real estate so we decided to go into BT specialisation of the industry either so it was solely being done by TDC or so we decided to go into that line.

GH: Tell us about your first project?

PSG: Our first project was Love Hills in Dawhenya. It comprised 900 plots of land. We developed the lands, mapped it out, demarcated it and sold it to individuals. We also left sections for real estate construction. The Love Hills was a huge success; we sold it out within a year.

We had middle income earners purchasing the property and with middle income, we mean people who have the ability to pay at least GHS1200 each month.

GH: Who do you target for your properties?PSG: We target the middle income with our real estate construction. The advantage

is that that portion of the market is huge except that when you go into it, your profit margin will be small, so a lot of developers shy away from there but we want to focus on that and sell in huge numbers. Love Hills was our land project and our first real estate project was the Global Court Apartment.

GH: Which Projects are you currently working on?

PSG: The entire estate comprises close to 1000 acres. Within it we have schools, hospitals, playgrounds, recreational areas; we even planned and included a cemetery because the place will eventually comprise 12,000 people, so we have made provisions for social amenities. We are doing something which is more high value in terms of its quality.

GH: What challenges are common in the real estate sector in Ghana?

Capital

In this part of the world, our major challenge is the capital and borrowing at high interest rates.

Land Issues

There are families that own huge lands – thousands of acres and they are for lease for 99 years, so after 99 years, you are supposed to renew the lease.

INTERVIEW WITH PS GLOBAL

Managing Director of PS Global, Patrick Ebo Bonful shares insight on his company, the real estate market in Ghana, and challenges facing the sector.

12 / Lamudi Magazine

Processing Of Land Documents

We started working in 2004, but we finished our paperwork in 2005. I see that to be a long time because if you have acquired a loan and you need to repay and it takes you a year to even sort the paperwork out then it’s really long. In Europe and other places, within 48 hours, you can sort everything out. We are hoping for a time when Ghana will get there. To get to that level, the bureaucracy should be broken down completely and we are excited the government is coming up with a real estate bill which will address a lot of these things.

GH: How can the sector be made better?

PSG: A lot needs to be done – I think we should rely on technology and synchronise the works of the agencies that work with land. Every transaction should have single key or a registration number that once you key in, it registers on all the land departments – land evaluation board, survey department, lands commission for easier references, which will allow you to do a search for references.

We can depend on technology to do these things. I really appreciate what happens in London. In London, they call it the company house, but here in Ghana, they call it the registrar general’s department. They are computerising their system.

It should be the same thing here, once you provide your registration number they should be able to verify. That builds up confidence. It clears a lot of quack people from the system and it helps with tax collection.

Tax On Real Estate

We had a meeting with government and we were happy to note that they listened to us. I am not against paying taxes, but when they brought it to 17% we noted it could bring about a negative impact on our business. We also wish government will come in and support with infrastructure provision. We, the developers have to provide electricity, water, roads all by ourselves. We know the government cannot do everything but if there are tax breaks for developers, that will help. We use loans to construct these buildings so if we are aided by the government, it will aid the sector.

Affordable Housing

The challenge is affordability and even within that challenge is the lack of long term mortgage and the lack of real competition in the mortgage sector. We should have more banks and companies providing mortgages and that will bring pressure to bear on the existing ones. Companies can introduce more friendly products and that will turn the economy around. The construction sector can have positive impact on the economy. Anybody who can pay rent is capable of paying mortgages, so you ask yourself what the challenge is.

The mortgage provider can ask him to pay the loan in 10 years or 15 years – it’s too short a period compared to their earnings. We need more mortgage providers so that people will buy the properties that we construct. If that happens, we can pay more taxes, employ more people, the industry will grow and government will get more money. This sector is really a very important sector for the economy.


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Building the Rural Areas Up

Rural to urban migration represents a major demographic trend that has changed the nature of the Ghanaian property market. According to architect Brandon Rogers, migration to urban areas has boomed for several reasons. The designer noted that one of the main ways to stem the flow of rural migrants in search of better opportunities in villages is to improve housing quality in villages. “If we build up the village, there will be less of a need for people to leave; with the abundance of space and natural resources the rural villages become the perfect platform to build better sustainable communities.”

His organization, Migrating Culture, is doing its part by showcasing examples of traditionally inspired round houses and rectilinear conventional housing types that use the Earth Bag method, a naturally insulative construction style.Mr. Rogers likes to say, “Our ideas are more than logical; their eco+logical”.

