A few years ago, I got two clients who were referred to me after going through hell to acquire land previously.

First one showed me one of the site plans of the land he failed to acquire even after making payments. The land was engrossed into a dispute after it emerged that he was one of three persons to have bought the same land. To make matters worse, the land which they were showed to be the land as developed in the site plan was actually in the lake. Yes! You heard me right.

The other client had bought land sitting on a four-plot land which ended up being three plots and a quarter. This is because what was detailed on the site plan after negotiation was different from what was on the site plan in the land title. These two real experiences point to the key role of surveyors in acquiring Land in Uganda.

What is Land Surveying?

Land surveying is a process of validating, locating, mapping and plotting the boundaries, corners and structures within a given land or property. This covers every detail on the property deed; including ownership, buildings, street, and land location. In simple terms, land surveying helps one to understand a piece of land in detail.

Who is a surveyor?

A Surveyor is a professional trained to use an intricate combination of law, math, engineering, and physics to work out and establish property boundaries. They use specialized equipment like GPSs, prisms, software, radios and robotic total stations to complete the survey.

Functions of surveyors

1.    They open boundaries on land.

2. They help to measure and determine that the land as marked on the title is correct.

3. They help in the process of subdivision of land.

4. They do background checks especially in establishing the true owner of a given piece of land.

5.    They interpret survey plans for the average Ugandans who cannot interpret them.

Therefore, before you buy any piece of land in Uganda ensure that you engage the services of a surveyor to avoid being defrauded. This App has a number of registered surveyors who can help you in case you need their services, feel free to chat with them on issues relating to land surveying on the App.

By Kiwewa Nicholas

(Surveyor)