Application of geographic information system to the practice of estate agency in Nigeria

Abstract

Technological advancement has turned the entire world into a global village with its attendant benefits to virtually all professions including estate surveying and valuation. It is against this background that the paper examines how the practice of estate agency can be enhanced using Geographic information system (GIS) with focus on GRA Ikeja, Lagos State. The map of GRA was obtained, digitised and exported into the GIS environment. The arc view 3.2a software was used, from which queries were carried out. GIS software was used to demonstrate how properties can be sourced from a database that contained all property types in GRA Ikeja. The database includes the facilities in each building, location, its rental value, and the property owner. Attribute data of the properties such as street name (parcel address), land use, ownership, building type, owner’s occupation, owner’s sex, title on the property, age and state of origin etc were collected. In addition, interview was conducted with some residents of GRA Ikeja, Lagos state. The study covered a total of the 1705 buildings in the GRA that were captured through the use of the aerial map which was further digitised. The digitised map when inputted into the GIS software automatically numbered all the buildings and roads in the area. Database query was used to retrieve information stored in the data base using structured query language [SQL] .Queries were generated basically through data base extraction in arc view 3.2a. Various queries were run to satisfy the user’s expectation(s). The results showed the vital roles of using GIS in the management of a simple data within a system, which was used in the creation, storage, and retrieval, manipulation of spatial and non-spatial data. The results further showed that agency can be carried out within the comfort of one’s home with the aid of GIS. The paper concluded that GIS as a vital part of technological advancement is very important to the practice of Estate agency.