This page, Ghana Real Estate resources is an easy gateway into the established laws governing the practice of housing and property management in Ghana.
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The Law regulates all formal activities, engagements and transactions. In Ghana, there are over 150 laws on land governance alone which are being aggregated into one Land Bill. Other laws that are concerned with real estate include laws on tenancy, mortgage, and sanitation.
Here, you’ll discover what the laws say about land ownership, the Ghana Rent Act, the Rent Control Law and more.
This page is a resource for all laws concerning real estate in Ghana. It is a complement to the Law news category on Property Trends Online which deals with publications about law reforms and the development of Bills and Acts passed by Parliament in as well as legal disputes in connection with housing in Ghana.
In addition to the laws, this page on real estate resources will host several whitepapers, reports, academic papers and other important publications on the state of housing and other general real estate topics in Ghana.
The different areas of this real estate resource page have been broken up into different sections. Click on any section below to head there immediately.
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All Ghana Real Estate Laws
Below are all the real estate laws in Ghana, that regulate the Ghana real estate industry, free to read online and/or download. If you find this Ghana Real Estate Resources page useful, please share it with as many people as need it.
Rent Control Law 1986 (PNDCL 138)
The Rent Control Law, 1986 (PNDCL 138) was passed to regulate the relationship between tenants and landlords in Ghana. In order to do this, it set up Rent and Housing Committees where parties could go in order to resolve their differences.
Lawyer Emmanuel Mate-Kole does an excellent job of breaking down all the rent laws and their implications for both tenants and landlords in this post on Ghana Rent Laws.
Ghana Rent Act 1963 (ACT 220)
The Rent Act of Ghana (Act 220), is the legislative instrument that established the Ghana Rent Control office. The act lays out the function of the office as the body in charge of setting up and enforcing guidelines concerning tenant-landlord relationships.
The act also outlines the what and how of landlords evicting tenants from their property, as well as prescribes the timelines and methods by which tenants should be evicted.
Land Use and Spatial Planning Act, 2016
The Land Use and Spatial Planning Act 2016 is an act to revise and consolidate the laws on land use and spatial planning, provide for sustainable development of land and human settlements through a decentralised planning system, ensure judicious use of land in order to improve quality of life, promote health and safety in respect of human settlements and to regulate national, regional, district and local spatial planning, and generally to provide for spatial aspects of socio-economic development and for related matters.
Ghana Real Estate Reports, Whitepapers, Housing Guides & Academic Papers
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UN Habitat Ghana Housing Profile
Ghana Housing Profile is a comprehensive, in-depth study of the major sectors contributing to all aspects of availability and affordability of housing. It also serves as a specially commissioned sample survey of urban households in Ghana’s four largest cities.
The key elements of land, basic services, housing finance, building materials, construction technology, and labor are analysed through an assessment of how these elements are governed by policy, institutional and legal frameworks, and how they are linked with one another as well as with other urban policies.
The Ghana Housing Profile offers interesting ways forward as to how the country’s housing needs can be met at the cost and scale required, while providing much-needed developmental benefits.
Joan Clos – Under-Secretary General of the United Nations
Executive Director, UN Habitat
The Housing Market in Ghana Report by Bank of Ghana
This study by the Research Department of the Bank of Ghana examines the macroeconomic role the real estate sector plays in the development of Ghana. It attempts to answer 4 pertinent questions:
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- What are the trends in house prices in Ghana, and what is driving this trend?
- To what extent is this trend driven by remittances?
- Does the housing market respond to foreign interest
rates, or is it driven by domestic monetary conditions? - How does the mortgage market affect the provision of
housing in Ghana?
The study was published in November 2007.
The Role of Government and Regulation in the Emerging Real Estate Industry in Ghana by Nana Kusi Appiah
This is a thesis submitted to the graduate faculty by Nana Kusi Appiah in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF COMMUNITY AND REGIONAL PLANNING at Iowa State University in 2007.
The study sought to answer 4 questions:
- How effective have the various housing policies in Ghana been in providing housing for professionals?
- How is the real estate industry in Ghana structured? What are the issues facing the industry?
- Does the membership of a centralized real estate organization in Ghana make a difference in housing production?
- What type of regulations would be necessary to ensure that the real estate industry provide affordable housing for professionals?
Accra Housing Guide 2015 (by Lamudi)
The Lamudi Housing Guide – Accra Edition is a manual published by Lamudi. It serves as a resource for individuals and investors.
It is meant to be used as a starting point to navigate the tricky business of obtaining property in one of the most opaque, yet promising, housing markets in Africa. From decorating tips to FAQs and checklists about renting, this guide has it all.
The guide covers topics such as:
- Questions all property hunters in Accra should ask;
- The pros and cons of renting;
- The basics of land ownership in Ghana; and
- Property taxes in Ghana.
