Ghanaians abroad sent home US$6.65 billion in 2024. A significant share of that money is destined for land and buildings — a house for a parent, a plot held for retirement, an apartment bought for rental income. It is one of the most consistent flows of capital into the Ghanaian property market.
It is also the flow most exposed to fraud. Distance is what makes diaspora buyers vulnerable: you cannot walk the plot on a Tuesday afternoon, you cannot sit in the Lands Commission queue yourself, and you are relying on someone else’s account of what is happening. The good news is that the protections are well understood and largely procedural. Follow them and your exposure drops sharply.
Step 1: Appoint your own lawyer — not the seller’s
Engage a lawyer licensed by the Ghana Bar Association whom you found independently. A lawyer recommended solely by the seller or the developer is not acting for you, whatever the introduction suggested. Your lawyer conducts the title search, reviews the agreement, and — critically — can act for you under a Power of Attorney so the transaction does not stall waiting for you to fly in.
Step 2: Commission a Lands Commission title search before any money moves
This is the single most important protective step in the entire process, and it costs roughly GH¢400. The search confirms who is registered as owner, where the plot boundaries actually run, and whether there are competing claims or encumbrances registered against the land.
The fraud this prevents is multiple-sale fraud — the same parcel sold to several buyers before registration completes. It is the most common way diaspora buyers lose money in Ghana, and it is almost entirely defeated by a search conducted before payment rather than after.
Step 3: Execute a consularized Power of Attorney
Ghana requires consularization, not merely an apostille. The sequence is: sign the Power of Attorney before a notary public in your country of residence, then have it authenticated at the Ghana High Commission or Embassy with jurisdiction over you. A POA that has only been apostilled will be rejected, and finding that out at the registration counter costs months.
Keep the powers granted narrow and specific — this transaction, this property, these acts — rather than granting general authority over your affairs.
Step 4: Sign a proper sale agreement
The agreement should record the price, the payment schedule, the exact parcel with its site plan reference, the lease term, what happens if title proves defective, and the deadline for delivery of documents. If a developer is selling off-plan, it should also record the completion date and the remedy if that date is missed.
Step 5: Pay stamp duty and register
Stamp duty runs between 0.25% and 1% of the property value. Registration at the Lands Commission typically takes three to four months. Budget total closing costs of 2% to 4% of the purchase price:
| Cost item | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Stamp duty | 0.25% – 1% of value |
| Legal fees | 1% – 2% of value |
| Lands Commission search | ~GH¢400 |
| Registration and site plan fees | GH¢1,000 – GH¢5,000 |
| Total closing costs | 2% – 4% of purchase price |
What you are actually buying: leasehold, not freehold
Under Article 266 of the 1992 Constitution, freehold interests in land are not available to non-citizens. In practice:
- Ghanaian citizens hold land on 99-year renewable leaseholds.
- Non-citizens are limited to 50-year renewable leaseholds.
Anyone offering a non-citizen “full freehold ownership” is either mistaken or misleading you. Treat that claim as a reason to walk away, not as a bonus.
Red flags that should stop a transaction
- Pressure to pay before verification is complete. Urgency is the fraudster’s primary tool. A genuine seller can wait two weeks for a search to clear.
- A request to skip or shortcut the title search. There is no legitimate version of this request.
- Payment routed through a personal account or mobile money wallet. Funds should move through traceable, corporate or client-account channels.
- “Full freehold” offered to a non-citizen. Constitutionally impossible.
- No site plan, or a site plan that will not reconcile with the Lands Commission record.
- A seller who resists you appointing your own lawyer.
The part most buyers forget: what happens after you own it
Diaspora buyers usually plan the purchase carefully and the ownership not at all. An empty property in Accra deteriorates, attracts encroachment, and generates nothing. Ghana has roughly 1.3 million empty dwelling units alongside a housing deficit of about 1.8 million — and a good number of those empty units belong to owners abroad who never arranged for anyone to look after them.
Before you complete, decide who holds the keys, who inspects the property and how often, who screens and collects from tenants, who handles a burst pipe at 11pm, and who sends you a statement you can actually understand. If the answer to all of those is “my brother-in-law, when he has time”, you do not have a plan. Studio and one-bedroom units currently produce the strongest yields in Accra at 9–13 per cent — but only when they are professionally let and maintained.
The seven-step checklist
- Appoint an independent, GBA-licensed lawyer.
- Commission a Lands Commission title search — before any payment.
- Execute a consularized Power of Attorney (notarised, then authenticated at the Ghana mission).
- Sign a written sale agreement with the site plan attached.
- Pay through traceable channels only.
- Pay stamp duty and complete Lands Commission registration.
- Appoint a property manager before the property sits empty.
Buying from abroad? Get someone on the ground you can hold accountable
TF Properties has developed and managed property in Accra since 2006 as the real estate subsidiary of the Teachers’ Fund. We provide property management, facility management, maintenance and investment consulting — including for owners who are not in the country. If you want an independent view on a property before you commit, or a manager for one you already own, get in touch.
TF Properties Limited is the real estate development and management subsidiary of the Teachers’ Fund. Call 030 701 0952 or +233 (0) 302 225271, email info@tfproperties.org, or visit us at No. 30 Independence Avenue, Ridge, Accra (Mon–Fri, 9:00am–5:00pm).