Building with Mud

“Green Building is a combination of good design and practical, conscious material use. It is imperative that we create a palette of materials which is realistic and available to us. Homeowners cannot rely on importing everything they need to build homes; this does not strengthen the local economy.”

Mr. Rogers believes that mud or adobe construction techniques should be a standard building practice and that these methods can easily integrate into conventional building practices. “It is important to remove the stigma that building with mud is a sign of poverty; whereas it’s actually smarter and practical to build with it,” he says.

The Earth Bag Method

Mr. Rogers believes the mud or the clay and laterite should be used even for conventional buildings and there is the need to replace the sandcrete block with

A DESIGNER’S PERSPECTIVE: BUILDING SUSTAINABLY


A DESIGNER’S PERSPECTIVE: BUILDING SUSTAINABLY

Images courtesy of Brandon Rogers


In the rural areas there is an abundance of space and opportunity to plan and create spaces that interconnect the community bet ter with the environment. I choose to focus on the villages so that we develop them to a level that grows beyond the village.” Mr. Rogers said.

The Cost Of Building With Earth Bags

Mr. Rogers says, “The initial cost is not significantly cheaper than that of the conventional building type; because it’s only the wall systems that we are changing. You still buy the same doors, windows, tile, roofing and other typical building components. With this method it also really depends on where you are building and the ease and availability of materials. Altogether I’d say the initial construction cost will be 10% or 20% cheaper; and over the life cycle of the house you will save in maintenance cost and benefit from superior performance.

The first prototype Migrating Culture constructed was the equivalent of a two-bedroom house probably a little more than 100 square meters, or 1000 square feet. “It costs us roughly GHS35,000 in building materials and labor expenses to erect that structure. Though keep in mind this project was completed back in 2010, so that would be the equivalent of about $ 25,000 USD now for the building alone”, Mr. Rogers said.

“Also with this method a lot of the cost goes into labor, because the technique is a manually intensive process – this is a method that best suites family use.

mud block. “It is important to remove the stigma that building with mud, which is a sign of poverty; it’s smarter and more practical to build with mud,” he says.

Advantages of Building with Earth Bags

According to the designer, the thermal properties of earthen soil makes building with adobe beneficial. Adobe provides better cooling circuits than conventional methods.

Mr. Rogers says, “During this process of weathering, a lot of the conventional concrete buildings develop cracks. Whereas the clay in the earthen soil is plastic and gives room for expansion and contraction and so it interacts with the climate and environment better. A good example can be seen in our traditional mud or Atakpame house, it’s always cool inside because of the thermal mass of the earthen walls even when the sun is shining bright. This coupled with the overall fact that the mud is everywhere, makes it a practical material to use.”

Challenges Of Using The Earth Bag Method

Mr. Rogers highlights that some of the challenges of selling the Earth Bag Method include the stigma that mud construction is an inferior method, the lack of space to create these kinds of structures in urban areas, and the tendency to mass produce building materials, rather than customize them, in cities.”


Large families can organize and call all their members together to help build one house, and then they can all move to the next house and so on saving on the labor expenses. It’s really about enabling individuals with a practical method that builds on a traditional technique, which has been engineered a step further to better perform and last longer,” he concluded.

Other Environment-Friendly Advice

Consistent with his interest in promoting eco-friendly design solutions, Brandon Rogers emphasized the benefit of harnessing solar power. “Think Solar – the sun is always shining bright and that is an abundant source of energy. Its collection can strengthen the energy sector, alleviating our current energy shortages and reduce our dependence on conventional methods of energy production. It also builds on the type of social responsible approaches we need to instill for a better tomorrow,” he concluded.

Mr. Brandon Rogers


Online marketing has become a highly effective tool for companies to inform a wider audience about their products. This form of marketing has been widely accepted and is proving to be very effective, especially in the real estate sector.

Q: How can online real estate portals help sellers?

A: Online real estate portals like Lamudi provide a platform for sellers

HOW CAN REAL ESTATE PORTALS HELP SELLERS, AGENTS, DEVELOPERS AND HOMEBUYERS?

to list bare lands, commercial spaces and homes, which can be either for rent or for sale. The advantage of using online platforms, compared to other forms of advertisement, is that any house-hunter can easily find the listed property, regardless of their geographical location. If looking to sell property, users can upload it online, list its top features, and add photos. Sellers can also view prices of similar properties.


own websites. Managing a website especially for those who do not have the required skills can be quite difficult. That is why it is advised to list a property or development on a real estate portal, providing details and photos of the properties.

