10/09/2019
UNDERSTANDING LAND SIZES AND MEASUREMENT
It is a known fact that the vast majority of people who acquire landed property in Lagos and elsewhere in the country don't really grasp the meaning of the terminologies used in the real estate industry. As a prospective property owner seeking to acquire any form of landed property, you must be informed with a few (if not all) of these terminologies and the first obstacle to scale is the understanding of the method of Land measurement in Nigeria.
In Nigeria today, Land is measured in various measuring units raging from Hectares, Acres, Meters down to Feet. These standards are affected by elements, which include but not limited to developmental pattern, human and environmental factors.
Let's start by asking; What is the size of a standard plot of land in Nigeria?
According to the dictionary meaning of a plot of land: A plot of land is a marked out piece of Land for the purpose of building or farming. According to Wikipedia, a plot is a tract or parcel of land owned or meant to be owned by some owner(s).
The size of a plot can vary for different reasons but according to Nigeria's land division, the appropriate plot for a house construction is 50ft x 100ft which can accommodate a standard house with a small compound. To better understand land divisions used in Nigeria, different units of area are used as follows:
HECTARE
A hectare is one of the least known metric units and one which potential buyers and Estate developers seem to struggle with.
It is a land measuring:
100m x 100m OR
328ft x 328ft OR
10,000 square meters (sq.m.) OR
Two and half acres OR
15 plots.
ACRE
An Acre is a standard unit of measurement used by Land sellers. An Acre is a product of any rectangular plot of land giving a total of:
4,046sq.m. OR
43,560sq. ft. OR
6 plots
60ft x 120ft
PLOT
In Lagos State, the standard size of a plot is 60ft x 120ft (18m x 36m i.e. 648 sq. m.) while in some other cities of the country, plots are measured in 50ft x 100ft. However, a plot size of most of the estates measures 600sq. m.
This is basically because they have to make allowance for infrastructures in the estate which includes road network within the estate, sewage, playground and other facilities to be provided.