Accra Real Estate Market Q1 2015 Report
This report by Lamudi gives an overview of the real estate market in Accra in the first quarter of 2015. It details average costs, the cost of accommodation in different areas in Accra and more.
Regulatory Bodies & Associations
Ghana Real Estate Developers Association (GREDA)
The Ghana Real Estate Developers Association is a non-profit organisation representing all developers in Ghana. GREDA presents a united front in making recommendations to the government on ways of promoting real estate development and in seeking solutions to the practical problems in the property market.
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It was established in 1998 consistent with the then government’s policy of private participation in the National Development effort under the Economic Recovery Programme (ERP) I and II. With particular reference to housing development, the Ministry of Works and Housing invited Real Estate Developers to a series of meetings, at the Ministry in February 1988.
These meetings led to the formation of GREDA. Find more information on GREDA here.
Ghana Real Estate Professionals Association (GREPA)
Ghana Association of Real Estate Brokers (GAR)
Ghana Association of Real Estate Brokers (G.A.R) is a real estate association that aims to bring professional agents and brokers together with proper regulations for a stronger and more lucrative Real Estate Industry in Ghana.
It launched on July 27, 2018 and seeks to raise the profile of the real estate brokerage industry and establish guidelines for the professional conduct of brokers and agents in Ghana.
GAR also provides guidance to brokers to ensure that they adhere to the association’s code of ethics and guidelines. One of GAR’s main agendas is to lead an active and relentless campaign in the Real Estate industry to establish a user-friendly environment for the public and Investors where their interests are well protected in brokerage transactions.
GAR in partnership with Meqasa is developing a Multiple Listing Service that will launch in December 2019.
Ghana Rent Control Office
Ghana Real Estate Portals
This section details the housing portals where seekers can find information about real estate as well as property options online. This includes popular marketplaces like Meqasa.com and Tonaton.com as well as Multiple Listing Service (MLS) technologies.
Real Estate Marketplaces
Meqasa
Meqasa is touted as Ghana’s number one property website. This marketplace features more than 20,000 property listings across Ghana, but mostly concentrated in the Greater Accra Region.
These properties range from land, properties for sale, properties for rent, short-stay rentals, warehouses for sale or rent and more.
Meqasa caters to the middle-upper class of society with prices mostly quote in dollars and the majority of properties in the prime neighbourhoods of Accra.
Meqasa.com was founded by Rashad Seini, Kofi Amuasi, and Kelvin Nyame in 2013 at the Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology. In November 2017, Meqasa acquired it’s biggest rival, Jumia House to become the leading real estate portal in Ghana.
Jumia House (formerly Lamudi)
Jumia House which was formerly Lamudi was one of the biggest real estate marketplaces in Ghana, that offered the same functionality as Meqasa. The major differences at the time was Jumia House’s superior user interface and user experience, a polished mobile app and the close-knit collection high-end real estate agents on that platform.
Jumia House Ghana and 2 others in Morocco and Angola were acquired by Frontier Digital, the parent company of Meqasa in November 2018.
Tonaton
Tonaton.com is a popular online marketplace where practically everything is sold. In many ways, Tonaton is the eBay of Ghana.
As a marketplace dealing in everything, Tonaton.com has an extensive selection of real estate listings across Ghana and for all budgets.
The biggest difference between Meqasa and Tonaton is their target audience, Meqasa seems to be targeted at the affluent while Tonaton is for everyone.
Tonaton means to buy and sell in the Akan dialect, Twi and was founded in 2013 by Nils Hammar of Saltside Technology in Sweden.
Accra Expat
Accra Expat is a dedicated and comprehensive social site that aims to be the home to and communication point for all members and groups of Accra’s expatriate community.
Accra Expat runs a classifieds and events platform where expats can buy and sell anything within their community, and also find out about the latest events in Ghana.
Accra Expat’s real estate portal offers a comprehensive selection of the “best of Accra’s Residential and Commercial properties, Guides and News.”It offers expats options for rental and sale of residential and commercial properties, as well as options for short-term stays.
Jiiji (formerly OLX)
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Dwellys
Dwellys’ mission is to redefine real estate in the customer’s favor. The company has set out to help customers find a residential or commercial property to rent or buy in Ghana, Africa and the world over.
According to Dwellys’, their website features thousands of property options from developers in Ghana, Africa, and the whole world. Properties on the website cut across land, residential units for sale or rent and office spaces. you are looking to buy or rent a new home, office space or land. The company also offers offline housing support.
Dwellys was founded in by Francis Opey and launched in June, 2019.
Tofiee.com
Tofiee.com is a property marketplace that claims to help seekers find the best residential and commercial property to rent or buy worldwide. Tofiee means buy a house in the Akan dialect, Twi.
The platform lists properties such as apartments, office space, houses for rent and for sale, and so on. According to Tofiee, the marketplace does not deal in popular housing options like “single room self-contained” and “chamber and hall self-contained“.
