The Pros and Cons of Building Your Own Home in Ghana

One of the first of many decisions you will be faced with when building a new home in Ghana is whether to do it yourself or hire a general contractor. There are advantages—as well as disadvantages—of doing either. Here are some things that you will want to consider.

Acting As Your Own General Contractor

Pros

• Potential to save a substantial amount of money.
• Ability to customize your home exactly how you want it, making changes as you go.
• Working at your own pace, without being at the mercy of a contractor’s schedule.

Cons

• Time and labor intensive.
• No warranty on workmanship.
• Taking too much time or building incrementally can sacrifice the quality of building materials, making the home unsafe even before it is completed.
• Can actually be more expensive if you don’t already have the necessary tools or you make costly mistakes.

Hiring A Professional Contractor

Pros

• Familiar with the latest changes to building codes.
• Take care of tedious tasks such as clearing the land title and obtaining permits.
• Have the latest tools and technologies at their disposal.
• May have insight to improve your floor plan or the building process.
• Resolve disputes between suppliers, subcontractors, etc.

Cons

• High cost of labor.
• Can be harder to make changes during the construction process.
• Not all contractors are honest; some might overcharge for materials, or use stolen materials, etc.

Final Decision

Ultimately, your decision will be based on your budget as well as your comfort and experience level with the construction process. Most people find that it is worth it to spend the extra money and hire a general contractor. When you hire a professional you are paying for a lot more than just a house: the ability to anticipate and resolve problems, years of experience and competency.

The quality of the finished product will typically surpass anything that you can do by yourself. Best of all, the responsibility for the entire job lies on the contractor’s shoulders—not yours. If the home doesn’t meet your specifications, you can withhold the final payment until it does. If a problem arises after the completion of the project, the contractor will be responsible during the warranty phase and the Ghana contractor will repair such problems.

Do You Need a Builder or a Contractor in Ghana?


Let Ghana Homes build your dreams home at a price you can afford: a custom home that fits your style, on your own land or ours with these three simple steps:

1. Select and finalize a House Plan here (we can customize as needed)
2. Work with Ghana Homes to get a bill of quantity (pricing)
3. Sign a contract to secure price
4. Make the require down payment (or with a pay as you build plan)
5. We begin construction

Contact Ghana Homes today for a personal consultation.

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The Legalities Involved in Buying Land or a Home in Ghana

For many people, owning their own home is a dream come true. If you aren’t careful when buying land, building a home or buying an existing home, however, that dream can quickly turn into a nightmare. There are a number of important legal issues that must be addressed in order to protect yourself and your investment. Before you sign any documents or any money changes hands, you would be well advised to seek professional help from lawyers and real estate professionals such as those employed by Ghana Homes Group. Here’s why.

Prove Ownership

Over the past few years, there have been numerous instances of unauthorized owners selling or leasing property that they don’t have the rights to. In other instances, the property is sold to more than one buyer. Before you purchase any type of property, you need to have the title reviewed by lawyers and cleared by the land registry office. The complex process can take months to complete; longer if you fail to file all of the necessary paperwork.

Transfer Title Correctly

It is also important that upon the purchase of any property the title is transferred correctly to your name. Otherwise, you will not be able to sell the property in the future. It will instead be considered a dead asset.

Obtain Permits

The permit process can be complex as well, especially for those who are unfamiliar with the local laws and regulations. Working with professionals such as the Ghana Homes Group can make the entire building process easier. They will make sure that you have all of the required permits and obtain proof of compliance from inspections. If you cannot prove that you followed the letter of the law, the consequences can be financially devastating. You may be subjected to an expensive fine or, worse yet, the government can demolish your home.

Meet Development Timelines

If you are building a new home, the government also requires that you meet certain timelines. For instance, you will likely need to have the foundation and walls completed within 2 years from the date of land purchase. Real estate professionals will work with the local government offices to make sure that any other infrastructure building timelines are met to protect your investment. The purpose of establishing timelines is to prevent incremental building and questions of rightful land ownership.

If you are planning or in the process of buying a property in Ghana, contact Ghana Homes today and let our lawyers represent you in your Ghana property purchase.

The 6 Deadly Mistakes of Home Buyers in Ghana

Your home should be a fortress of solitude—a place where you and your family are safe and secure. Yet, sometimes people become so focused on realizing the dream of owning their own home that they will do whatever it takes to build a home for the least possible amount of time and money, not realizing what the actual cost of doing so is: the loss of human life. Nothing is worth that. Here are six deadly mistakes that home buyers in Ghana make.

1 - Building Incrementally

With high interest rates and strict lending standards, many Ghanaians build a house incrementally over a long period of time. Not only is the incremental building process more expensive, but it also wastes resources. Often, the property becomes functionally unstable during the building process and is deemed obsolete or unsafe upon completion.

2 - Failing To Obtain Permits

The collapse of a shopping mall in Accra in 2011 brought quite a bit of attention to scarcity of building permits in Ghana. An investigation determined that the mall collapsed because the building’s foundation was not strong enough. The deadly disaster could have been avoided if only the developer had obtained the necessary permits.

