Points to note before you buy a flat This is for young couples and other newcomers to the real

estate sector, with plans of buying a flat and making it home a sweet one.With the number of people going for flats in the city increasing, most cases see that the owners or prospective owners, are never in the real know of matters regarding the building's legal standing. There's more to it And that is why experts keep repeating that purchasing a flat is not just about selecting the right locality or securing a bank loan to look after the financial part of the deal. Several builders resort to construction on plots that are less than the minimum area required for building apartments. Layout approvals are must and the buyer, before inking down the deal, should be careful to check this because if construction is called to a stop by the authorities, the builder can vamoose anytime, leaving you in the cold. You should make it a point to check the background of the builder and do a small investigation into his earlier projects, just to make sure that he is credible. You should also ensure that the building has permission from the authority concerned before you enter into a formal agreement with the builder and also that the builder sticks to existing guidelines while going about construction. Another factor to be ensured is that the agreement between you and the builder is registered. These checkpoints are just a few from the long list. Always consult a known advocate and also the local authority concerned to know what your legal footing should be before purchasing a flat.It is always better that all specifications, regarding materials that are going to be used and where, are discussed before work on the building starts. Verify amenities Also verify the amenities that have to be provided by the builder. These include power, generators, lifts, water connections and pipelines, car parking facilities, ventilations, bathroom fittings, taps, doors, windows, rain harvesting pits and for those who are inclined, a clean chit from a vasthu expert as well. You can also discuss on the direction which the flat should be facing, east or north. Keep visiting the construction and have a list of your priorities, likings and demands and monitor whether they are being taken care of. Always verify the approved plan of the building and check how many floors have been sanctioned. This obviously means that you need to check if the floor you have booked the flat on is approved. Confirm the ownership of the land and check if the land title is clear. You need to check if the builder owns the land or if he has got into an agreement with another land owner. Whatever may be the case its highly imperative to confirm the ownership of the land and ask relevant questions to the builder to clear the air. Check if the builder has followed the prescribed bylaws applicable to the location while constructing the building. Any deficiencies on this front can lead to serious consequences both for the builder as well as the buyer. Verify if the specifications and amenities outlined in the agreement to sale match with what has been promised or portrayed by the builder in his sales brochure. Check if the location falls under the purview of the Urban Land Ceiling Act. If yes then you need to confirm if the builder has obtained an NOC to begin construction. Check and verify if the necessary permission or sanctions have been obtained for water, fire, electricity and other basic amenities.

Once again it is strongly advised to seek assistance of a legal or technical expert when it comes to matters concerning verifying the title of the land which involves a fair bit of technical know how. If you are going to opt for a home loan to fund your purchase then in most cases the banks concerned would perform the due diligence on your behalf which covers most of the factors above. You might need to verify this with the bank when you approach them for your home loan.
Builders may promise the moon or real estate agents may promise land paved with gold. It is part of their marketing strategy. But how does an individual go about making a sound choice in terms of the property one buys? It helps if one knows which legal documents one should be careful about while buying property. Most of us leave this part to the experts and do not bother to go through these documents. It is definitely better if one gets a legal opinion on the documents, but a basic knowledge of legal documents would help an investor in analysing what he or she is buying. It is this veracity of the legal document that will make or mar the ownership of property. The document writers and lawyers are experts in correct wordage, but a property owner who knows the nitty-gritty of a deal will be better off than those who are not. Physical verification

