Instead of treating the floor plan and the site as different elements, it is important to understand the relationship between the two and how they can work together to produce spectacular results.

By accentuating the positive aspects of a site, you will gain the best views and allow yourself more privacy and control over “problem” areas that may need camouflage.

The considerations
Many of the issues to consider when selecting a site have little to do with the land and everything to do with lifestyle. Some important aspects include school locations, proximity to work and recreation facilities, among others. When you start to shop, you will discover that sites are as individual as the owners.
After considering what it is you are looking for in terms of land, it is time to evaluate the site’s physical characteristics.

Ask yourself the following questions: Is the site heavily treed? Is it level or sloping in appearance? Is the site susceptible to flooding due to poor drainage? What are the deed restrictions and setbacks?

Problems arising

Problems crop up in unusual places. For instance, your home site may have a beautiful, natural appearance now, but when cleared for construction, the top six inches of soil will be gone. This means that the grass, natural shrubbery and small trees will be removed from the construction area, and may leave you with land that looks different.

Heavily treed home sites are appealing to many people, but can present additional construction costs. Builders will need to remove all the trees within two metres of the house, as well as the trees in the areas of the driveway, sidewalks and septic tanks.

Sloping sites

Low-lying or sloping sites can also add considerable construction costs to a project. The costs of fill or cut away and special construction requirements add up quickly, especially if the home is susceptible to drainage problems.
If the sloping home site has a great view, you may want a custom floor plan developed that follows the lay of the land. In the case of a steep elevation, for example, you could have some rooms on the lower ground floor like garages, or storage.

Authority approval

Beware of setbacks and title deed restrictions. Before you purchase a site, make sure that it can accommodate the home you want to build. Setbacks are regulated by the local approving authorities such as Kampala City Council (KCC) and Kira Town Council, among other authorities.

KCC has a minimum distance of 1.5metres for majority of the residential building as the distance between the boundary site and any building. (Still you have to check with the division approving authority).

The restrictions

Title deed restrictions can contain requirements on the size, how big the home should be and the percentage the house should cover, how many families are allowed to live on that particular land, style and appearance of a home.

It may be a good idea to check with the planning and zoning authority to disclose any restrictions before you buy. This information is actually available with the planners at the different divisions if you are in the Kampala area. You don’t want to compromise the style of the house you intend to build.

Design options

If you own property, but are not excited about the view, don’t worry. There are many creative floor plans that can be designed to create spectacular views.
One quick solution is the courtyard design. By opening the front, middle or rear of your home onto a courtyard or garden, you can capture a view and transform it into a personal oasis. Many urban residences utilise this concept around a swimming pool or garden, while metres away, the fencing or shrubbery hides adjacent homes.

Other captured views with which you may be familiar with include atriums and private gardens. We use these features to enhance the plans, private sitting areas and other interior areas that require natural lighting and privacy.

Land survey

If you are fortunate enough to have property that overlooks a lake, golf course, wooded area or town, you will probably want to take advantage of its positive attributes. First, study the land carefully.

Have a land survey conducted and, in heavily treed areas, consider a tree survey. The site should be visited and photographed from the position of the house looking out in all directions. By considering all angles of the property, the architect will be able to adapt the floor plan to the site.

Ms Anna Bukirwa, 24, thinks there is no need to learn about the land law. If the time comes when she cannot avoid it, then she will learn about it.
“That is why there are lawyers by the way, so why should I do their job. If I inherit or buy land or property, they will be there to render their services and I will be glad to hire them,” she says.

However, Mr Francis Namutwe, 45, says that if he had known the law earlier, he would not have spent a lot of money. “I first ran to the local council chairpersons thinking they would help, but it was all a waste of money and time,” he says.

He adds that by the time he went to the right authorities, he almost had no money to run the rest of the process.

The importance
Mr Fred Baka, a lawyer with Kayanja and Company Advocates in Kampala, says one mistake that people make is to run to the Resident District Commissioner (RDC) or local councils instead of lawyers or the court.

“Generally, most people do not understand the law. Well, let’s say they know a little through what they hear, but they mix it up; thus, ending up in the wrong places before going to the right places for help,” he says.

However, Mr Alex Nkabahona, a lecturer on peace and conflict studies at Makerere University, says, “There is a new awareness of the value of land now, especially with the discovery of oil and minerals.”

He adds that this has been prompted by outside investor interests. Locals are now beginning to look at land as a source of commercial capital. Depending on what position you are in regarding the land laws, get to know what you are supposed to do and not do.

