Lagos State Estate Agency Regulatory Authority, LASRERA which operates under the Ministry of Housing since its establishment in 2015 in the enforcement of the state’s housing agency regulatory law has rebranded into a full agency status to enable it operate effectively.
It is believed that as a department under the Ministry of Housing, the authority had some restrictions but as a full agency , LASRERA has the full requirement of the law to go after whoever does anything wrong in the real estate business in the state.
It has also created a whistle blowing section to enable individuals report what is going on in their areas in the state.
The agency’s mandate is to ensure the creation of an innovative and sustainable environment to promote Lagos as a real estate investment destination in Africa.
“We want everything about housing and real estate in Lagos to be well regulated. We want to know the agents and their offices. For agents who short-change people, we want to ensure that we go through the full length of the law to get them prosecuted”, Special Adviser to the Governor on Housing, Adetoke Benson-Awoyinka explained.
He regrets that the trend of fraudulent practice in real estate sector by developers and agents in the state is on the increase and this is reflected in the number of complaints received by the agency in recent times, adding that the move is to curb these fraudulent practices.
Any practitioner who defrauds will be “charged to court under the criminal code of the law and the agency will make sure the court system prosecutes such person and the properties are forfeited. That’s the big punishment for whoever is defrauding people, but also a relief for our people as they can be sure they will get their money back. That is why we are here. Those that have been defrauded in the past can come into our offices to lay their complaints with information that can help. We will investigate and would do our best to make sure we bring the culprits to book”, Benson-Awoyinka.
Under its mandate, the agency also maintains register of estate agents, sanction unlicensed estate agency practitioners, collate data on property transactions, investigate complaints and petitions with aim of resolving such issues as well as ensure the payment of fees and other necessary charges on property transactions.
On possible training of agents, he said the agency has private sector organisations coming to train the brokers who want to be agents. “We want to make sure that not everybody on the streets of Lagos is an agent. Anyone who wants to be in a profession must have minimum knowledge of what they are doing. That’s what we want to enforce in the state”.
The agency has also launched its official website, registration portal and social media handles, as part of stringent regulatory measures to tackle fraudulent activities of real estate agents and developers in the state.
The move is in line with the commitment of the Babajide Sanwoolu led Government of Lagos State to improve technology infrastructure, and make Lagos a ‘Smart City’ where services will be digitally ready and available to the masses.
“In line with the commitment of the Government of Babajide Sanwoolu to improve technology infrastructure, today we are unveiling a website and social media handle and registration portal for effective management and communication among stakeholders. The website will enhance our post-COVID compliance initiatives to promote transparency and become a one-stop-shop to stakeholders and government.
“We are out to sanitize the industry. As the trend of fraudulent practice in real estate and developers increase and is reflected in the number of complaints received by the agency in recent times. Residents are falling victim to fake real estate practitioners and property developers
Adetoke further stated that Lagos State government remain committed to providing an enabling environment and a transparent real estate sector, conforming with international best practices while safeguarding the interest of stakeholders and citizens of Lagos. The ultimate aim she said is to ensure creation of an innovative and sustainable environment to promote Lagos as a real estate investment destination in Africa.