The first and the foremost thing that a probable investor needs to do is to physically verify the property. A look at the actual piece of land will give an idea about its good and bad points. This is also true in case of a flat or a building. But that is not all. One should assess whether the property has individual access from the public road. If so, how big is the road? Many times, the road earmarked in a document may not be physically visible near the property. If you are planning construction, would the heavy vehicle carrying construction material be able to reach your property? Another important point is to assess is the kind of neighbourhood one would live in. It would benefit the landowner to find out if there are troublesome factors that the real estate agent may not have told him about, said Advocate P. Vijay Kumar. Similarly, one should be able to find out whether the area is pleasant and pollution free. "A chicken, duck or goat farm may not constitute a very pleasant neighbourhood, unless one has such interests," said Mr. Vijay Kumar. A high-tension overhead line may also be a cause of concern if it crosses the property. Hence, it is imperative that one sees what one is buying. Apart from the soil test, it would help the investor to get the land examined by a civil engineer who can advise on the type of building that the property would be suitable for. Do not forget to find out whether it was a filled out plot. Even if a small pond existed in that place a decade ago, some extra amount on piling work might be called for. Probable ban Most of us go by the beauty of a place and of course the land value. It would be well worth it to check with the local body if there is any freezing of construction or whether it is a notified area, like a heritage zone. Planning in such a place would require a different perspective. It is likely that the local bodies would also help in providing information whether there are any plans to acquire any property for expansion of roads or for any other public purpose. If the property is located near any major developing centre, such information would be crucial. Areas lying near the proposed routes to be connected to the national highways can become bad investments, if the individual has plans like constructing a house. Once the location of the place is decided upon, the most important document that a buyer must insist upon is the original title deed and also the past ones extending up to at least 13 years. This is to ensure that the property has not been pledged for a loan in the bank. "We usually take up the writing of a new document after reading the original document pertaining to the property that is being sold," said K. Krishna Kumar, document writer. An encumbrance certificate from the Registrar's office is a must to find out if there had been any court attachment or charges existing against the property, said Mr. Vijay Kumar. Knowledge of documents A little knowledge about what the document is all about would come in handy when faced with a number of owners. Coownership rights like rights of minor or insane persons or the reservation of right to the property to certain individuals till death are some of the issues that can crop up if the seller does not have an exclusive title deed. It would also help if the buyer verifies that the absolute rights of the seller of the property are being transferred to the buyer. The property should also be correctly and completely described with survey numbers, boundaries, building number, measurements and proper description of any amenities. It would be advisable to get a sketch of the property from the village office and attach it to the document. After the ownership deed, it is most important to find out whether the seller has any arrears like building tax, property tax, electricity and water charges. The buyer can always insist on seeing the necessary books and bills. When you go for a reclaimed land, make sure that necessary permit for reclamation has been obtained. Or else, the buyer would end up with litigation. While buying a building, insist on seeing the building plan and the completion certificate issued by local body to see that construction has been made as according to the building rules. Check for amenities In case one is buying flats, verify the description of common area and amenities available for use. Most of the builders would give a description about such facilities in the brochure. Check whether the promised facilities are really available. Builders may be constructing villas in areas near an industrial belt. A buyer who goes for such property might end up paying a high price for property, which has little resale value.

The brochure may say that it is only half a kilometre from the main road. But it is likely that the main road is not a regular bus route. A swimming pool may be too shallow or the indoor game facility would not be adequate and so on.

1. Check out the individual flat plan and match it with the actual size of the flat. Take extra care to match(measure) the size of balconies. This is where most of the builder do plan violation by increasing the size of balconies to get extra money. Thats because the expenditure on the balcony for construction is the least but the customer pays the price as part of the Super Built Up Area. 2. Again measure the exact size(carpet area) of the flat. Most of the customer take the word of builder as sacrosanct when it comes to stated size of flat, but on calculation one can many times find a 2-5% shortfall. Remember that can mean a difference of 80k to 2 lac rupee difference in a 40 lac flat. Now you get it! right ? 3. Check out your undivided share of land. Very simply put an unit of undivided share of land equals (total super built area of all flats in the complex)/(total size of land for the complex). So, to reach at the undivided share of land alloted for your flat it should be (your super built up area) * (the unit calculated above). Lot of times this is overstated by builder to attract customers. But remember, if there is a natural calamity like earthquake,fire etc and the building gets destroyed its only the undivided share of land which you really own. Dont leave it for later. Builder which do not allot undivided share of land to buyers are a strict no-no (yes there are such builders). 4. For under construction flats its very common for the builder to give possession of the flat once its occupation ready. But the amenities (if any) are given after long gap and hassles. My suggestion would be simply hold the money for the amenities part until its really completed. 5. Patta Verification 6. Guideline Value 7. Demand at least EC for minimum 15 years 8. Check the Property Tax recipt till date & name 9. if the Seller is a power Agent check weather he has all the rights to sell the property 10. Check that the plot is approved by Panchayats/CMDA/DTCP/MMDA 11. Check that the property belongs to which zone (Resi/Agri/Comm/Aquifier/NonResi/industrial/Special) 12. Check that the property had undergone any hier purchase, mortgage, loan, if so NOC from the concern department 13. Check that the plot can be approved for residential purpose in case of unapproved 14. Verify the documents with a legal Advocate 15. Check the documents with a Banker for Loan Possibility (without patta & Approval loan is not possible) 16. Dont agree for any Oral Agreement , Never ! 17. Check that the Layout has been alloted OSR Area ( temple, school, park, shop ) or else the owner has to pay 10% of the land value to the Government for approval. Only if the layout exceeds 3000sqm,32258sqft,74Cents . 18. Insure that the Plot is minimum 500 meter away from National Highway, Sewage Cannal, Sea Shore, River, Pond, Lakes, Dam, Airport, Busstand, Railwaystation, Nuculear Power Station, industries. 19. The Registeration Stamp Duty charge will be 8% of land value and 1% as Registeration fees and Misc Charge extra 20. The Road Width defines the no of floor you can build, in case there is Airport near by you can get only G+1 permit 21. The Zone type and the Road Width defines how much area you can build, in case Aquafier Recharge Zone you can get only 0.8 FSI wherels in residential Zone you get 1.5 FSI 22. Check the frontage length of the plot. 23. Check the type of ground soil. 24. Check the type of ground water. 25. In case of corner plot check the shortage area 26. Check the roadlevel height and rain water stagnating 27. Check for Vastu ( it will be better if it is east faceing and rectangle in shape ) , if you believe in it . 28. Check weather Drainage faculty is there. 29. Have a detail conversation with the landowners near by and always have touch with them

