Every land scam story in Kenya has the same middle chapter. The buyer trusted a photocopy.
A land search is how you stop being that buyer. It is an official request to the Lands Registry that returns a certificate showing who owns a parcel, how big it is, and whether a bank loan, caution or restriction is registered against it. If the name on the certificate is not the name of the person selling to you, the deal stops there.
Where you do the search depends on the county
Kenya runs two systems right now. Ardhisasa, the Ministry of Lands' online platform, was live in Nairobi and Murang'a as of July 2026, with rollouts under way in Mombasa, Kiambu, Machakos and Isiolo. Everywhere else, you still do a manual search at the county land registry.
On Ardhisasa:
- Create an account at ardhisasa.lands.go.ke using your ID and KRA PIN.
- Go to Services, then Land Search, and enter the title or parcel number.
- Pay the search fee through ArdhiPay (M-Pesa, card or bank).
- Wait for the registered owner to approve the request on their own account.
- Download the signed search certificate, usually within one to three working days.
At the registry: take a copy of the title, your ID and KRA PIN, fill in the search application form, pay, and collect the result.
The fee is KES 1,000 at the time of writing, though some guides still quote KES 500. Check the amount on the payment page before you pay. Also note that Ardhisasa went down from 1 September 2026, and the Law Society of Kenya flagged the outage publicly. If the system is down, a registry search is still valid.
Reading the certificate
Look at four lines. The registered proprietor's name. The parcel size, which should match what you were told. The encumbrances section, where a bank charge or caution would show. And the date of the search, because a certificate from last year proves nothing about today.
What a search won't tell you
This is where most buyers relax too early. The certificate is a record of paper. It says nothing about the ground.
- Whether the beacons are where the map says. Buy the registry index map, then walk the plot with a surveyor and find every beacon.
- Whether there is real access. A plot with no registered road is a plot you may never build on.
- Whether a family member has an unregistered claim. Spouses and heirs can object later. Ask neighbours and the area chief.
- Whether the land needs Land Control Board consent. Agricultural land does, and a sale without it can be void.
How PDM handles this for you
PDM buys land outright and secures the mother title before it sells a single plot. Before purchase, the land history is checked with the area chief, local administration and the DCI. We encourage every buyer to run their own search anyway. You should trust the certificate, not the salesperson, and that includes ours.
Once you pay, PDM processes your individual title deed in about 60 days, and the price you see is all-inclusive.
Want to see the beacons yourself? PDM runs site visits every Saturday from Greenspot Towers on the Eastern Bypass. Book your seat.
