Land grabbing has become a serious problem for the country’s real estate market. Karachi real estate is famous for this, but the truth is they can be found all over the country. People can illegally settle on your property – a house or non-residential plot of land – and come up with bogus leases or sales. Here are the strategies to keep your property safe from qabza mafia.

VALIDATION AND RESEARCH

Try to validate it first that the piece of land you are buying does not already belong to anyone. A little research will help protect your property in a long way. Upon receipt of the documents, inform the relevant authorities in your areas such as the KDA (Karachi Development Authority) in Karachi and the LDA (Lahore Development Authority) in Lahore about the transfer of ownership. Communicating with the authorities will be easier if they are involved from the beginning.

KEEP YOUR PROPERTY DOCUMENTS SAFE 

Be careful when copying your real estate documents. Making counterfeit documents is made easier if counterfeiters gain access to copies of the originals. If you try to understand this issue legally, in some cases, they will refer to the documentation.

 BOUNDARY WALL

This may seem like a prominent step, but trust me, it makes a difference. The wall indicates to would-be land invaders that the land is not empty and that the actual owner of the property is not far away. Even if you don’t build the entire wall, at least create a visual border, so everyone knows that it belongs to you. In some cases, people also put-up signs with the name and number of the actual owner to make sure everyone looking at the house knows the owner is there.

MAKE YOURSELF VISIBLE

Try to make visits by and again at the location of your property to make sure there is no illegal construction work on your site. You can be friendly with your neighbours so they can let you know if the tenants move out of them. If you are making investments or have already invested in the community, be sure to have contact with the management of that scheme. Make sure all real estate dealers in the area know that you own the plot or property there. Contact the main players in the real estate market in the region. This may sound like it is a hectic work, but a lot of the authentic sources indicate that these techniques usually help you stay safe. This is actually necessary for areas prone to land grab. 

HAVE A GUARD

Any vacant plot of land or an empty house – since the owner is living abroad or is outside the city – even vacant property in elite areas may also attract illegal ownership. A reliable ranger will keep the ground hijacker (Land – Grabber) at bay, or at least inform you of these issues on time. Keeping some guard or anyone to keep an eye on your property can help you keep your plots safer than if they were left alone.

Above are the strategies, which if you opt are more than enough to keep your property safe no matter for how long it stayed there untouched. Do you think there are any other actions one can take to safeguard their vacant property? Let us know by commenting in the comment section below.