What to Do When You Discover Your Land Has Been Fenced

Few things will test your composure like pulling up to your plot in Lugbe, Epe, Ibeju-Lekki, or Kuje, land that you paid for, land you went through a lot just to verify and document, and finding a fence going up like someone else owns the place.

It happens more than people talk about.

And when it does, the decisions you make in the first 48 hours will determine whether you walk away with your land or spend the next five years in court wishing you had done things differently.

Here is exactly what to do (and what not to do)

The Don'ts

1. Don't break the fence.

The law frowns against that, and it will ultimately turn you into the defendant instead of the complainant. You had the moral high ground. Breaking the fence hands it to them.

2. Don't send boys to threaten the person.

One injury or death will make the land matter a criminal case. Now you have a more serious problem than the original encroachment.

3. Don't ignore it and say, "God will fight for me."

If they go unchallenged for long, they can claim rights to it. Silence looks like consent. Time is not on your side here.

The Dos (If You Want to Be Professional About It)

1. First, be sure you have not been scammed by the person who sold the land to you in the first place.

Before you fight anyone, confirm your own title is clean. This step saves a lot of people from embarrassing themselves.

2. Document everything immediately.

Take videos and photos of the fence and any signage. You need the evidence. Date-stamped as much as possible.

3. Find your documents and get them ready.

Your survey plan, deed of assignment, contract of sale, wherever they are, get them out now.

4. Involve a lawyer and let them send a cease and desist letter to the encroacher.

A formal letter from a solicitor changes the energy of the situation immediately. Many encroachments end here.

5. Report formally to the nearest police station to the land and get a written acknowledgement.

Not a verbal report. A written one. The paper trail matters.

6. If they refuse after the cease and desist letter, file for an injunction at the High Court.

This stops further development on the property while the matter is being resolved. Do not let them keep building while you are in the process of fighting.

The Dos (The Street Version)

For when you are certain you are the legitimate owner, and you need to move quickly.

1. Stop work on that site immediately.

Show up with your documents and a few of your people.

Once the labourers know there is a dispute, 70% will pack their tools and leave on their own. People do not want to work in the middle of a land fight.

2. Once work is stopped, someone will appear.

Either the engineer, the surveyor, or the encroacher themselves.

Demand their documents.

Ask who sold the land to them and who the original owner was.

Most cases end at this point, because many encroachers are betting on you never showing up.

3. If it doesn't end there, go through the legal route properly.

And when you do, don't just use any lawyer.

Make sure they are experienced specifically in property matters.

A general practice lawyer handling a land injunction is a risk you do not need to take.

What do you think?

Is there anything missing from this list?

If you have been through a situation like this and handled it differently, share it in the comments, your experience might be exactly what someone else needs to read right now.

At Equity Circle, we have seen what happens when people buy land without proper documentation, and we have seen what happens when they do.

Every plot we sell comes with a complete paper trail: survey plan, deed of assignment, and full government approval.

If you are looking for land in Lagos, Abuja, or Kwara and want to buy with confidence, get in touch with us today.