Check list for buying property in Bangalore

Disclaimer : This post is intended to provide few tips, while looking for and buying property in Bengaluru/Bangalore. Information provided in this post is by no means complete. Please your discretion and contact your legal adviser, before taking any decision based on the information in this blog. Author will not compensate you in any way whatsoever, if you ever happen to suffer a loss/inconvenience/damage because of/while making use of information in this blog post.

Buying a property is an important decision in anyone's life. Due diligence is required, while making the big decision, which could have a massive impact on buyer's financial state. This post provides few tips while buying property in Bangalore. Hope this helps!


Terms used in this post :
BBMP - Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike
BDA - Bangalore Development Authority
BESCOM - Bangalore Electricity Supply Company
BWSSB - Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board
PSU - Public Sector Undertaking

Documents Required : These are the first and foremost things, which need to be verified.

1. Sale Deed/s  : Based on the sale history, there may be as many number of sale deeds. So, one needs to make sure that the seller is in pocession of all the sale deeds, ensuring that there is no break in the sale history. In all the sale deeds, one needs to check that
• The names of owners are rightly mentioned - each sale deed should mention all the previous owners.
• Schedule of property (details like location, survey number, Khata number, dimensions/area, particulars of sites/roads on all four directions of the property)
2. Khata Certificate : Khata Certificate or Khata is not a conclusive proof of ownership of property. It indicates who is responsible for paying annual BBMP taxes. It may happen that though the property is registered in the latest owner's name, Khata may not have been transferred.  If a plot is initially developed by a housing cooperative society, then it may happen that initial Khata is issued by BDA and there after BBMP has been issuing it.
3. Khata Extract :  Khata Extract is an extract taken from assessment register of BBMP with details like list of owners who held the property, tax calculation for a year. Like Khata Certificate, this is not a conclusive proof of ownership.
4. Encumbrance Certificate/s : This contains the transactions which happened on the property and the monetary liabilities against the property, like loans and mortgages. It is advised that one should have encumbrance certificate/s listing the transactions at least for the last 15 years. There may be multiple encumbrance certificates based on the duration for which encumbrance certificate is obtained from the office of sub-registrar.
5. Possession Certificate : If the site/plot is developed by a housing cooperative society, it may issue possession certificate for the first owner of the property.
6. No Objection Certificate : If the site/plot is developed by a housing cooperative society, it may issue no objection certificate to the first owner of the property regarding the subsequent sale of the property.
7. Latest BBMP Tax Paid Receipt : This indicates that there are no BBMP tax dues by the current owner.
8. Utility Bills (BESCOM / BWSSB) : Power and water bills bear the name of the owner, who got the connections for his house. Though these are not conclusive proofs of ownership, you may want it to be transferred to your name for address proof or availing government facilities(remember the LPG connection verification chaos few years ago, which required electricity bill bearing the name of the owner!)

Authentic Information On BBMP Properties Available Online :

1. BDA Approved Layouts : Here is the BDA link, which lists the BDA approved layouts. You can check whether the layout, where you are looking for a property is approved by BDA.
2. Property Details using PID : Nowadays, properties in Bangalore are given a PID(Property ID). Check the tax paid receipt for the PID. If PID is available, you can find the details of the property and name of the owner. Use this BBMP link, to find the details of the property by providing PID.
3. GIS information based on PID : BBMP has also come up with GIS (geographic information system) to locate the property in the map. If you are able to find the details about the property using the above BBMP link, by providing PID, along with the property details, you will also find a link mentioned - Click here to view your property in GIS map. This can be very useful in verifying the claims of the seller. 

Other points to consider : 

• A Khata or B Khata : There is a lot of buzz about Khata's. Important thing to know here is that PSU Banks and major Private Sector Banks provide loans to only those properties which have A Khata(also known as BBMP Khata). Therefore, it is best to go for properties with A Khata.
• Application for Khata transfer : Get the application for Khata transfer signed by present owner/seller, if you decide on buying the property. This is required for the transfer of Khata in your name. To find more about Khata transfer, you can refer to the following pdf  file from BBMP.
• No objection certificate(NOC) for change of name in BESCOM bill : Even for changing the name in BESCOM bill after you bought the property, you need the NOC from the last owner/seller. This is required for the transfer of Additional Security Deposit(ASD - which amounts to average bill amount for two months). For details on how to do the transfer, you can read my post - How to change the name in BESCOM electricity bill?