Tofiee.com was established in 2019 by Alfred Annan.
Multiple Listing Services
Loop Ghana
The MLS established in Ghana is the first in Africa and will be one of the systems needed to solve the transparency, valuation standards, and data integrity issues to improve efficiency and increased investment in Ghana and beyond.
Chaos in the property market is expected to be reduced and replaced with orderliness and audited systems as the MLS is being introduced.
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XPOSURE MLS is a tool that:
- helps listing brokers find other cooperative brokers working with buyers to help sell or lease properties. Without this collaborative incentive of systems like the LoopGhana MLS, brokers would create their own separate fragmented systems rather than consolidating property information; and
- Serves as a contractual offer of compensation to brokers who cooperate in selling other brokers’ listings.
Real Estate Events in Ghana
This section of Property Trends Online’s real estate resources gives an overview of the major real estate events that happen every year in Ghana from housing fairs to mortgage clinics to property awards.
Housing Fairs in Ghana
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Ghana Home Loans Housing Fair
Arguably the biggest and most well-known. this housing fair by First National Bank Home Loans (formerly Ghana Home Loans) brings together an array of experts to help ease the unnecessary stress that comes with owning a home.
Leveraging on their household name status, the fair attracts a steady stream of Ghana’s top real estate providers as well as property seekers. The fair is aimed at anyone looking for a house, land or home furnishings to buy, home improvement ideas and real estate enthusiasts.
Meqasa Home & Property Fair
The Meqasa Home & Property Fair is a bi-annual housing fair that offers “property seekers the opportunity to meet with the nation’s top real estate developers, home loan specialists and home improvement vendors to help them find their dream homes, office space and real estate related products and services.”
The housing fair is organised by Meqasa.com. The most unique things about the Meqasa housing fairs are their real estate seminars, outdoor booths and real estate magazines.
Meqasa has organised this housing fair since 2017 and under different names and in multiple locations.
- meQasa Dream Homes Expo (launched at the Accra International Conference Centre in 2017)
- Meqasa Property Fair (organised at the Aviation Social Centre in 2018)
- Meqasa Home & Property Fair (organised in June and November 2019 at the Silver Star Tower)
Multi TV Habitat Fair
This is an annual fair organized by Multi TV, the company that owns media properties such as Joy FM, Adom FM and more.
The fair brings together experts and companies in the housing sector to proffer solutions to the housing needs of Ghanaians.
Ghana Build International Building & Construction Exhibition
The Ghana Build International Building & Construction Exhibition is an international expo for building materials and construction technologies in Ghana and beyond. The event attracts an estimated 4500 profesionals from different countries including Ghana, Nigeria, Togo, Benin, Turkey, and Italy.
These professionals are input suppliers, contractors, building materials importers, and construction industry shareholders and specialists.
Ghana Build International Building & Construction Exhibition aims to grow the oil and gas sector, boost infrastructural investments, encourage urbanization, and help solve Ghana’s growing housing deficit.
Ghana Property & Lifestyle Expo
Ghana Architecture and Design Festival
The Ghana Architecture and Design Festival has been established to capture the synergies, innovations, and progress being made in the building arts industry.
The nation-wide series of events will feature exhibitions, installations, panel discussions and workshops, open houses, and rooftop tours over a one-month period.
This year’s theme is ‘Living Spaces,’ a showcase of local talent, concepts, ideas and models on affordable housing in a bid to interject bold strategies to reduce the housing deficit in Ghana.
The festival will bring together over 100 of Ghana’s best architecture firms, schools, architects, interior designers, decorators, construction firms and thought leaders to meet, share learnings and carve out long term partnerships that facilitate explosive growth for each respective business.
Property Awards
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Ghana Property Awards (GAPOA)
With a tag line that reads, marketing the Ghanaian property industry worldwide, this prestigious award scheme spotlights and rewards the best players in the industry annually. It was set up to encourage competition and competitive pricing in the Property & Construction Industry.
The Awards is organized by Property Express Group in collaboration with the Ghana Real Estate Developers Association (GREDA), Ministry of Works and Housing and other stakeholders,
The twelfth (13th) Edition of the Ghana Property Awards is scheduled to take place on November 27, 2020 at the Accra International Conference Centre.
Gold Coast Excellence Awards
Featuring industries like Architecture, Banking, Pharmaceuticals, Automobiles, Sports and more! Events and Logistics Hub in collaboration with NMJ Ghana is proud to announce the launch of the Gold Coast Excellence Awards 2019.
The Gold Coast Excellence Awards will honour over 40 personalities and companies in Ghana with over 2000 individuals and firms nominated for the awards. Nominations are open for the Gold Coast Excellence Awards and will close by 12 December, 2018.
Africa Property Awards
International Property Awards