30. It is Mandatory to have the complete details of the property seller including his photograph. 31. If the plot is near by Burial Ground the value will get low. 32. Other Essential Facility Nearby & Need to Know are Schools , Collages , Busstand , Railway Station , Ration shop etc. Understand that you need all these for next many decades , so are they 2-3 Km away or 10 Km away can become one of the biggest deciding factors 33. Make sure you have address and phone numbers of all the relevent and concerned offices like Panchayats Office , V.O Office, R.I Office, Tahsildar office , Register Office,EB Office , Court , Police Station, Post Office
When buying a property ensure that there is no claim on the property by authorities or government and check whether land is designated for the residential purpose. Before buying the property ensure you have good neighbors and check the reason for selling the property. Make good market research and seek experts service for making your decision. Call for original property documents. The non-availability of such documents should be taken as a red signal. It could mean that the title of the seller is not clear and there could be a lien, mortgage or other encumbrance on the property. - Ask for photocopies of all deeds of title related to the property to be purchased. A legal opinion through a good standing advocate is advisable. The legal counsel will examine the deeds to establish the ownership of the property by seller, preferably through an advocate. Ascertain the survey number, village and registration district of the property as these details are required for registration of the sale. Previous encumbrances and loans, if any on the property must be cleared before completion of purchase of the property. The title of the Vendor to the property must be clear and marketable. - For apartment. Check for approved layout plan and approved building plan with number of floors. - Check the building bye-laws in that area to verify any issue with setback, side setback, height, etc. - Confirm transfer fees, stamp duty and registration charges to be paid on purchase of the property as well as outgoings to be paid for the property i.e. property tax, water and electricity charges, society charges, maintenance charges. - The original sale agreement should have the municipal-approved plan of the flat, carpet area with the area of the balconies shown separately, price of the property including the proportionate price of common areas and facilities shown separately and intervals at which installments may be paid. - Check if proper stamp duty has been paid. - If the property is in a co-operative society, examine the original share certificate. It mentions the latest owners name. - Obtaining a societys NOC may not be mandatory under the new Model Bye-laws of the Co-operative Housing Society, but it is advisable as it offers clarity about the title of the property, pending society dues, property disputes and hypothecation, if any. - An income tax clearance certificate would ensure that the seller has discharged his income tax liabilities to avoid attachment of the property. - If possible, consult a property lawyer, especially where the sale is through a power of attorney. A good lawyer will undertake proper investigation and issue prominent public notices to clear interest of other properties in the property concerned. - Getting a home loan sanctioned ensures that the documents are in place as banks or institutions conduct due diligence before disbursing loans. - Ensure payment and discharge of encumbrances that are to be cleared before purchase. - Obtain physical delivery of the property and of the title deeds. - Complete the transaction of sale by executing and registering the deed. An unregistered sale agreement has no validity in a court of law. - Financing capability. The debt-service ratio helps you assess to what extent you can take financial risks. For every Rs 100 earned, your EMI should not exceed Rs 40, and that includes EMIs taken for other purposes. Maintaining this ratio is important as it helps you deal with other expenses easily. - Accessibility. Access to the property is critically important. If access is difficult, re-sale values will be affected, and may cause day to day inconvenience. - Locality: Proximity to transport hubs, schools, hospitals, market, central business district, entertainment centres, hotels, restaurants, pollution levels, safety records of the neighbourhood. - Reputation of the builder or seller. Check around with local sources to find out more of the builders reputation. - Get a good idea of the costs of various components like price, stamp duty, registration charges, transfer fees, monthly outgoings, society charges & costs of utilities. These are not immediately available, but should be factored in to the total cost. - Facilities. Adequate water, electricity and other utilities should be an important factor. - If you believe in beliefs such as Vaastu, get consultation done before buying the property. - If you are buying property on loan, get an insurance so that in case of your fatality, your family can clear the outstanding loan.