3 - Bribing Inspectors

Even those who do obtain permits sometimes try to bribe corrupt building inspectors to pass something off that they know is unsafe. Cutting corners and bribing inspectors is never a good idea.

4 - Not Using The Right Lawyers

One of the most challenging aspects of building or purchasing a home is proving ownership of the land title. Failing to use the right lawyers to secure the land title can result in the government demolishing your home.

5 - Foregoing A Home Inspection

Many buyers forego a home inspection in an effort to save money on an already expensive process. If you are purchasing an existing home, a thorough home inspection is extremely important. This will alert you to any potential problems with the structural components, exterior faults, roofing, plumbing and wiring.

6 - Hiring The Cheapest Contractor

Another mistake that people make is hiring an unskilled contractor simply because of a low price instead of paying a knowledgeable craftsman a fair wage. This often results in sloppy work that, even though it meets the minimum building code requirements, will not hold up well over time and can even become deadly.

Let Ghana Homes build your dreams home at a price you can afford: a custom home that fits your style, on your own land with these three simple steps:

1. Select and finalize a House Plan here (we can customize as needed)
2. Work with Ghana Homes to get a bill of quantity (pricing)
3. Sign a contract to secure price
4. Make the require down payment (or with a pay as you build plan)
5. We begin construction

Contact Ghana Homes today for a personal consultation.

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Ghana: High Interest Rates Curbing Mortgage Growth

High interest rates and the lack of affordable housing to purchase are two main factors curbing the growth of mortgages in Ghana, Asare Akuffo, Managing Director of HFC Bank, has said. The most crucial challenge, however, is the high interest rates since the problem of inadequate affordable housing can be solved if the rates come down to between 10 and 15 percent, he said.

“I think it is the high interest rates that are most crucial, because if really there is demand and people can afford the houses, we will get developers that will deliver them," he said. He said there is a need to produce large units of housing or create townships of about 1,000 or more units before house prices can be brought to around GH¢50,000 and below for most Ghanaians.

“This can be done because other countries like Mexico and Malaysia have been able to solve the problem. All that is needed is for interest rates to come down,” Mr. Akuffo said. “If interest rates remain above 20 percent, then it becomes a major challenge. We currently have a dollar mortgage portfolio that is growing because we can borrow the dollar at seven percent and then lend at 10 to 11 percent, showing our commitment to the mortgage business.

“But we do not want to do only dollar loans but cedi loans as well, so that Ghanaians can borrow up to GH¢30,000 to buy homes.” The Government of Ghana (GOG) in its 2007 budget mandated HFC Bank to provide an affordable home-ownership scheme for public sector employees. The scheme - HFC Public Sector Home Scheme - has its interest rate capped at 15 percent and the volume of loans has been growing very slowly.

Source: ghanaweb

Alert: Today's Home Loan Rates in Ghana & How It Affects Your Ghana Home Purchase

The real estate market in Ghana is thriving and prices are at all time high. According to most estimates, approximately 85,000 new and existing homes are sold each year. Yet, this is still a far cry number of new homes that need to be sold in order to keep up with increasing population growth rate each year. So why aren’t more Ghanaians buying houses? Fluctuating prices, high interest rates and strict lending standards are primarily to blame.

Home Prices

Many of the homes for sale in Ghana are quoted in foreign currencies such as American dollars rather than Ghanaian cedi. This practice is used to hedge against depreciation and protect real estate developers. It can actually hurt locals who are trying to purchase a house, however, because the cedi equivalent of the purchase price can increase substantially based on the daily exchange rate. This excludes a large portion of the population from qualifying for mortgages on homes built by real estate developers.

Interest Rates

The mortgage interest rates in Ghana is extremely high—especially when compared to other parts of the world—making it even harder for lower or middle income Ghanaians to afford to purchase a home. Over the past few years, interest rates have ranged anywhere from 13 percent to 37 percent for a 15 - 20 year adjustable rate mortgage, which is the only type of mortgage currently offered in Ghana. The United States, on the other hand, is experiencing historic lows on both 30 year adjustable and fixed rate mortgages with rates below 4 percent. In Japan, rates have remained below 3 percent since 2010.

Lending Requirements

Financial institutions in Ghana typically require borrowers to make a down payment between 20 and 30 percent. Despite the country’s recent economic growth, it can take up to 20 years for the average person to save this much money.

Possible Solutions

Despite obstacles such as these, it is still possible for low and middle income Ghanaians to realize the dream of owning their own home. Here’s how:

• Work with a real estate developer that has established relationships with foreign investors to finance a home purchase.
• Shop around to find the bank with the lowest down payment requirement.
  Inquire about the possibility of a lease-purchase deal or a rent-to-own agreement when looking for potential properties.

Ghana Homes Group can help you find the property of your dreams at a price you can afford or build you a custom home that fits your style on your own land with these simple steps:

1. Select and finalize a House Plan here (we can customize as needed)
2. Work with Ghana Homes to get a bill of quantity (pricing)
3. Sign a contract to secure price
4. Make the require down payment (with a pay as you build plan)
5. We begin construction

Contact Ghana Homes today for a personal consultation.

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