Commercial terms

Fees & Mandates

Clear terms before we begin.

These are service charges, not membership subscriptions. Initial enquiries are free. Free, Basic, Elite and Excelsior membership prices and benefits are explained separately.

Compare membership plans

Before you enquire

Estimate your service fee.

An indicative Substrat fee, not a quotation or an asset valuation. Initial enquiries are free.

Substrat service

Agreed transaction value (₦)

For exchange, enter only the value attributable to your side. Fixed fees do not require a transaction value.

Indicative service charges

Marketplace listing only

Ordinarily paid by: Seller / owner

Service fee range₦50,000 – ₦250,000

Published terms: ₦50,000 – ₦250,000

Depends on asset category, complexity, media requirements and agreed listing duration. Payment is requested only after review, verification and approval for publication.

How this estimate is calculated

Calculation

Fixed fee range: ₦50,000 (lower bound, simplest scope) to ₦250,000 (upper bound, complex scope).

Minimums and ranges

Lowest published fixed amount: ₦50,000.

Assumptions

Uses the approved published fee schedule; your signed mandate governs.
Value entered is the agreed transaction value, not a Substrat valuation.
Tax, membership, purchase money and third-party professional costs are excluded.

No fees are added together automatically. Retainers are credited only if your signed mandate says so. Negotiated alternatives and minimum fees may apply. Membership, asset purchase money and independent professional costs are separate. Applicable taxes are identified separately on the relevant Substrat invoice where required. Any applicable tax is excluded from this estimate and itemised on your invoice. Scope, charges and payment triggers must be agreed in writing before work begins.

Discuss your requirements

Selling, buying & payment

You do not need to be a member to transact.

Membership is optional. Your first enquiry is free; selling, buying and professional service appointments have their own written terms.

If you have a property to sell

01 · Submit your property. Use Sell or List an Asset. We review identity, authority, ownership evidence and property details before accepting it.
02 · Agree the exposure. Approved public listings appear in Available Assets and on their own property page. Confidential mandates are introduced privately to suitable counterparties, not automatically published.
03 · Agree the fee. Listing-only exposure and sale facilitation are different appointments. Listing-only: ₦50,000 – ₦250,000. Property sale mandate: 5% up to ₦250m · 4% above ₦250m to ₦1bn · 3% above ₦1bn. Listing and brokerage fees are not automatically combined; your written agreement specifies applicable charges.
04 · Pay at the agreed stage. Listing fees are requested after review and publication approval, before going live. Any retainer is invoiced on appointment. Success fees are due only at the signed mandate’s agreed completion trigger.

Submit an asset

If you want to buy a property

01 · Browse or share your brief. Tell us your location, budget, property type and timing. Browsing and the initial enquiry carry no Substrat charge.
02 · Decide whether to appoint us. An enquiry about a seller’s listing does not automatically create a buyer fee. A separate acquisition mandate can cover sourcing, negotiation or agreed support. Published acquisition fee: 2% – 3% of acquisition price. Any minimum and payment trigger are disclosed before appointment.
03 · Receive terms and an invoice. Substrat’s team arranges the mandate and sends the invoice privately. Your private invoice page shows the due date, agreed trigger, UBA payment instructions, receipt upload and payment status. Pay only when your agreed invoice becomes due.
04 · Complete with safeguards. Independent legal, valuation and inspection costs are separate. The purchase price goes to the entitled recipient or documented settlement channel, not a personal account for Substrat fees.

Browse available assets Discuss a buying brief

Where will I be asked to pay?

Listing applicants receive an email with a private application-status link. When payment is requested, that page shows the agreed amount, UBA instructions, your reference and receipt-upload steps. Substrat reviews and confirms the transfer. Brokerage, acquisition and bespoke mandate invoices are sent privately by the team under signed terms; these are not membership payments.

The party appointing Substrat ordinarily pays. Charging both sides requires disclosure and written agreement where legally permissible. Use approved corporate details against an invoice and independently confirm any change.

See fees and estimate your service charge

Core principle

The party who appoints Substrat pays Substrat.

Substrat's fees depend on the asset, transaction value, complexity and the role we are appointed to perform. The applicable scope, fee and payment trigger are agreed in writing before a mandate begins.

The party appointing Substrat ordinarily pays the agreed Substrat fee. Third-party professional costs are separate unless expressly stated otherwise.

Substrat does not routinely charge both buyer and seller in the same transaction. Any dual-sided arrangement requires disclosure, written agreement from both parties and consistency with applicable law and professional requirements.

Buyer due diligence

Verification is commissioned by the buyer.

Sellers can list after Substrat reviews their identity, authority and title documents. Full verification of title, survey and planning status is commissioned and paid for by the buyer before committing money, as is standard practice in Nigeria. Excelsior members have this coordinated for them; independent professionals' charges are disclosed and paid by the buyer.

Title search and legal search report

Official search at AGIS or the State Land Registry for the registered holder, encumbrances, mortgages and caveats, with a lawyer's search report.

