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June 7, 2026
30 min
· Koffi A. Hounnou
In Dakar, property can only be sold outright if it is registered in the land book: under Senegal's Law No. 2011-07 of 30 March 2011 on land ownership, a land title (titre foncier) is "final and unchallengeable" (article 42), and a sale goes through a notarial deed followed by registration at the land registry. A plot of State land held under a lease, or a plot of national domain land allocated by a municipal decision (délibération), does not carry the same rights: the lease is governed by the State Domain Code, and the allocation only grants a right of use that cannot be the subject of any transaction. When buying titled property, Senegal's General Tax Code sets a registration duty of 5% of the price, on top of land registration duties, stamp duty and notary fees. For rentals, Decree No. 2023-382 caps the deposit at two months' rent for rents of 500,000 FCFA or less, with only one month payable on moving in, bans rent paid in advance and limits the agency fee to half a month. Imonga publishes no prices for Dakar because it has no listings in Senegal; as of 14 September 2026, the site lists 14 property developments and 42 Senegalese professionals.
We do not publish rents by neighbourhood or prices per square metre. As of 14 September 2026, Imonga has no published listings in Senegal, and we found no recent public statistics on Dakar property prices that explain their method. Earlier versions of this page and of our article on Dakar market trends gave rent and price-per-square-metre ranges by neighbourhood, mortgage rates and overall buying costs without any source: those figures have been removed.
The official figures we read on rents describe a long-standing squeeze, not today's prices. In January 2014, the Minister of Trade told the National Assembly's finance committee, citing studies by the national statistics agency (ANSD), that rents in the Dakar region had risen by about 256% since 1994, against 44% for average construction costs, and that 52% of landlords had inherited the homes they let (file of Law No. 2014-03, committee report). The explanatory report of the 2023 decree adds that rent then took between 34% and 37% of the income of the households concerned.
For a real price, compare similar properties in the same neighbourhood and have the property valued before signing; for a new development, ask for the developer's written, dated price list.
The first question is not the neighbourhood but the legal status of the land. In Senegal, a plot can be registered private property, part of the State's private domain leased to an individual, or national domain land on which a municipality has granted a right of use. The documents in circulation (land title, lease, délibération, occupancy permit, allocation certificate) are not worth the same.
| Status | Document | What it is worth | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registered private property | Land title (TF), entered in the land book | Full ownership, final and unchallengeable; can be sold, inherited, mortgaged | Law No. 2011-07, articles 42 to 44 |
| State private domain | Ordinary lease (bail ordinaire) | Right of use for up to 18 years, subject to development; no transfer without authorisation | State Domain Code, article 38 |
| State private domain | Long lease (bail emphytéotique) | Real right of 18 to 50 years, can be mortgaged | State Domain Code, article 39 |
| State private domain | Surface right concession | 25 to 50 years to build a home in an area with a detailed urban plan | State Domain Code, article 40 |
| State private domain | Occupancy authorisation | Precarious and revocable, light structures only, can be withdrawn without compensation | State Domain Code, article 37 |
| National domain | Municipal allocation decision (délibération) | Right of use; allocated land cannot be the subject of any form of transaction | Law No. 64-46; Decree No. 72-1288 as amended in 2022 |
Registration is governed by Law No. 2011-07 of 30 March 2011 on land ownership, published in the Official Journal of 13 August 2011. It repealed the colonial decree of 26 July 1932 (article 96): anyone still relying on that decree is citing a replaced text. The rules that matter to a buyer:
A plot can also belong to the State's private domain and be held under a lease. Law No. 76-66 of 2 July 1976, the State Domain Code, provides several arrangements (article 36): occupancy authorisation, ordinary lease, long lease, surface right concession and sale. An ordinary lease runs for 18 years at most, with a development obligation, and the tenant may not assign or sublet without authorisation (article 38). A long lease runs for 18 to 50 years and grants a real right that can be mortgaged (article 39). The development obligation is recorded in the land book, and until it is lifted the land and buildings cannot be let, transferred or mortgaged without authorisation (article 43).
In practice, buying "a lease" means buying a right over land that remains the State's, subject to authorisation of the transfer. Ask for the lease deed, the statement of real rights for the State title it is recorded on, and proof that development has been certified.
Two laws opened a path to full title. Law No. 87-11 of 24 February 1987 authorised the sale of State land intended for housing in urban areas (some of its provisions were repealed in 2011). Then Law No. 2011-06 of 30 March 2011 authorised the free conversion of housing permits and similar titles into land titles in urban centres (article 1). Its explanatory statement mentions the Medina, Bopp, Hann, Grand Dakar, Pikine and Guédiawaye. On the first resale of a property converted this way, the seller must repay the State's conversion costs (article 3): ask the notary to quantify them.