Inheriting the land of the deceased
First of all, you have to have documents to show that you are a relative to the deceased. These documents are supposed to be taken to the administrator general who takes them to court for a petition to give you permission to the property.
“The process depends on the person handling it.” Mr Baka says. After the property has been changed to your names, then you have nothing to worry about.

Buying land
“Before you buy land, do a thorough research about it. Write to the lawyers to advise you on what to do,” Mr Baka advises. As part of the research on the land you intend to buy, especially mailo land, write to the land registrar who will reply you with a memo giving you all the details of the land. “If the names of the parties intending to sell are on the memo, then you are dealing with something valid,” he explains.

Selling land
The person selling land should be registered not a transferee. The owner of the land, with a land title, is the only one that can sell; the transferee (to whom a title or property is conveyed) cannot.

As a tenant
According to the law, to be a known tenant or squatter, you must have occupied the land for 12 years or more. Then the tenant can be able to attain a certificate of occupancy from the landlord.

“You are free to use the land for anything including development.” Mr Baka says, However, if one is to sell the land, they should give a notice to the landlord. The notification will help the new people (the new landlords) to have the title to the land.

Land tax
When buying land, the owner pays 10 per cent of the transactions made on that land to the Uganda Revenue Authority. “That is why you get the land title. The percentage is partially meant for that purpose. You pay once unless you are on lease,” Mr Baka says. He adds that the amount paid for leasing the land depends on the time the land will be leased. The leasing amount can be paid in two ways; premium, where one pays for the value of land and annual rate, this is paid depending on the location.

Owning land is wealth and Mr Baka argues that wealth leads to prosperity and development of the person and country at large. So getting to know all you need about the land laws can be helpful to avoid money and time wastage in the future.

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Discussion forum on African tour and travel packages

While launching the Historic Buildings Conservation Trust last week, Mr Serapio Rukundo announced that government is holding discussions with the Saudi Arabian government over how they can help improve on the old architecture so that the buildings can be permanent structures.

“I was privileged recently to meet the Saudi Arabian King and he told me that the history behind most of these buildings is cultural, religious, political or economic. For instance, where are the buildings which the missionaries, Asian traders and explorers built when they arrived here?” He added that the value addition to such buildings in the form of establishing specialised restaurants, serving special cuisine also tell the story about Uganda’s culture.
“We have fresh foods which we have not exploited fully. For instance, what is wrong with serving a four-course meal starting with pumpkin soup at such a restaurant? We would be using these buildings economically where you have a special meal in a special building,” he said.

In an interview with Mr George William Katatumba, the chairman of the buildings trust, nearly every country in the world undertakes to conserve its national heritage and part of the national heritage are the historic buildings which should be conserved for posterity of the next generation.

Mr Katatumba said the buildings that have been recommended to government for permanent conservation are valuable for cultural and architectural qualities. “If we lost these buildings through neglect or demolition, we surely will never see their like again and would have lost national assets that make our towns and cities the most beautiful in the world. Visitors to our country frequently remark on the fine buildings that have survived our historic past,” he explained.

He added that since tourism is among Uganda’s first foreign exchange earners and key drivers of the economy, government should take the lead in recognising the importance of the historic buildings because when tourists come to Uganda for business or as tourists to see the wild life, they enjoy the built environment that has made Kampala a model city for Africa.

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Sources within both Makerere University and the Ministry of Lands have indicated that the land on which the university seats has various titles a number of whose leases have expired.
Investigations by Sunday Monitor show that among other plots on which the current CCE Hall, Lumumba and Faculty of Technology lie- have all expired while titles for Livingstone and Africa halls expired but were renewed for 75 years. We were not able to establish when the new leases were issued.

Expired leases
But leases for the land housing the Faculty of Law and the Makerere Institute for Social Research (MISR) also expired and are yet to be renewed.
On May 18, Ms Sarah Kulata Basangwa, a senior commissioner in the Lands Ministry, wrote on behalf of the permanent secretary to the Makerere University Secretary about the Kabaka’s demand.

“This office has received a request from Buganda Kingdom land board acting for on behalf of His Highness the Kabaka of Buganda requesting that the above land be returned to him,” Ms Basangwa wrote adding, “They assert that all the land on Makerere hill, where the University is situated was leased to the then Governor of Uganda and a title issued in favour of a technical school.”

Ms Basangwa asked the university to assist her office in coming to a conclusion by availing a copy of the certificate of title. The matter was then referred to the university legal department which was tasked with liaising with the estates manager to advise on a way forward.

