Avoiding property scams

Before you pay anyone, have your own attorney search the title. Do it even if you know the seller, and even if you're told another buyer is waiting. A listing, a photo of a deed or a letter doesn't prove who owns the land.

How buyers get caught

• One property sold to several buyers. This is what prompted a change in the law in 2014. Before then, a buyer who paid a deposit had no legal or equitable interest in the property, only a contract.
• Resold CH&PA allocations. A house lot allocated by the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) comes with a letter, and that letter is not title. CH&PA warns against reselling allocations. In 2020 it described sellers using irrevocable powers of attorney, with buyers often bearing a penalty. A 2014 Registry account said allocations sold before 10 years need permission. We couldn't find the current rule, so make sure the seller actually holds title.
• Someone already on the land. A person who has occupied it openly for 12 years or more may claim prescriptive title against a transport, the private ownership deed.
• Go-betweens. The same 2014 account warned about touts. The Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) issues an annual house agent licence, so ask to see it. A 2023 Bill provided for a licensing authority, but we couldn't confirm it's operating or find a public register.

Check the title before you pay

1. Hire your own attorney, not the seller's.
2. Search the register. Neither register is online, so copies sent to you can't be checked from home. For a Certificate of Title, use the Land Registry's Official Title Search, which reports ownership and any charges, such as mortgages. For a transport, anyone may inspect the registers at the Deeds Registry for a fee, and in practice an attorney does it.
3. Ask for the rest: GRA compliance status, rates status, the survey plan and, if the property was mortgaged, the mortgage cancellation.
4. Walk the land and ask who lives or farms there.

Pay through your attorney, and protect your deposit

Sign a written agreement first, then pay the deposit through your attorney, not in cash to a seller, agent or go-between. Ask how the money will be held and when it will be released, and get a receipt.

On transport land, lodge a prohibition under section 22A of the Deeds Registry Act. It's a formal notice of your agreement, recorded at the Deeds Registry. Your written agreement must be valid and still running, show a deposit of at least 10% and set a completion date, and you must lodge within that period. You also need an address for service in Guyana, where official notices can reach you.

• The Registrar records it, marks the original and tells the seller within seven days.
• If another transfer or mortgage is presented, the Registrar tells you and suspends processing for eight weeks.
• The prohibition lapses unless you start court proceedings.
• Lodging without reasonable cause can leave you owing damages, so do this through your attorney.

On land with a Certificate of Title, the equivalent is a caveat at the Land Registry.

What "Title documents seen" means here

It means an advertiser showed our moderators a copy of the title. That's all. It isn't a legal search and it doesn't guarantee ownership, or show that the title is free of mortgages, disputes or other buyers. Only a search by your own attorney can tell you that. A plain tag such as "Transport" means the seller told us the title type and we haven't seen the documents. How title checks work has the detail.

This is general information, not legal advice. If anything feels off, stop and speak to a Guyanese attorney before any money moves.