Land that in 1964 was neither registered nor classified as public domain forms the national domain, held by the State and registrable only in its name (articles 1 to 3 of Law No. 64-46 of 17 June 1964 on the national domain). Municipal councils have authority over allocating and withdrawing this land (article 81 of Law No. 2013-10, the General Local Authorities Code). In national domain subdivisions in urban areas, ownership of registered plots stays with the State, and the plot allocation decided by a committee chaired by the mayor must be approved by the State's representative (article 301).
The key point for buyers is in Decree No. 2022-2307 of 30 December 2022, which rewrote article 3 of Decree No. 72-1288: allocation of national domain land "confers a right of use", and allocated land "cannot be the subject of any form of transaction". A plot "on délibération" bought from its allottee therefore transfers no right to you: the municipality remains in charge of allocating and withdrawing that land.
Public domain land is inalienable and imprescriptible (article 9 of the State Domain Code), and any private project on the maritime public domain requires authorisation from the departmental council approved by the State's representative (article 296 of the General Local Authorities Code). The Urban Planning Code enacted by Law No. 2023-20 of 29 December 2023, which replaced Law No. 2008-43, sets special rules for coastal areas, lake and river banks and the Niayes wetlands. Before buying near the sea or a wetland, ask for a certificat d'urbanisme, the document stating the planning rules, easements and zoning that apply to the plot.
The procedure is described by the tax and land administration (DGID) in its leaflet "How to acquire a land title belonging to a private individual", a copy of which is available online (undated). It must involve the notary with territorial jurisdiction, and duties and taxes must be paid through the notary. The DGID also recommends paying the price into the notary's client account.
For an apartment, the same logic applies to the building's land title and its co-ownership arrangements; see our guide to buying an apartment in Dakar.
The rates below come from the General Tax Code (Law No. 2012-31 as amended), read in an annotated version updated to October 2025. The duty on property sales was cut from 10% to 5% by Law No. 2015-06 of 23 March 2015. A later finance law may have changed these rates: ask the notary for a written, itemised statement before signing.
| Item | Amount | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| Registration duty on the sale of a property | 5% of the price | Tax Code, article 472-II |
| Transfer of State land for housing | 3% | Tax Code, article 472-III |
| Sale of social housing by an approved developer | 1% | Tax Code, article 472-V and Decree No. 2016-448 |
| Proportional land publication duty (deeds other than first registration) | 0.80% in the annotated Code; 1% in the DGID leaflet | Tax Code, article 537 |
| Fixed land publication duty | 5,000 FCFA per entry; 20,000 FCFA per title created on subdivision | Tax Code, article 537 |
| Stamp duty | 2,000 FCFA per sheet according to the DGID leaflet | DGID leaflet |
| Notary fees and VAT | Regulated sliding scale (Decree No. 2006-1366 as amended): ask for the calculation | DGID leaflet |
| Registrar's fees | Set by decree | Law No. 2011-07, articles 94 and 95 |
We could not establish why the annotated Code shows 0.80% for land publication while the undated DGID leaflet shows 1%. That is exactly the kind of line to have the notary confirm.
The DGID leaflet gives an example for a 30 million FCFA land title free of charges. It shows how the costs are structured, not a current quote:
| Item (DGID example, undated) | Amount |
|---|---|
| Registration duty (5% of 30,000,000) | 1,500,000 FCFA |
| Land publication fees (1% of 30,000,000) | 300,000 FCFA |
| Fixed duty | 7,500 FCFA |
| Stamps (3-sheet deed in 3 copies) | 18,000 FCFA |
| Subtotal, duties and taxes | 1,825,500 FCFA |
| Notary fees | 1,231,000 FCFA |
| VAT on notary fees | 221,580 FCFA |
The 1% social housing rate requires, among other conditions set by Decree No. 2016-448 (reproduced in the annotated Code), a first-time buyer with net income below 450,000 FCFA a month and a price of no more than 20 million FCFA including tax. To compare with other countries in the region, see our article on notary and registration costs.
Since 2024, the State has frozen and then gradually reopened procedures in several subdivisions. According to a DGID statement reported by Dakaractu on 29 January 2025, a service note of 29 April 2024 suspended land and State-domain procedures in parts of Dakar, Thiès, Mbour and Saint-Louis, including the Corniche Ouest and Corniche Est, several Dakar subdivisions (among them "Hangars des Pèlerins", "EOGEN 1 and 2" and "Cité Batterie"), the Guédiawaye and Malika urban plans, the urban hubs of Diacksao Bambilor, Dény Birame Ndao and Daga Kholpa, and part of the Lac Rose area. A note of 13 June 2024 allowed some procedures to resume on presentation of a release clearance (quitus de mainlevée) from the land-use control directorate (DGSCOS), while other sites remained fully blocked.