Eviction threat
But sources say an internal meeting within the university revealed Uganda’s biggest and oldest public university faced a real danger of possible eviction after it was revealed that many titles of individual plots on which the sprawling campus lies had expired.
The Vice Chancellor, Prof. Venansius Baryamureba, said on Thursday he was not aware of the move on the university land but was quick to add that he believed reason would prevail against evicting such a big public institution.

“Buganda is interested in promoting education, the government of Uganda is interested in promoting education. I don’t think anyone would want to evict the university which is a public institution. Even if the university is supported by government, it is not owned by the government but the public. It is a key institution providing a service to the country and to the region,” Prof. Baryamureba stated.

He said Makerere University land was becoming “a serious issue” and even before these new threats a decision had been made “to check every title and those found to have expired ,efforts have been made to renew them.”

Prof. Baryamureba added that a decision had been made to hire a surveyor on a permanent basis to document all the university land. He added, however, that any expired titles ought to be renewed, “I do agree that if the lease has expired it should be renewed and if it expired and we did not renew then we should pay from the time it expired.”

Lands Minister Omara Atubo said he was not aware of the claim from Buganda Kingdom. “I don’t think that has to my attention, this is the first time you are telling me about it.” He said he believed the technical people were still trying to handle the matter at that level.

But a senior source within Buganda confirmed that the kingdom had written to the registrar of lands about the Makerere University land. “It’s not just Makerere, it is part of a big investigation that started in 2001 to trace all land titles that belong to the kingdom,” the official who cannot be named because he is not authorised to speak on behalf of the king or the kingdom said.

He said the aim was not to disposes current users of the land but rather to document the land and create ground for negotiations with current users first to recognise legitimate ownership and benefit from usufruct (a legal term meaning that as legal title owner one is entitled to any revenue that might accrue from the property).

Sunday Monitor has established that Prince David Wassajja, Buganda attorney general Apollo Makubuya and information minister Charles Peter Mayiga have been part of the land search and documentation effort.

Mr Makubuya told this newspaper: “I am aware of that (request to reposes Makerere University land), that land belongs to the kingdom and it was leased to the technical college, that lease expired.”

Age-old conflict
But on the Makerere land, our investigations revealed that while the university was first established in 1922 as a college, a conflict over the land first emerged in 1942 after then Prime Minister of Buganda Martin Luther Nsibirwa allowed the college to lease part of the land.

Nsibirwa was later murdered at Namirembe Cathedral in the 1950s. The then colonial governor negotiated a settlement and secured a lease in the name of Makerere College Council and compulsorily acquired the stretch up to Bwaise for which a free hold title was issued.

Buganda has been demanding from the central government some 350sq miles comprised under the royal estate under the Kabaka and some 9000sq miles formerly crown land that had been vested in the control of the central government among other unreturned properties.
Makerere University boasts prominent alumni in the region including former Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa and Kenya’s Mwai Kibaki.

Over the past years, enforcing and executing orders relating to mortgages has been a problem attributed to defaulting customers who may not even understand what a mortgage entails. However, stakeholders from various mortgage sectors have reacted to the Mortgage Act 2009, which has created more diverse issues in the process of fulfilling their responsibilities.

During a discussion about ‘Challenges arising out of Enforcement and Execution of orders relating to mortgages in Kampala District’ held at Imperial Royale on Tuesday, March 16 this year, Mr Bruce Kyerere, the President of the Uganda Law Society said, “The law amendment was done without due regard to the ongoing process of formulating a National Land Policy and we are now seeking ways of avoiding the legal and administrative mayhem that has since ensued in challenge to the law.” Various changes have been made to the Mortgage Act, 2009.

Notice period in default
The notice period has changed from a 30 day notice to a 45 working day notice of default. Mr Philip Karugaba, a senior advocate at Masembe, Makubuya, Adriko, Karugaba & Ssekatawa Advocates (MMAKS), explains that the 45 days are meant to help the customer repay the money upon failure to fulfill the loan repayments.

Sale of mortgaged land
The borrower must be issued a notice of sale for 21 working days which was not the case in the old law where there was no further notice necessary after the 30 day notice. Additionally, this requires a colour advert in a newspaper.

Restriction on purchasers
Lenders can’t buy mortgage property without a court order.

Powers of court
Court is empowered to grant relief to the borrower. However, Mr Karugaba says the grounds of intervention are not yet specified. According to Justice Anna Magezi, a high court judge in the Land Division, land issues are still contentious, especially at family level, for instance customary land, which is unregistered. She further attributes this to the high population increase because people don’t seem to have enough cultivable land at family level, resulting into crimes and displacement. Justice Magezi adds that some of the people give away land for business that may take long to yield value. She stresses that all family members should be informed about mortgages; lest conflicts ensue.