Q: How can real estate portals help buyers?

A : O n e o f t h e m o s t i m p o r t a n t beneficiaries of online real estate portals are people looking to buy or rent properties. Gone are the days when house-hunters had to move from one neighbourhood to the other, searching for a for sale sign or a house to rent. Now, searching for properties has become much easier. All a buyer needs is access to the Internet.Property portals makes house-hunting even easier by providing with them options for selecting their preferred neighbourhoods, number of rooms and whether they want to buy or rent. With just a click, an individual is able to find his or her property and contact an agent to arrange a meeting.

Q: How can real estate portals help brokers?

A: A broker is a professional who acts as an point of contact between sellers and agents, for a commission. Just like the seller, brokers can also use online real estate portals in advertising their properties. Real estate portals like Lamudi provide brokers with the opportunity advertise their logos on its website. Online advertising increases the trust that house-hunters have in brokers and it also generates leads and sales for a property.

Q: How can real estate portals help developers?

A: Real estate developers can promote their properties online, and even advertise planned buildings, before they are completed. This gives buyers the opportunity to buy up the property before construction is finished.

Listing online saves developers, sellers and brokers the time and hassle of designing and managing their


Double glazed windows seem to be a better energy efficient alternative to single ones. Ghana hopes to reduce its energy loss. Annually, the country spends roughly $1.8 billion on light crude oil to power its thermal generators. Since the 1980s energy crisis, the government has encouraged developers to install energy eff icient equipment and furnishings. In association with Alliance to Save Energy (ASE), the Ghanaian government established the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Program to educate government officials and regulators on efficient ways to reduce energy consumption.

One measure that was encouraged was the adoption of louvre blades in contrast with its wooden predecessor that insulated rooms to high temperatures. The louvre blade phenomenon allowed air to freely enter rooms, thus cooling them in the process. In recent times, a new energy conscious paradigm has led many homeowners to fall on another type of windowing: glazed windows. Glazing falls into three categories: single, double and triple glazing. It usually involves mounting glass on the surface of a window sash or door stile.

ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN GHANA: GLAZED WINDOWS CHALLENGES


Kofi Agyarko, Head of the Energy and Cl imate Change Divis ion at Energy Commission, told Lamudi that single glazing encourages warmer temperatures, thereby leading to a heavy reliance on air conditioners. “We are [fixing] these glazed windows and installing more air conditioners. For the offices, I can understand to some extent but for the normal dwelling houses, I think we should still make use of the louvre blades. If you use glazing, then you have no need for a fan...if you use a fan, the room will rather become warm so you resort to air conditioners and air conditioners exert pressure on the [national] grid.”

Unlike single glazing, double glazing is a more energy efficient means, due to its ability of preventing the sun’s heat from entering a room. It is a double glass window pane separated by air or other gas filled space through a ‘spacer’ that has a piece that separates the two panes and seals the gas space between them, reducing heat transfer. “If you want to go glazing, then it should be double because that will prevent the heat from the sun from entering the room. If it’s not double, you’ll have to set the air conditioner at temperatures between 18 and 20 degrees celsius, which is not an efficient way of using the airconditioner,” Mr. Agyarko noted.


GHANA LANDS COMMISSION INSIGHT

Anthony Opoku Boateng, Head of Client Services at the Ghana Lands Commission, discussed land acquisition and the legal process it involves.

Lamudi Ghana (L.G): What is the main Role of the Lands Commission? Anthony Opoku Boateng (A.O.B): The Lands Commission manages state lands and vested lands – lands the government holds in trust of a family or stool, for various uses, residential, heal th , educat ion, government agencies, i.e. MDAs, district assemblies, etc. The Lands Commission also grants concurrently to stool land transactions, t o m a k e s u re s t a t e d re n t s a n d compensations are reasonable. We also provide consultation services to the state town planning and the district assemblies. We also act as a secretariat for the government in negotiations to acquire lands and ensure that required compensations are paid on time. Even though the government manages stool or family lands the benefits go to the parties concerned, i.e. the family or stool. L.G: Are there any particular owners or custodians of lands in Ghana?

