Efforts to address the challenges associated with real estate and land sale and purchase in the country has received a boost with the launch of Petersen Escrow and Land Title Services Limited, a real estate services company.
The objective of the company, which is the first independent escrow company to be established in Ghana, is to serve as intermediary between sellers and buyers of land and real estate properties and address the hustle in land and real estate acquisition.
The move seeks to protect buyers and investors from quacks and fraudsters in the real estate industry.
Speaking at the launch, the Chief Escrow Officer of Petersen Escrow and Land Title Services Limited, Peter Tsikata said the launch of the company was to address the problems associated with the acquisition of real estate property and land in the country.
“It has become absolutely necessary to embark on this journey because of the myriad of experiences we have as a real estate company operating here in Ghana under the name Millennium Properties Limited over the last ten years,” he said.
As an Escrow company, the role of Petersen Escrow and Land Tittle Services Limited is to serve as a neutral third party or facilitator that ensured that the interests of both the buyer and the seller of real estate are protected before the transfer of title of land or real estate property is finally concluded.
He said a lot of real estate buyers and sellers have lost their properties and money due to land litigation and activities of real estate fraudsters and quacks.
“That is why on the 5th day of November, 2019, it became absolutely necessary to introduce this small intervention called Petersen Escrow and Land Title Services Limited to help smoothen the real estate sale and purchase transaction process, to protect the interests of both buyer and seller,” he said.
Mr Tsikata explained that the company was to protect the interest of investors who want to purchase real estate property or engage in real estate business in the country.
He explained that under the Escrow arrangement when a real estate sales offer was accepted by a seller, an escrow account would be opened for the money to be kept in the account for transaction.
That the Chief Escrow Officer said was to ensure that both parties were protected and the buyer had enough money to purchase the property.
Mr Tsikata said the role of the Escrow company was to ensure the safe keeping and legality of all the land ownership documentation that is deposited by the seller with the Escrow company.
The Chief Escrow Officer called on Parliament to expedite work on Estate Agency Bill and Estate Brokerage Bill currently before it to regulate the real estate industry.
He appealed to government to pay attention to the real estate industry and use it as catalyst for the economic transformation of the country.
Mr Tsikata said the Real Estate could be an avenue to address the unemployment problem facing the country, stressing that the industry had a multiplier effect on other sectors of economy.
He said the advanced economies developed on the back of the Real Estate Industry and Ghana could do same.
The Technical Director at the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, James E.K Dadson in his address lauded Mr Tsikata for setting up the company.
He said the company would help eradicate the challenges confronting the land sector.
Mr Dadson expressed concern that a section of the public was not aware in the processes in the sale and acquisition of real estate properties.
He also said the secrecy associated with land and real estate property was fueling fraud in land and real estate sale in the country, saying a lot of people have lost money to land and real estate fraud.
He pledged that the Land Bill would soon be passed into law.
The Director of Petersen Escrow and Land Title Services Limited, Mama Biana Dadzie 1 called on the government to digitise its operations of Lands Commission to enable individuals access their land documents electronically.
By Kingsley Asare