The situation is still moving. After the Council of Ministers of 1 July 2026 (APS, 2 July 2026), a government statement reported by PressAfrik on 6 July 2026 targeted the second half of 2026 to finalise the paperwork, limited the lifting to regular title holders, reported the cancellation of some urban plans (Nouvelle Ville de Thiès, parts of Guédiawaye and Yeumbeul-Malika-Tivaouane Peulh) and banned resuming construction without authorisation. The Council of Ministers of 2 September 2026 again called for regulations on certain subdivisions in Dakar and Thiès.
In practice, before paying anything for a plot on the outskirts of Dakar, especially around Bambilor, Lac Rose, Guédiawaye or Malika, have the notary ask whether the plot falls in a frozen area and whether a release clearance is needed. To our knowledge, no consolidated, up-to-date list is published.
Residential leases are governed by the Civil and Commercial Obligations Code (COCC), whose articles the national rent regulation commission (CONAREL) reproduces on its website, and by a 2023 decree on the conditions for moving in.
Decree No. 2023-382 of 24 February 2023, published in the Official Journal of 28 February 2023, replaced articles 1 and 2 of Law No. 2014-03 of 22 January 2014, after the Constitutional Council ruled them regulatory in nature. It sets:
Example: for rent of 250,000 FCFA, the total deposit cannot exceed 500,000 FCFA, with 250,000 FCFA on moving in and 250,000 FCFA spread over twelve months (about 20,833 FCFA a month). The agency fee cannot exceed 125,000 FCFA. No month of rent can be demanded in advance. The decree sets no cap for rents above 500,000 FCFA.
The 2014 law, still available with its parliamentary file, refers to the penalties of Law No. 81-21 of 25 June 1981 on unlawful rent increases (article 3). CONAREL, created by Decree No. 2023-446 according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, handles disputes through conciliation and runs a toll-free number, 800 80 77 77, listed on its presentation page.
The issue is not settled. In April 2025, the Prime Minister asked for proposals to amend the rules, which he described as ineffective in Dakar (RTS, 2 April 2025), and the Council of Ministers of 2 September 2026 again stressed rent regulation. As of 14 September 2026, we found no new published text replacing the 2023 decree.
Senegal uses the CFA franc, and financial dealings with other countries fall under WAEMU Regulation No. 06/2024/CM/UEMOA of 20 December 2024, which replaced the 2010 regulation (article 35). It defines direct investment as "the acquisition of non-financial assets" or a stake of at least 10% in a company. Making a foreign direct investment in a WAEMU state is free (article 15), subject to national formalities; the proceeds go through an authorised intermediary, meaning a bank, and the transaction is declared for statistical purposes to the Ministry of Finance and the BCEAO. When the asset is later sold to a resident, the bank transfers the proceeds on presentation of supporting documents. Keep the notarial deed and proof of transfers: you will need them to repatriate funds.
SN HLM, the national social housing company, offers terms for Senegalese living abroad. For its Bambilor programme, its registration sheet published online lists buyer credit from Banque Islamique du Sénégal for up to fifteen years for the diaspora, with documents including a residence permit, proof of income and the last six months of bank statements, and an application fee of 0.5% excluding tax, minimum 150,000 FCFA (SN HLM document). Its HLM Diaspora programme in Sébikhotane plans 500 serviced plots on 35 hectares, mainly for the diaspora, according to its ongoing projects page.
Buying from abroad multiplies the risks: do not hand money to a relative or middleman to "reserve" a plot. Have the title checked by a notary you choose, and pay into the notary's account or the bank account of the selling organisation.
Housing policy now runs through the national programme for housing access and urban renewal (PNALRU). According to an APS dispatch of April 2025, the Minister of Urban Planning announced 1,000 emergency homes by December 2025 and 500,000 homes over 10 to 15 years, after an audit of the 100,000-homes programme "found in place", relying in particular on the growth of SAFRU, SN HLM, SICAP and the FHS. We found no published progress report on these targets.
The Diamniadio and Lac Rose urban hubs were already cited by the government in 2014 as responses to the housing shortage. Together with Bambilor and Sébikhotane, these areas account for most of the new developments listed on Imonga, but the Diacksao Bambilor and Dény Birame Ndao hubs were also on the 2024 list of frozen areas.
A public programme is no guarantee of timing. SICAP handed over the keys to 100 villas in its Lac Rose subdivision in January 2025; its managing director himself spoke of "12 years of waiting" (business221, 31 January 2025).