A.O.B : There are lands that are owned by the stools or traditional authorities and also lands owned by the government. Some are also passed down as inheritance passed down in families and individuals. Hence it depends on the land and the location. L.G: What about pricing of lands? A.O.B: That is outside our control as those are usually private transactions among interested parties. Developed lands usually go for higher prices with owners than undeveloped or raw lands. L.G: What is the process of acquiring land in Ghana? A.O.B: This may seem quite challenging because there is actually no standard procedure in acquiring land in Ghana. The Lands Commission in this regard mainly just registers lands and process land documents. These land documents are documents obtained privately by individuals from the said landowners. Other relations in regards to the transactions between the landowner and the prospective buyer have no role with the Lands Commission.


Basically you first need to establish the area you want to acquire land from, finding a set location, once you find a seller you need the landowner to provide you with a site or cadastral plan prepared by a licensed and professional surveyor which shows the precise location and coordinates of the land. This site plan helps prevent ownership disputes with land guards. L.G: Does the Lands Commission then have copies of all land surveys and plans? A.O.B: If the land is documented, then the land commission is most likely to have copies. For other parts of Ghana, there are regional lands commissions to help with this process. It is however a common mistake among most prospective land buyers to make payments before they come to the Lands Commission to do a search and confirm the lands and ownership, bringing about more disputes. The Land Commission is not responsible for handling land disputes; the appropriate courts handle some civil disputes.It also advisable to get a form of identification from the said owner and make sure all supporting documents tally with the identified owner. L.G: How long does it take to conduct a search with the Lands Commission? A.O.B.: It takes a minimum of two weeks to complete a search, though this is relative, as some lands may take longer.

L.G: What are some challenges experienced by the Lands Commission? A.O.B: A main challenge is our manual record system used to conduct searches, this makes the process tedious and time-consuming. However, we are in the process of trying to upgrade to an advanced technological database. L.G: Any advice for prospective land buyers? A.O.B: Prospective buyers must do their due diligence and not rush in acquiring lands and also look out for signs of possible fraud some of which include the said owner being fishy or asking the buyer to pay for the site plan. A genuine landowner offers the site plan at no cost and openly allows for confirmation and search by the lands commission. It is also helpful to hire an independent surveyor to crosscheck the land against the said site plan. The public also needs to note that lands are no more an outright-sale unlike in the past. All lands in Ghana are now leased for a period; this could be 99 years, 50 years, and 20 years so the payment made for the ‘purchase’ of the land is a premium paid for any of the appropriate lease periods. The buyer or owner is still required to pay an annual rent fee till the premium or lease period expires. This is listed in the supporting documents, which is usually overlooked by most owners/buyers.


Age Demographics

~30%~70%

57.6%11.4%

30.9

Browsing on tablets make up a remainder of traffic to lamudi.com.gh.

More than half of the traffic comes from desktop devices.This means desktops and laptops.People who browse on phones come in second at 30%.

Most Commonly Used DevicesThe age-group 35-55 account for 50% of the visits.25-34 year olds account for 30% of the visits

55.6%

13.3% 10.6%

1.7%

1.5%

Country of origin

Males account for a clear majority of site visitors.

GENDER RATIO

A snapshot!

*Percentages do not add to 100% here

Source: Google Analytics, Accessed 20 April 2015

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FOUR COMMON REAL ESTATE PRICING MISTAKES

Selling a property can be exciting, especially if the property sells quickly. At the same time, it becomes distressing if the property is put on the market for some time and nobody inquires about buying it. Showing genuine concern as a seller at this point is legitimate. Wondering why nobody is calling to inquire about your listed property? Lamudi has compiled a number of pricing errors that many sellers make, that could be driving away potential customers, and gives guidelines to help you price your property right.

1 Pricing the property higher to allow for negotiations

A lot of agents and property owners price their homes high to give potential buyers room to negotiate. However, the truth is that if the price of the property is too high, no home buyer will come near the property. Make sure when you are deciding on a price that you take into consideration the size of the property, as well as its location. All sellers should take note that pricing the property too high makes it more difficult to get it off the market

2 You have not done your research A number of sellers price their properties without performing any market analysis. Scrutinize the market before you price the property too high or too low. If you are not certain about the price, you can also test the market. If you do not receive any leads for the property, it is possible the price is too high. To avoid any guess work, contract a professional who will aid in determining the actual price of the property. You can also visit online real estate portals like Lamudi and compare your property to others on the market.