₦150,000 – ₦350,000

Survey and boundary charting

Registered surveyor charts the coordinates with the Surveyor-General and confirms the beacons match the land.

₦100,000 – ₦250,000

Planning and development-control check

Building approval, contravention or demolition notices and any government acquisition affecting the plot.

₦100,000 – ₦200,000

Litigation and company searches

Court registry search for disputes affecting the asset and a CAC search where the seller is a company.

₦75,000 – ₦150,000

Physical inspection and occupancy check

Site visit confirming possession, occupants, tenants, condition and access. Travel outside Abuja or Lagos is extra.

₦50,000 – ₦150,000

Full buyer due-diligence pack

All of the above coordinated by Substrat for one asset, with a written summary of findings.

₦500,000 – ₦1,200,000

Indicative independent professional charges; the exact quote depends on the state, the asset and the registry, and is confirmed before work starts.

Commercial schedule

The mandate determines the fee.

Listing charges are separate from brokerage commissions. Each appointment is documented before work begins.

Marketplace

Marketplace listing only

Depends on asset category, complexity, media requirements and agreed listing duration. Payment is requested only after review, verification and approval for publication.

Vehicle brokerage

An agreed minimum brokerage fee may apply and will be disclosed before appointment.

Who pays

Seller

Fee

5% up to ₦50m · 3% – 4% above ₦50m

Vehicle sourcing / acquisition

The structure depends on the requirement, geography and sourcing scope.

Who pays

Buyer

Fee

2% – 3% or agreed fixed sourcing fee

Exchange / barter facilitation

Calculated on the agreed transaction value attributable to that client's side of the exchange. Substrat does not independently guarantee either asset's value.

Development / joint-venture transaction preparation

A success fee may be agreed in writing where appropriate and legally permissible. This is not an investment-management fee.

Who pays

Client

Fee

₦1 million – ₦5 million retainer · possible 1% – 2% success fee

REIT, tokenisation and pooled-investment transactions

Securities, pooled investments, REIT structures, tokenised real-world assets and other regulated products are considered only where legally permissible and, where required, with appropriately licensed or authorised professional partners.

Who pays

Separately agreed

Fee

Mandate-specific terms

Payment clarity

Three different types of money.

They are documented and handled separately throughout the transaction.

Substrat service fees

Listing fees, retainers, brokerage commissions, sourcing fees and agreed advisory fees paid to Substrat against its invoice.

Third-party professional costs

Legal, valuation, survey, inspection, authentication, technical, escrow and other specialist charges, kept distinct from Substrat fees.

Transaction consideration

Deposits and the purchase price for the asset, paid only through the documented transaction arrangements to the entitled recipient or approved settlement channel.

How payments work

From application to documented completion.

Stage 1

Initial application

The owner, buyer or prospective client submits an enquiry. There is no application charge.

Stage 2

Initial review / KYC

Substrat reviews the prospective client, asset and transaction. No asset purchase money is collected. Any agreed onboarding or specialist-review fee is paid only to Substrat's official corporate account against an invoice and payment reference.

Stage 3

Mandate appointment

For an accepted brokerage, sourcing, private-client or advisory mandate, scope and commercial terms are agreed in writing. Any applicable retainer is then paid against invoice.

Stage 4

Independent professional work

Lawyers, valuers, surveyors, engineers, authenticators, mechanics, aviation, marine and other professionals are ordinarily paid directly or under a transparent written arrangement. Their charges are not Substrat brokerage fees.

Stage 5

Transaction deposit

A buyer pays a transaction deposit only after appropriate documentation is in place, through the legally entitled recipient, an independent lawyer's properly operated client account, a bank or an appropriately constituted escrow arrangement.

Stage 6

Purchase price

The asset purchase price is not Substrat brokerage income. Where Substrat is not formally authorised as an escrow or settlement party, purchase funds do not pass through its ordinary operating account.

Stage 7

Substrat success fee

A success fee becomes payable only under the signed mandate and agreed completion trigger, to Substrat's official company account against invoice or from an expressly documented approved completion or escrow arrangement.

Stage 8

Taxes

Substrat invoices identify applicable taxes separately where required. Current tax display is controlled by an authorised administrator.

Substrat does not collect the purchase price of assets into personal accounts.

Transaction funds are paid through documented banking or approved escrow channels. Official Substrat service fees are paid only against invoice to approved corporate details. Payment instructions will never be changed solely through an informal WhatsApp or social-media message.

Important terms

Clear expectations, without clutter.

Every stated fee remains subject to the applicable written mandate.
Unusually complex or cross-border assignments may be separately quoted.
Third-party costs are not automatically included.
Fees do not guarantee that an asset will sell or that a desired asset will be found.
Asking prices and transaction values are not necessarily professional valuations.
Regulated financial or investment activity is considered only where legally permissible and through appropriately authorised parties where required.