Best Rera Advocates & Real Estate Attorney

Laws related to real estate in India are governed by both State Laws and the Central laws. The reason behind it is that as per the Constitution of India, ‘Land’ falls under the State List, while matters related to ‘Transfer of property and registration of deeds and documents’ falls under the Concurrent List. Hence, the procedure behind buying and registering a property does seem complicated. First, we shall discuss the basic rules of real estate law in India.

Matters related to property purchase in India fall under RERA. To have a better understanding over the subject of real estate as well as various legal provisions related to it, it is advised that you seek legal advice from experienced real Estate Lawyer.

As per The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, the authorities provided under it, i.e. the Real Estate Regulatory Authority or RERA will govern the development, marketing including the sale of real estate projects. RERA has been introduced with an objective to protect the interests of the consumers in the real estate sector. A particular mechanism has been established under the Act for speedy solution to the disputes through the Real Estate Regulatory Authority or RERA and the Appellate Tribunal.

Any instrument or document related to the land has to be registered under the Registration Act, 1908. Procedure for registration of documents is clearly defined in India with a robust government machinery, registering and maintaining these documents.

Payment of stamp duty in relation to the land is governed under The Indian Stamp Act, 1899. It deals with a major component of the costs related to property registration and must be paid to the state governments by the buyer of the property. The rates for stamp duty can vary from state to state, as it is collected under the state government . Generally, stamp duty would be paid in terms of a percentage of the total transaction value.

Another Act which shall be considered when buying or selling property is Transfer of Property Act, 1882. As per Act, ‘sale’ could be understood as a transfer of ownership in exchange of a price paid or promised to be paid or a price which is partly paid and is part-promised. In cases of tangible immovable property, a transfer could be made only through registered documents, as has been provided under the Registration Act, 1908. Provided under the Section 55 of the Act, it is the duty of the seller of the property to disclose to the buyer any material defect in the property in question or any other problem, if any, in the title of property about which the seller is aware while the buyer could not have known, but with reasonable care, can discover.

Although the seller has disclosed every information regarding the property including his title, the buyer should exercise due diligence and check the title of the seller.

Documents to be checked before buying a home

Following certificates are required to be checked properly, before one decides to buy a residential or business property-

Completion/Occupancy Certificate: will be issued by the respective municipal authority after the completion of the project. This document is required when one applies for loans from banks including for matters related to applying of water and electricity connections.
Building Plan: contains a blueprint of the project with a layout of the housing spaces as well as utilities. Due diligence is to be followed by the buyer to ensure that the building plan is completely approved by the local municipal authorities.
Encumbrance Certificate: can be obtained from the office of the sub-registrar where the property has been registered. Such a document would certify that the property has no current monetary or legal liabilities. It is important to certify that no dues are there on the property (such as property or other taxes, electricity bills, water bills, etc) and that the legal ownership of such property is in the name of the seller, and that such seller will be authorised to sell the property.

List of necessary documents for buying property

It is advised that the documents mentioned below are kept in hand by all parties involved, i.e. the purchaser, seller as well as the witnesses. Each party is required to submit their Aadhar Card, PAN Card, or any other document which proves their identity and is issued by the government authority such as the Voter ID Card or passport, including two passport-size photographs.

Best Rera Advocates & Real Estate Attorney

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