As of 14 September 2026, Imonga has no listings in Senegal but lists 14 property developments. Thirteen are in the Dakar region according to their pages, and one is in Bayakh, between the Diamniadio and Lac Rose hubs according to its developer. Eight are under construction, five are selling and one is completed. They are run by SN HLM (3), SICAP (3), SIPRES (3), Teyliom Properties (3) and Peacock Investments (2). The pages draw on public information: check every price and deadline with the developer before paying anything.
The professional directory has 42 entries in Senegal: 32 developers, 8 agencies and 2 listing platforms. Six carry Imonga's "verified" badge (SN HLM, SICAP SA, SIPRES, Teyliom Properties, Peacock Investments and Addoha Sénégal), which does not replace the professional card required by law (see the traps below). The financing calculator estimates a monthly payment from the price, down payment, rate and term you enter: we do not publish rates, which depend on each bank and each application.
When one property is sold to two buyers, the one who registered their right in the land book wins, because a real right only exists against third parties once published (article 20 of Law No. 2011-07). Pay at signing in the notary's office, have the deed filed without delay, and demand the new statement of real rights in your name. If a dispute concerns a title, a caution entry (prénotation) authorised by the court president can be recorded to warn third parties (article 72).
A plot allocated by délibération cannot be sold (Decree No. 2022-2307). A lease on State land cannot be transferred without authorisation, and agreements made in breach are void (article 38 of the State Domain Code). A plot in a frozen area or on public domain land cannot be acquired safely. In all three cases, a receipt or "transfer certificate" makes you the holder of nothing: demand a land title, a recent statement of real rights and the notary's written opinion on the area.
Law No. 82-07 of 30 June 1982 makes property development, transactions and management subject to prior authorisation and a professional card (articles 2 and 3). Regularly carrying out these activities without a card, even on the side, is punishable by two months to two years in prison and a fine of 50,000 to 2,000,000 FCFA, or either penalty (article 16). Ask to see the card before paying a commission.
Beyond the caps of Decree No. 2023-382 set out above, refuse "viewing fees", get a receipt for every payment and contact CONAREL in case of dispute.
Other scams recur across the region; we cover them in our article on avoiding property scams in West Africa.
| Need | Contact |
|---|---|
| Statement of real rights, registration of the sale | Land registry (Conservation de la propriété et des droits fonciers, DGID), through the notary |
| Deed of sale, statement of duties and fees | A notary with territorial jurisdiction |
| Prior transaction declaration, lease or transfer of State land | State Lands directorate (DGID) |
| Allocation decision, municipal subdivision | The municipality, and the State's representative for approval |
| Frozen area, release clearance | Land-use control directorate (DGSCOS) |
| Certificat d'urbanisme, building authorisation | The planning services responsible for the municipality |
| Boundaries | A licensed surveyor (géomètre expert) |
| Rent, deposit or fee dispute | CONAREL (toll-free 800 80 77 77) |
| Social housing, public programmes | SN HLM, SICAP |
A land title (titre foncier) is private property registered in the land book, final and unchallengeable under Law No. 2011-07. A lease covers land that remains the State's: an ordinary lease lasts up to 18 years, a long lease 18 to 50 years, and transferring it requires authorisation. A municipal délibération on national domain land only grants a right of use, which cannot be the subject of any transaction under Decree No. 2022-2307.
For rent of 500,000 FCFA a month or less, no more than two months' rent, under Decree No. 2023-382 of 24 February 2023. Only one month is payable on moving in, and the rest is spread over twelve months. Rent cannot be paid in advance and the agency fee is capped at half a month. The decree sets no cap above 500,000 FCFA.
The General Tax Code sets a registration duty of 5% of the price on a property sale, 3% on the transfer of State land for housing and 1% on social housing sold by an approved developer. Land publication duties, stamp duty, notary fees and VAT on those fees come on top. Ask the notary for a written statement before signing.
The land laws we read do not reserve land titles for nationals, and WAEMU Regulation No. 06/2024/CM/UEMOA makes direct investment by non-residents free, with funds going through a bank and a statistical declaration. The procedure is the same: notary, statement of real rights, notarial deed, registration. Keep the supporting documents to repatriate the proceeds of a future sale.
We do not publish prices: Imonga has no listings in Senegal, and we found no recent public statistics with a method on prices by neighbourhood. The only public prices we quote are those shown by developers for their programmes, such as SN HLM in Bambilor. For an existing property, compare similar homes and have it valued before signing.
To our knowledge, no consolidated, up-to-date list is published. Areas frozen in 2024 included the Corniches, Dakar subdivisions, the Guédiawaye and Malika plans, the Bambilor and Dény Birame Ndao hubs and part of Lac Rose. Have the notary query the authorities and ask whether a DGSCOS release clearance is needed.
Pages and texts consulted on 14 September 2026.
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