Document checklist for property purchase – what you need to know before buying a resale property

Buying a property, is not only buying a dream home but also your investment for life. But it doesn't take much for it to turn into a nightmare.Ready to move in with all facilities, which wouldn't want that?I have always wanted to buy a property, which will be ready and easy to move in. Who would want to wait for at least two years before the builder got his dream home ready. In the meanwhile he would have to continue paying rent on his current flat and Pre Emi’s.Plus there was always the chance of the developer over-promising and then not delivering. Typically, every new project has a swimming pool and a clubhouse built into the design at the launch stage, and gradually such things disappear when the time to deliver nears. An old flat does not have any of these risks. "What you see is what you get”.However, just before the day of registration was getting close, I was having sleepless nights a week before I was supposed to register the property in my name while purchasing an apartment in Bangalore. How would I know if the property was at all in the name of the person to whom I was going to hand over the money. Once this doubt had set in, there were thousands of other whys, where’s and how’s.

Hire A Good Lawyer

So I got in touch with a lawyer and asked his opinion. He gave me a list of documents that I needed to furnish from the seller, he would be checking them and give me a written opinion that the documents are in order and hence a go ahead to buy the property.Here is the list of documents required:

• Absolute sale deed in present seller's name
• Khata certificate & extract from BBMP
• Latest tax paid receipt
• If any loan outstanding on the property, latest statement from bank
• Encumbrance Certificate from date of purchase till date
• Agreement of sale & construction executed by developer in favour of seller
• Latest electricity bill & receipt for the said flat
• NOC from Apartment Association
• Sanctioned building plan
• Possession/occupancy certificate from builder
• All title documents of land owner
• Joint development agreement, GPA, & Sharing/supplementary Agreement, between land owner and builder
• Whether originals are available for inspection if no loan is taken?
• A Copy of all registered previous agreements (in case of re-sale property)
• RTC (Records of Rights and Tenancy Corps) or 7/12 extract
• Conversion Order issued by the concerned Authority
• Registered development agreement (If in case of Joint Development Property)
• Power of attorney/s if any
• Photocopy of Society share certificate & Society registration certificate.

So what I was confirmed about after I got the property documents are:

• The seller was the genuine owner of the property
• The documents were genuine, hence no fraudulent deals

Few other things to ensure if you are buying a resale land are;

Ensure A Clear Title :

This is the most important aspect to be considered before buying a house. If you are buying a house on a leasehold land or land owned by government, you need to obtain a no- objection certificate from the authorities. To get such a certificate, you may have to pay prescribed fees, which will further inflate the consideration for the property.The other most important thing is the entire history of agreements pertaining to that property. "The entire chain of agreements should be made available to the buyerAlways insist on the 'chain of documents'— all the agreements effecting 'buying and selling of property' till date since it was constructed.Can I ever over emphasize the importance of checking the property documents? The answer is No. But can I confirm that I got a good night’s sleep after I got these documents from the seller? The answer is an emphatic Yes! So seek expert advice and make your decisions. “Be Diligent Before Becoming A Litigant”.