3 Selecting a broker who offers to sell the property higher

When selecting a broker, do not be swayed by those who will offer to sell the property at the highest price. Selection should be based on skills, track record and recommendations made by other people. House-hunters can easily figure out if the price of your property is too high; they can easily compare prices of other properties online.

4 Not willing to negotiate Some sellers price the property higher because they have the notion that the property will sell no matter how long it stays on the market. Even with the high price of the property, such sellers refuse to reduce the price even when clients negotiate with them. In certain circumstances, this works for the sellers, but mostly if the price has been inflated, it will not even attract any interest.


Royal Habits is the leading importer of the most traditional rosewood handcrafted furniture and hand woven carpets from Pakistan. The furniture is handcrafted and made from brass and onyx, a semi-precious stone. Everything from Royal Habits is from Pakistan.

For the past six years, Royal Habits has been promoting handicrafts in West Africa, with Ghana as its hub.

Royal Habits’ furniture differs from contemporary furniture. It has a classic

look; it is durable such that when one buys it, he or she is making an investment which will not only last them a lifetime but generations.

Royal Habits has a large clientele in Ghana and West Africa, with another branch opened in Tanzania. Because no middleman exists between Royal Habits and its merchandise suppliers, like furniture manufacturer Jehangiri, prices are kept reasonable. Their shop in Accra is located at Airport West, House No. 3, Densu Street.

ROYAL HABITS TRADITIONAL LEGACY OF THE MAGNIFICENT EAST


INTERVIEW WITH CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF PEACH PROPERTIES

How Peach Property Started

“Peach started originally as Pelican Properties. We started a property company because of growing demand from expatriate community that was patronising of our legal services, in terms of registration of their businesses. We realized that most of them came in and they needed places to stay.

They wanted us to get them residential permits and they wanted us to help them with office spaces so that they could start their businesses. We realized that it was actually eating into the core business of the legal unit, so why don’t we set up a separate unit to handle these activities?

We also put a property management unit to take care of the property, and it’s been very successful for us. We have taken advantage of that and we want to move to new areas, where we will be able to build our own properties. Once we build our property, we will not just hand it over to our real estate company, they can only sell on our behalf for commission and afterward they can manage the property because we want the property to stay in their best form throughout their life.”

“When we started originally with Pelican Properties, we had also registered Pelican Group to manage most of our businesses, and if we were not careful, the Pelican Group was going to overshadow the property, so why don’t we change the name of the group completely. That was why we changed the name completely.” Overview Of The Property Market

“The expat market is good, if you would ask me, there is a growing demand for property in Accra. The Minister of State in the early part of last year, in March said we had a deficit of 1.7 million housing unit and therefore if we can solve it, we need to put up over 170,000 housing units per annum and currently, in Ghana we are not even putting up 50,000, so that deficit will be there.

The other thing we have realised is that there is a growing middle income class and the growing middle income class are those looking for properties because they want to stay away from complaining about electricity, water, about how their rubbish is not being collected. They just want to focus on their businesses, so they are looking


for these properties which are well managed.”

“The market is growing and the exciting thing is that the Airport area which used to be the best like Cantonments is getting choked. Now, in Dzorwulu, you will find a lot of developers moving there. So Dzorwulu will become one of the prime residential areas and I can tell you on authority that properties in Dzorwulu are becoming more expensive than East Legon because it is close to the middle income areas”.

Peach Property’s Focus

“Peach Property in the long term, apart from the leasing, we want to go into property refurbishment and be able to take over as well as maintain properties. So the property we have for instance, it used to be an old structure and we entered into a joint venture with the owner who pulled it down and we raised it up, and we were going to give her a facility which was better than she had, so she was going to make more in terms of returns. We are looking at very old structures that we can enter into that kind of arrangement and make some payment upfront to the landlord as well. We build and if it’s a three bedroom, we will build it and the value will be higher than what the landlord made before. Land is becoming scarce in Accra because lots and lots of people are trying to reside in Accra. The service companies are springing up and we need to make use of the land space that we have.”

