Big man or Not. Once you are a Seller of Land or Property you must be Investigated. If you don't like it, don't sell your land. People are no longer naive or stupid to buy lands worth millions of Naira and not do a background check. Who wants to be added to the roster of land scam victims and shout Mo Gbe!!! after losing Millions of Naira to a dubious land transaction? Well, this happened recently.

 

A disgruntled Seller who was very angry that I refused a property buyer from purchasing her property because of the dubious and hidden issues behind her property, sent me an insult-laden email. She was especially pissed off that I pushed the buyer to investigate her and the omo-oniles she allegedly bought lands from. Upon investigation, the property was found to be defective with hidden issues.

 

I found her response and email quite pitiful because as a Seller she did not take cognizance of the following and put herself in the shoes of the buyer in these instances:

 

  •  Is it logical for a prospective buyer to pay money to an unknown Seller before conducting due diligence on the property?

 

  • What if the Seller disappears after receiving money and there are undiscovered issues on the land?

 

  • Does the Buyer know the Seller from Adam to freely purchase a property without verifying it?

 

  • What if the Seller has sold the land to multiple people in the past without the Buyer's knowledge?.

 

  • What if the Omo-oniles the Seller allegedly bought the land from has also sold the same land to someone else who has also chosen not to develop it and left it open like a Seller.

 

  • Won’t the above scenario create a serious issue for the new buyer if he does not verify the land and the family?

 

  • Is it normal for a buyer to transfer money to someone that he has not seen to purchase land from before the seller comes around to sign the document? Who does that?

 

  • Even if the Seller is claiming to be a big woman and government official who has no time to show her face for investigation, why can't that big person not produce his or her, lawyer, to act on their behalf?.

 

Personally, I believe once a person puts up his or her property on the market for sale, irrespective of the position that seller holds in the society either as an Assistant Inspector of Police, Commissioner, Bank Manager, Chairman of a Country Club, Brigadier General, Chief this or Pastor that, there is no difference between that big man and a meat seller, shoemaker, hairdresser, gateman, taxi driver etc.

 

They are all merchants selling a product that must be verified. Once they enter the same market space to sell a product, they must be subjected to the same standard because the final aim is to take the money of the buyer and it’s the buyer’s choice to either buy or walk away. If the Seller is angry, please tell the buyer to park well while you drive away. It's your money they want to play Ludo with. Keep that money in the bank and look for another one.