Buying a flat? The checks that protect you

What the law says

The law protects the careful buyer, not the trusting one

Indian property law puts the burden of checking on the buyer. If you later find the seller did not really own the flat, you cannot simply say you believed them. To be protected as a bona fide purchaser under Section 41 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, you have to show that you took reasonable care to verify the seller's authority and acted in good faith, and the Supreme Court in Duni Chand v. Vikram Singh (2024) held that this must be specifically pleaded and proved, not assumed. A passive buyer who trusted and did not investigate gets no protection.

This is why the checks below are not paperwork for its own sake. Each one closes off a way you can lose the flat or your money after you have paid.

Title, encumbrances, and litigation: the ownership checks

Title. Confirm the seller actually owns what they are selling. Trace the chain of title through the parent documents, the earlier sale deeds, gift deeds, or inheritance records going back a couple of decades, ideally with a lawyer's title search. A key trap: a mutation entry in municipal or revenue records is not a document of title. Courts have repeatedly held that mutation records do not establish ownership, so relying on them alone is not enough, as the Delhi High Court held in Raj Kumar Sethi v. Janki Devi (2017).

Encumbrances. Check that the property is free of hidden charges, meaning existing mortgages, loans, or liens against it. Obtain an encumbrance certificate from the sub-registrar, which lists the registered transactions and charges on the property over a period. The registry indices matter here: the law treats you as having notice of a prior charge only if it was properly registered and indexed, so a thorough search of the registration records is what protects you, a point the Supreme Court made in Dattatraya Shanker Mote v. Anand Chintaman Datar (1974).

Litigation and attachment. Search for any pending court case, injunction, or government attachment over the property or project. A sale made while a suit is pending is caught by the doctrine of lis pendens and is subject to the outcome of that case, so it can be worthless to you, as the Supreme Court held in Chander Bhan v. Mukhtiar Singh (2024). Similarly, a transfer of property that has been attached for recovery of dues is illegal and void. Buying into a dispute you did not find does not make you a bona fide purchaser.

RERA registration and the sanctioned plan

For a project in a planning area, Section 3 of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 bars the promoter from advertising, marketing, booking, or selling without first registering the project with the state RERA. So confirm the project's RERA registration number, and check that what is being sold matches the sanctioned plan and the approvals on record.

A few things worth knowing. RERA covers all ongoing projects for which a completion certificate had not been issued when the Act came into force, as the Supreme Court settled in M/s. Newtech Promoters v. State of UP (2021). Even an individual owner who builds and sells a single flat can be a "promoter" under the Act. And if a project is not registered, that is a red flag, but it does not strip you of your remedies: buyers can still approach RERA against an unregistered project, and the civil courts remain open for such projects too. A completion certificate is also not a rubber stamp; where basic promised infrastructure like a legal approach road is missing, courts have treated the project as still "ongoing" despite a certificate.

The occupancy and completion certificates: the builder's duty

This is the check that most often decides a dispute. Under Section 11 of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, the promoter must obtain the completion certificate and the occupancy certificate from the competent authority and hand them over before giving possession. It is a non-delegable duty; the builder cannot push it onto you or ask you to accept the flat without these clearances.

The consequences for the builder are serious, and they are your protection. Offering possession of a flat without the completion and occupancy certificate is per se illegal, as the Orissa High Court held in Kalpana Sahoo v. Metro Builders (2025). If a builder delays and fails to obtain the occupancy certificate, you cannot be compelled to take possession and can seek a full refund of what you paid, with interest, as the Supreme Court held in Pioneer Urban Land & Infrastructure v. Govindan Raghavan (2019). Your consumer remedies sit alongside RERA, not instead of it, so you can choose your forum, and a one-sided clause in the builder's agreement is an unfair trade practice and is not binding on you.

What you can do

Treat this as your pre-purchase checklist. Do each step before you pay any substantial money.

1. Verify the title through the parent documents. Get the chain of ownership deeds going back a couple of decades and have a lawyer do a title search. Do not treat a mutation entry, a brochure, or an allotment letter as proof that the seller owns the flat.
2. Get an encumbrance certificate. Obtain it from the sub-registrar to see registered mortgages, loans, or charges on the property, and have the registry records checked so nothing is hidden.
3. Run a litigation and attachment search. Check whether the property or project is in a pending suit, under an injunction, or attached by any authority. A transfer during litigation or of attached property can leave you with nothing.
4. Confirm RERA registration and match the sanctioned plan. Verify the project's RERA registration number and that the flat and layout match the sanctioned plan and approvals. If the project is unregistered, treat it as a warning sign, though you keep your RERA and civil remedies.
5. Do not take possession without the occupancy and completion certificates. These are the builder's legal duty. If they are missing, you can refuse possession and seek a refund with interest, so do not let anyone rush you into keys without them.
6. Check the approvals and the seller's authority. Look at the building plan, layout, and completion approvals. For a resale flat, confirm the seller's own title and that any co-owners or heirs consent to the sale.
7. Register the sale deed, and do not accept one-sided terms. The sale must be registered under the Registration Act. Read the agreement, and remember that oppressive, one-sided builder clauses are not binding, so a bad term is not the last word.

Cases that matter

Pioneer Urban Land & Infrastructure v. Govindan Raghavan (Supreme Court, 2019). A builder failed to obtain the occupancy certificate and offer possession within the agreed time. The Court held that the buyer could not be compelled to take such delayed possession and was entitled to a full refund of the amount paid, with interest, and that the one-sided terms of the builder's agreement were an unfair trade practice.

M/s. Newtech Promoters v. State of UP (Supreme Court, 2021). The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 applies to all ongoing projects for which a completion certificate had not been issued when the Act came into force. The Court upheld this reach as constitutionally valid and aimed at protecting home buyers, so an old, incomplete project is not outside RERA.

Duni Chand v. Vikram Singh (Supreme Court, 2024). To claim protection as a bona fide purchaser under Section 41 of the Transfer of Property Act, a buyer must specifically plead and prove that they took reasonable care to verify the seller's authority and acted in good faith. Protection is not assumed for a buyer who did not investigate, which is why a real title search matters.

Chander Bhan v. Mukhtiar Singh (Supreme Court, 2024). A property transferred while litigation is pending is caught by the doctrine of lis pendens and is subject to the outcome of that case, and such a purchaser cannot claim bona fide status. It shows why a litigation search before buying is not optional.