Challenges Facing PropertyManagement in Ghana

Property Pricing

“That is where a lot of real estate developers get criticised for - why do they price in USD instead of the local currency? The truth is that if we don’t


stay in the system. Once we collect the same money from the expatriates, we give it back to them. We are thinking that in time, we can have the financial institutions being more flexible with the loans they give. Prices of Materials

Also, there is the fluctuation in prices of locally used materials. You also find increases in taxes. Now we have the real estate tax shooting from 8% to 15%. You can imagine renting a property for $200,000, and applying 15% tax, it’s quite a lot. So you will find a lot of our potential buyers, find properties in Ghana being more expensive.

Meeting Timelines

We also have a problem meeting the timelines of completion. Usually, the developers do not build but they hire construction firms who give timelines. I think most of them do not give space for unexpected occurrences, and so when the project stretches it becomes challenging. Meanwhile, a developer would have started collecting money from the people and you are telling them that the building will be ready by this time so when that happens, it breaks the trust and a few of our colleagues who have not been able to meet those timelines have lost their clients.

The Good Side Of The Property Market

The good side is that we know the market is there because you will be able to sell. People complain that this market will go down someday but if you look at the statistics, we are not projecting any downturn now or till after 10 years. It depends on how much government can come in aggressively to compete with real estate people as it stands; it’s going to be extremely impossible for us to breach the housing deficit. Once the

do that we will not be able to complete the structure. If we price in the USD, no matter the fluctuation in pricing and other things, it is able to take care of them till completion but if it’s priced in local currency, definitely you will have a problem because we have this kind of market where the market is so liberal that people can change prices at will but once we are able to make that projection, benchmarked against the USD, then it helps us.”

Human Resource Mismatch

“When it comes to the other things that we have, particularly with office space, sometimes you put up a property and you are expecting a certain class of people for the facility because that was the purpose. Sometimes you have these agents come in or potential clients and they don’t tell you the truth about their companies and their human resource base so you end up signing a contract and giving the property to that person. Before you realise, the human resource will not match the intent of the facility. For example, you have a facility and we have provided a car parking space for 50 people, on the assumption that each office is going to have at least 4 people. So you sign the contract and before you realise, you will be seeing 8 people and the other subsidiary facilities, which you are supposed to take care of is now overly being used and you have other tenants complaining and that can affect the value of the company.”

Raising Capital

“Another challenge is raising capital locally. It’s very difficult. You can raise money outside at very low interest. You have a lot of foreign companies coming in who are helping to raise money outside cheaply than you can get on the local market. We are not happy about that because the money does not


deficit is there, we will continue to stay in business.

The returns on property have been very great. I can assure you that most of these expats have been buying them as investments. Most of them are buying them not to reside in them, so that should tell you that it has even become more lucrative to own a landed property as an asset and trade it, than invest your money in any business in the country; it’s a guaranteed income and most of them are priced in dollars. So most of the expats are buying these properties and are keeping them as assets. They buy and they hand them over to us to trade and hand over the money back to them.

In the city, Peach has properties in Sakumono, East Legon and Tesano, Dzorwulu, Achimota. A growing middle class takes on new spending and lifestyle habits. They move more into the malls and these can be located anywhere. It’s one thing people have not observed. They think that Accra Central will be exactly where it is but it is never true. Gradually, the market is being distributed, but unconsciously, we are having mid- to high class people in Ghana who are moving toward the shopping malls, which look more modern and more hygenic. And we have the low end of the market who are also patronising from our traditional markets. The real estate people have this in mind that within the inner parts

of the city, there is this growing middle class.

Classes Of Residences In Accra

We have four classes of residential areas in Accra. The first class are East Cantonments, Airport Residential, Roman Ridge, Ringway, North and West of Ridge. 2nd Class- Dzorwulu, Abelemkpe, East Legon, West Legon.

Most Ghanaians would want a place where they can stay with their families. Even though Ghanaians prefer to live in prime areas, their inability to afford will lead them to the outskirts of the town. When you go to the outskirt you will see very beautiful stand-alone properties and these people are driving all the way to the city centre.

Advice For Young People

They should develop themselves, get into the work life and when it’s time they can acquire these properties. I will prefer they lived in these moderate apartments, so they stay there till they have saved enough for the future. They should not spend all their income to rent apartments for certain people to perceive them as enjoying a certain kind of lifestyle and they go and own big cars but you will realise that that man has no savings. They should stay in places where they can make some good savings.


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