The
Ministry of Lands, Housing, Public Works, and Urban Development recently
proposed changes to land rates that will raise fees for land transactions.
The Land Laws Amendment Bill 2023 proposes an increase in land rates and
other charges associated with land services.
Official land search fees will rise from Sh500 to
Sh2,000 due to the implementation of doubling the cost of tasks performed at
the land office. The cost of a topological survey will rise from Sh15,000 to
Sh20,000."- A rise in physical planning fees to Sh 5,000 per hour and
other professional advice-based services related to physical planning are among
the other increased costs.
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Targets Satellite Towns Homeowners with New Land Rates
Additional changes to land taxation that are being
considered include a fee of Sh 20,000 for surveyors, Sh 1,500 for corporation
certificates, and Sh 1,500 for land document registration The cost of a
boundary dispute assertion has increased to Sh5,000, the incorporation of a
trust will now cost Sh50,000 instead of Sh5,000, and certified copies of
documents from the land registrar will now cost Sh3,000 for the first 10 pages
and Sh100 for each additional page."
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In
addition, resubmitting the documents for registration will cost Sh1,500;
correcting the name will cost Sh2,500; and paying Sh5,000 plus transportation
to have a land registry officer conduct a site visit is required for the notice
of power of attorney revocation.
Other county increases in land rates have been made
possible by the land rates amendments. The government of Nairobi County
declared that land
rates would rise starting in January 2023. Landowners, however, objected to
the change and challenged the increase in court. If the Land Laws Amendment
Bill is approved, it will establish a precedent that will enable county
governments to raise the current land rate fees.
Plots
used for residential, commercial, and agricultural purposes will all be subject
to the proposed land tax adjustments. Nairobi County's current land rates vary
according to a number of criteria, including the size, value, and development
status of the land.
It
is possible that landlords will raise rent to cover the growing expense of
property ownership if rates on developed land rise significantly.
Additionally,
since land rates can occasionally be set to double or even triple, more
property owners might find themselves in financial disarray. Because of the
rising land prices, this might force more property owners to sell their
holdings.
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