Housing in Togo

Private housing in Togo includes rented homes, owned property, employer-hosted housing, free accommodation and incremental self-construction. People commonly find housing through private landlords or recognised real-estate professionals. Urban rental demand is high: renters represented about 30% of all households in the 2018/19 housing survey, about 53% of urban households and about 56% in Lomé. About half of households were owners or co-owners, but only around one in ten owners had a title deed in the cited national data. A residential lease, called a bail d’habitation, identifies the landlord, known as the bailleur, and the tenant, known as the preneur or locataire. In Grand-Lomé, Decree 2022-001/PR provides for a written lease, a fixed or indefinite term, possible tacit renewal and an état des lieux, meaning a condition report, when keys are handed over and returned. Rent is freely agreed and may be paid monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually. The deposit may not exceed three months of rent, and a separate rent guarantee may not exceed three months. These amounts can be replaced by insurance or a bank guarantee. The deposit should be returned within one month after the keys are returned and the property is restored, subject to justified deductions such as unpaid water, electricity, telephone, internet, borehole or septic-tank charges. The documented Grand-Lomé rules should not automatically be treated as a nationwide rent regime because the national extension outside Grand-Lomé is not established. A lease may be notarised or signed privately and can be registered for tax purposes. The landlord generally handles major repairs involving the structure, roof, septic tank or soakaway. The tenant normally pays rent, performs routine maintenance and minor rental repairs, and covers damage caused within the tenant’s sphere. Structural changes require the landlord’s written consent. Sale of a rented property does not by itself end the lease; the new owner generally takes over the landlord’s position. Termination for non-payment or another breach can require court proceedings, while a notarial lease may contain an immediate-termination clause followed by a formal 15-day demand. An indefinite lease generally uses two months’ notice, including for the landlord’s own, family or professional need. Succession after a tenant’s death may be available to a spouse, ascendant or descendant who requests it within two months. Purchasing land or a home requires more than checking a seller’s identity. A title foncier is the strongest proof of registered ownership. The buyer should verify the title, the état des droits et charges, the unique parcel number (NUP), boundaries, mortgages, disputes and the seller’s identity through the relevant land records. Customary land rights remain practically significant and can be legally recognised, but informal or customary transactions without reliable documentation create risks of double sale, boundary disputes and litigation. The Guichet Foncier Unique and the Office Togolais des Recettes, including its land-registration services, are part of the formal transfer process. A notarial deed and registration are required for a formal transfer. The cited OTR service standards list a registration deposit of 2,000 F CFA, a fixed charge of 1,000 F CFA, 5% of the market value and 10,000 F CFA for publication in the Journal officiel de la République togolaise. Registration may take approximately six to 18 months. A subdivision, or morcellement, carries a stated 4% charge plus other costs and may take about six to 11 months. A complete transfer, or mutation totale, has a stated flat charge of 35,000 F CFA with a target processing time of about three hours, while registering or cancelling a lease can cost 3% of the rent value plus 2,000 F CFA and take about one to three months. Actual requirements and processing depend on the file and competent authority. Construction or major works require urban-planning authorisation, a qualifying title, technical documents appropriate to the project and processing through the Système Intégré de Gestion des Permis de Construire (SIGPC). The Commission Interministérielle de Contrôle des Travaux de Construction (CITC) is involved in the conformity process, and a certificat de conformité may be obtained after construction. Incremental self-construction is a central practical option, but building gradually does not remove land-title or construction-authorisation risks. Togolese nationals may access property through purchase, inheritance, donation, exchange or a building contract. A foreign national generally needs prior authorisation for a transfer of real rights between a Togolese national and a foreign national and also for a lease longer than nine years. An ordinary residential lease of up to nine years should not be treated as equivalent to a transfer of ownership, but the applicable project and banking requirements still need checking. Mortgage access depends on title security, income and the bank’s underwriting. Commercial banks and savings and credit institutions may use refinancing supported by the Regional Mortgage Refinance Company of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (CRRH-UEMOA), while housing-guarantee and public affordable-housing initiatives remain project-specific. A programme target of 20,000 affordable units has been documented, but it does not create a general right to receive a public home. The Ministry responsible for urban planning, housing and land, currently referred to as MATU in the available research, the Office Togolais des Recettes, the Agence Nationale du Domaine et du Foncier, communes and mairies, notaries, licensed surveyors, banks, bailiffs and courts may each have a role depending on the housing matter. The responsible institution changes with the question: renting, land registration, construction permission, title transfer, financing and dispute resolution follow different procedures.