Verify the real identity of the proprietor and the situation of the title
Agency: Land Registry (“Bureau de la Conservation Foncière”)
The buyer should perform due diligence before entering into a sale agreement with the owner of the property. Due diligence can merely be done by requesting from the buyer the number of the property lot. With the given number, the buyer can personally go to the Land Registry and ask the register clerk to provide him with a certificate called “Réquisition Foncière”. This is done very promptly by searching the property lot number and making a copy of it. The information included in the certificate relates to property’s area, its exact location, the name of its actual owner (and all previous ones). It also consists of all information about potential mortgages or liens encumbering it. The certificate engages the state’s responsibility and is more important than the deed of ownership presented by the seller. The deed can be outdated and not reflect the actual situation, or it might be a fake.
Time and cost: 2 days, XOF 5,000
Obtain an assessment of the true value of the property
Agency: Courtier immobilier
It is common practice that the potential buyer hires a price expert to assess the true value of the property before the sale agreement. These are commonly called “courtiers informels de l’immobilier”. After investigating the place and the building, these private experts provide a range of acceptable prices and charges 0.5% of the property value for their fees.
Time and cost: 4 days, XOF 120,612.23 (0.5 % of the property value)
Notary prepares sale agreement
Agency: Notary
The law requires the sale agreement to be notarized. It is common practice that parties also ask the notary to draft the sale agreement. Notary’s fees are regulated by decree n°7- 205/P-RM du 22 Juin 2007, following the cumulative schedule showed above. This scheme makes the notary very wary to reflect the right price of sale in the sale contract. This is because parties may tend to understate the true value of the sale to avoid paying the right amount of tax. The parties should also pay 18% of the notary’s fees as a VAT for the state.
Time and cost: 2 days, XOF 609,642.81
Notary fees (subject to 18 % VAT) according to the following cumulative scale:
Property value (in FCFA): Notary fees
Less than 2.500.000: 5.5 % of the property value
Between 2.500.001 and 5.000.000: 4 % of the property value
Between 5.000.001 and 10.000.000: 2.5% of the property value
More than 10.000.000: 1.75 % of the remaining property value
Register the sale agreement with the Service des domaines et du Cadastre
Agency: Service des Domaines et du Cadastre de la zone concernée
The sale agreement should be registered with the Service des Domaines et du Cadastre. The registration fees are now 7% of the property value following the amendment of the “Loi Nº06-067 du 29 decembre 2006 portant code general des impots” published in the official gazette. The parties should also pay stamp duties. Stamps cost CFA3500 per page for approximately 4 pages. The parties should also pay a fixed registry tax of CFA 12,500 according to the articles 433 and 435 of the General Tax Code (Code Général des Impôts).
Time and cost: 2 days, XOF 1,715,071.23 (7 % of the property value + 14,000 FCFA (stamp duties) + 12,500 (Registration fees))
Final transfer of the property title with the Land Registry (“Bureau de la Conservation Foncière”)
Agency: Land Registry (“Bureau de la Conservation Foncière”)
The transfer fees are 0.9% of the value of the property divided as follows: 1) 0.6% to the Budget and 2 ) 0.3% for the Conservateur’s salary. *Before doing the final transfer, the land register forwards the whole file to the verification commission (“Commission de Verification”) that checks whether the price stated in the contract of sale corresponds to the commission’s price criteria. In case the commission contests the price, the parties are requested to come back to the Land Registry and pay the difference in taxes. The parties can choose to contest the commission decision by going to court. In the latter case, delays are substantial. If the commission does not object to the stated price, the application proceeds and the director of the Land Registry makes the final transfer of property. The Registry will then issue a final deed of property in the name of the new buyer.
Time and cost: 19 days, XOF 217,102.02 (0.9 % property value)
