In recent years, many French people have decided to turn their lives around and invest in Senegal.
This West African country is famous for its natural beauty, the artistic spirit of its people, its unspoilt beaches, its crafts and its capital, Dakar.
Those wishing to invest in this country will find a range of opportunities not to be underestimated, starting with the real estate investments.
If thepurchase of land in Senegal is a relatively common occurrence, we regularly hear of scams and frauds, or of people lamenting the fact that they haven?t received the right information.
If you want to buy a plot of land in Senegal, in this article you will find the 5 essential steps to follow.
Checking the potential of a plot of land in Senegal
When visiting a plot of land in Senegal with a view to acquisition, it is important to follow a methodological approach.
the initial advice is not to let yourself be influenced by the state of the terrain at any given moment, but rather to look at its potential.
Walls, wells, plantings (mango trees, bougainvillea, etc.) and location are just a few of the elements that can help enhance its appeal.
Site inspection report
Faced with interesting terrain, here are two priority actions to take:
Check that the plot is bounded, as boundary markers can be used to determine its actual surface area.
Make sure that the person who wishes to sell your land is the actual owner of the plot.
Indeed, many Senegalese in the diaspora have had negative experiences, sometimes being swindled by relatives.
As a foreigner, the chances of stumbling upon a bad deal are all the more likely.
When someone offers you a plot of land, always ask for the inspection report.
This is a free document, often unknown even to property owners, which can be requested from the Mairie in the area where the land is located.
This document contains the owner's name and parcel numbers with their location.
1. Drawing up the deed of sale
If, after careful consideration, you have decided to buy a plot of land, you will have to start the procedure, taking care to comply with a certain timeframe. chronological order.
The first action to be implemented is the drafting the deed of saleequivalent to the deed of sale.
The information that must appear in a deed of transfer is :
- the owner's name,
- the name of the buyer,
- the description,
- the price,
- the names of at least two witnesses.
When buying a plot of land, you are not obliged to go through a notary: you can opt to go through one. private deed. Download a copy of Deed of sale
2. Apply for a transfer
Once the land has been purchased and the deed of sale obtained, the second stage consists of a transfer requestso that the property passes into your name.
You can obtain it from the Town Hall where the plot is located by bringing the following documents with you:
? a copy of the deed of sale,
? a copy of the seller's title deed,
? photocopies of the seller?s and buyer?s identity documents,
? a payment of around 200,000 CFA francs, or just over 300 euros.
Award and administrative acts
At the end of the procedure, the Town Hall will issue you with a certificate. act of attributionrecognizing you as the new owner of the land.
This document lists your identity, plot numbers and location. It also specifies that you must develop the property within two years.
The aim of this development is to improve the land, and may involve building a wall, a well, planting trees (mango trees, for example), etc.
The act of attribution is a document that still exists today, but has been replaced by a new document, the ?administrative act.
The main difference is that in the administrative act, the time limit for completing a development is reduced to one year.
In addition, it is clearly stated that the administrative act may be withdrawn if the development is not completed within this timeframe.
Requesting a transfer can take several weeks or even months.
3. Request a cadastral map
The third step is the cadastral map with the land registry.
An older model is still available, featuring 5-digit topographic coordinates.
These are fictitious contact detailsThis is because the surveyor who signed the plan did not actually visit the site, confining himself to taking the topographical readings available in his data.
This old model of cadastral map shows the owner's name, the surface area of the land and the identification of milestones.
It has been revised and updated, becoming a NICAD plan.
The NICAD plan shows the cadastral identification number, the owner's name, the surface area of the plot, the various identification markers and the topographical surveys.
These include 8 digits and not 5.
Looking at the number of digits on the topographic surveys will help you to be sure that a cadastral plan is correct. to standards NICAD.
See also the article: How to sell land in Senegal
4. Register the bill of sale
The next step is to register the deed of sale with the taxes and estates.
The following documents are required:
- the deed of sale,
- plot plan,
- administrative act.
You will also have to pay a sum of approximately 10 % of land value.
5. Apply for a lease
Once the deed of sale has been registered, there's one last step: applying for a lease.
When you buy a fieldwork in SenegalThere are two main types of contract to choose from.
the land titlewith which you are the full owner of your land and the leasewith whom you rent the land.
The latter is a emphyteutic lease 30-year term, renewable for 20 years.
Today, leases account for between 80 and 85% of the land offered in Senegal.
It's important to know that today, leases can be renewed easily, even beyond 50 years.
If you buy leasehold landThis means that you are buying the right to rent your land, and you will therefore have to pay rent.
This is what we call lease application.
But it can take a very long time from the time you apply for a lease to the time you get it, sometimes years.
During this time, you pay no annual rental fee.
In order to comply with the law, or with a view to reselling your land one day, it is essential to apply for a lease.
It takes the form of a mail to be sent to the head of the tax services center, together with a deposit.
Generally, the deposit amount varies between 40,000 and 60,000 CFA francs.
Documents required for a lease application
For a lease application, the following documents must be provided in 4 copies:
- the lease application letter,
- the administrative act,
- the deed of sale registered with the tax authorities,
- a photocopy of your national identity card or passport,
- NICAD cadastral map,
- 40,000 CFA francs for the lease deposit.
Although a lease application may be pending for years, it is nevertheless important to take this step, to avoid damage later on.
Once the lease request has been executed, a additional steps recommended is to claim a pv de vérification from the Mairie.
This will ensure that your name appears as the owner of the plot.
For the annual feeFor example, for a plot of around 500 square meters, the price was 250,750 CFA francs, or 393 euros.
In conclusion, while owning land under lease might leave you dubious, this type of transaction can be stable and secure, provided you follow the step-by-step process outlined.
As Frantz Champin explains in this video.