Dear Anon,
You write that you would like to buy a house in Ghana. Chances are you are thinking about an already-existing neighbourhood. But, I will go ahead and give some advice on buying bare land to build on.
1. I cannot warn you enough to be careful to make sure that you buy property and not litigation.
2. Be careful of landowners in and around the capital. They may not be the owners of the land they purport to sell to you, no matter how convincing they sound, and how genuine their title documents appear.
3. Sign a contract for the sale of the land, conduct investigations and searches and the Land Title Registry or Lands Commission to know what transactions affect the land you want to buy. You may be required to pay a deposit of the purchase price on signing the contract.
4. Try to eliminate agents and middlemen as much as possible, unless their role is restricted to only identifying and introducing you to sellers.
5. It is generally less risky to buy a completed house than a bare piece of land;
6. It is generally less risky to buy property in a place exclusively developed by a real estate company.
7. Be careful in choosing the house you want to buy. Some building contractors and real estate companies evidently did their training on chicken coops.
8. Never pay money without getting a receipt for it.
9. When you are certain of the genuineness of the seller of the property, you can sign a conveyance and pay off the remainder of the money.
10. Take immediate steps to stamp and register your title documents.
11. Always seek the advice of a lawyer with a solid reputation.