According to Section 20 of the Land Amendment Act 2004, it is not allowed to sell, exchange, transfer, pledge and mortgage or lease any family land without prior consent of spouses. However, few players in land transaction take that into consideration. Justice Magezi therefore advises people to carefully scrutinise proof of ownership and closer investigations into the modes of mortgages’ acquisition.

Legislation impediments from the law reform
The Mortgage Act 2009 has some limitations on the banks’ rights to engage in mortgaging. This has been attributed to the long periods of about 160 days that the customer has in order to recover the loan once the specified period of 30 days is over. Mr Kyerere says there are conflicting interests in land such as bonafide tenants and occupants. “The ultimate involvement of multiple state players such as the Directorate of land, RDCs and Police who are all claiming to act in the interest of the people has led to a muddled-up justice delivery system,” he says. He adds that state actors have taken judgements and substituted them with their own and that some people may have difficulties in having faith in the institutions they create.

Determining the spouse sustained by the land
There is still difficulty in determining who ordinarily resides on the family land together with his wife or her spouse and derives sustenance because of the inadequate meaning of a spouse, especially in polygamous or customary marriages. Despite changes in the mortgage act, there are still problems arising in the real estate industry.

Fake land titles
According to Mr John Nambale, the legal officer in charge of Debt Recovery with Equity Bank (U) Ltd, some people have fake land titles. So far, this has largely been attributed to the involvement of some customers with local council leaders to sneak in wrong titles; sometimes the documents may side with the customer. “When you find such a document and inform the related people, they connive with the customers such that when it’s time for sending the bailiff, he accepts a token of appreciation suggesting that the customer is given more time,” he says.

Unsecured loans
These are usually given to customers who don’t have security such as unregistered land and salary loans. Mr Nambale explains that such customers pledge land sale agreements or lease offers to banks as a form of security, making it tough to recover from such. “Most customers pledge non-existent land or if at all it exists, it is family land and they may disappear from their residences without a trace,” he says. This has left banking institutions in a dilemma of either applying for foreclosure or suing such individuals to recover those loaned monies.

Inefficient land registry process
Some searches at the land registry are issued with a disclaimer rendering the relevant certificate issued suspect. The disclaimer worded as follows has raised a number of questions As only personal searches of the register are provided for in the Registration of Titles Act, (Cap 230), the above information is given on the understanding that its accuracy is not guaranteed and that no liability whatsoever shall be accepted if loss or damage results from any error, omission, or mis-statement therein. “There is no one to blame for the title deed that has been provided as a security for the loan yet the customer has disappeared. So, how does one authenticate the provided document?” Mr Nambale says.

Verification and approval of court orders before execution
He adds that during execution of such bailiffs, police and RDCs interfere. “You may have a court order but can’t attach a warranty because of the high costs of recovery as LCs may vanish, making the loans written off; hence losses in the banking institutions,” he explains. Initially, RDCs and police require verified and approved court orders before execution by bailiffs, complicating the recovery process and making it more costly.

Delays in the court procedure
According to Mr John Eudes Keitirima, the deputy registrar at the Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court, there is a backlog of cases with only two judges in the region. “In the land division, there are over 400 cases, yet there is a high demand of having them disposed as soon as possible,” he says.

False accusations
The public has accused courts of siding with banks to rip off their property because of the value attached to it. “At times we are guided by the value attached to the property at the time of borrowing from the bank. Such property is usually overvalued and when we discover that, the blame goes to the courts of law,” Mr Keitirima explains.

Limited access to customers’ property
Property evaluation is based on the neighbourhood such that if it’s located in a prominent place, the building acquires a higher value compared to when it’s built in a slum. Mr Solomon Arinaitwe, a valuer, says getting the house owner’s consent to value the property is difficult. “It’s hard to explain to someone who has spent a lot on residential units claiming that they have a lower value,” he says. Consequently, the only resort they have is to judge by comparison or study the surrounding areas.

By all means, people want to hold on to valuable assets even when they know that they have breached the agreement. Mr Keitirima says such customers seek refuge from court so as to increase their time for paying the debt.

Way forward
To address these issues, the banking institutions resolved to adjust their procedures to reflect the new Act and strengthen their due diligence in making sure that clients understand the consequences of their transactions. Mr Lazarus Owakubahiro, the Executive Director of African Community Initiative for Social-economic Transformation (ACIST) says the concerned stakeholders hope to partner with various law enforcers to ease administration of mortgages