REALWorld Law

Sale and purchase

Mandatory pre-emption rights

Do mandatory pre-emption rights apply to the sale of real estate assets in this country?

Nigeria

Nigeria

The state grants evinced in the Certificate of Occupancy usually provides that the holder of the title shall not alienate the rights granted within 10 years of the grant and is obliged to first offer the property to the Governor. In practice, upon the sale of real property within the 10-year period of the state grant, an additional fee (about 1.5 % of the value) will apply at registration of the transfer.

Also, by the Acquisition of Lands by Aliens Law, a foreigner who has lawfully acquired interest in a land shall not dispose of same without first offering it to the State Government (Section 2(3) of the ALAL).

In a private sale, the contracting parties may by agreement covenant that a property is not to be sold to a third party without first offering it to the seller on terms as agreed in the document.