Key things to note before redeveloping a property

Construction workers expand St Joseph’s College Layibi, Gulu Sports ground to accommodate modern sports facilities recently. Before you redevelop a property, ensure you know the rightful owner. Photo by Ismail Kezaala

What you need to know:

  • Have you found property you like and want to redevelop? Here are things you need to know.

Sometimes having a good facility or building does not mean constructing a new structure, redeveloping an old one could be good enough. Johnson Mayambala, a property manager, says before redeveloping a structure, you need to know the following to avoid losses and inconveniences because in most cases, those dormant structures normally have strings attached to them.

Ownership
Mayambala says if you are an interested client, you have to first look for the rightful owner of the property before making any payment or development to avoid double payments and being cheated by imposters.
“Make sure you look for the right owners and verify if the property document is in the right name to avoid inconveniences in future. Ownership is very vital when you have not yet started on the work,” he says.

Permission to redevelop
Mayambala says you have to clear with the authorities to get permission to start redeveloping the structure and to obtain the construction permit because that permit helps you protect your property from fraudsters. “If you’re redeveloping or constructing a new structure, permission to start work is a must and you have to deal with government authorities or zones with in the area before starting construction. This permit will consist permission to build, burn, demolish and operate,” he says.
Mayambala adds that construction permits help to protect the land and helps you stick to building codes within the area. The building codes provide guidelines for building standards.

Accessibility
Erias Nkoyoyo, a landscaper, says before redeveloping any structure, you have to look for accessibility. Sometimes structures become dormant because they are hard to reach by the occupants and buyers.
“Road access might sound as a normal thing but when you’re redeveloping a dormant structure, especially in urban areas, it is really a problem every inch of land matters and this can lead to a number of problems within the area,” he says.

Nkoyoyo advises that if the structure is not accessible via public roadways, you have to find ways to have access immediately because nothing can be done without accessing the structure materials, water, sewage lanes and other basic utilities cannot be put in place without access.
“Public roads obviously warranties a route to every structure or property within the area but when you need a private roads that’s when you will need to agree with the neighbours to see how you can resolve it ,” he says.

Utilities
Nkoyoyo says the whole process of redeveloping normally goes with utilities , you have to make sure your property has access to utilities.
“Utilities are vital elements of the redeveloping equation because any business you’re planning to start will need to have access to utilities. There should for instance, be electric poles , wires, phone lines and signals, water and sewage lines,” he says.
Surveying the area

Jackline Birungi, a property owner, says even if you find the structure in place, you have to hire surveyors to take measurement and get clear boundaries to avoid boundary disputes with the neigbours, boundaries will give you a clear plan on what you want to put in the available space.
“You cannot measure the size of your property just by looking at it, you need to know the exact size and that is where the surveyor comes in, professional surveyors do research on property and mark the exact property boundaries,” She says.

Birungi adds that even if the owner has a documents indicating that the land has been surveyed, you still need to hire your own surveyor.
“The cost of a survey process will have a joint number of factors to be catered for and these include size of your property, time needed to survey your property and research needed to look for the documents from the land board or authorities,” she adds.

Challenges faced by property developers
Failure to get right owners: Sometimes when you’re redeveloping you need to know the right owner of the structures but it becomes hard when the structure had stayed for longtime and many have occupied and you find it hard to get the right owner because they will keep on tossing you.

Right plan: Before making any development you have to make sure that you know the right business that can boost the place instead of developing and then you start looking for the business to put in place have plans before and hire a business consultant.