Buying a home in India while living abroad can feel like a puzzle with missing pieces. It is not, once you see the steps laid out. Here they are, for a first home, in order.
Step 1: be sure you are allowed to buy it
As an NRI or OCI cardholder, you can buy residential and commercial property in India. You cannot buy agricultural land, plantation property or a farmhouse. An apartment is the simplest choice, and no special RBI permission is needed.
Step 2: set your budget in rupees
Decide your total budget in rupees, including the extras: registration, stamp duty, GST on under-construction homes, parking, and a little for furnishing. Then decide how much will come from savings and how much from a loan. Our EMI calculator helps you find a monthly figure that feels safe.
Step 3: open the right bank account
You will pay from an NRE, NRO or FCNR(B) account in India, or by direct inward remittance. If you plan to borrow, ask the lending bank to open your account too. It keeps EMI payments simple.
Step 4: shortlist homes you can check from afar
Stick to RERA-registered projects. On the Karnataka RERA portal you can see the registration, approved plans, completion date and quarterly progress, without anyone's help. Compare homes on carpet area, the usable area inside the walls, which RERA requires builders to quote.
Step 5: get a lawyer to read the papers
A local property lawyer should read the title documents, the approvals and the draft agreement for sale. It is a small cost compared to the home. Ask them to flag the completion date, delay compensation, specifications and any extra charges.
Step 6: arrange the loan
Indian banks and housing finance companies lend to NRIs. Expect to share your passport, visa, employment contract, salary slips and bank statements. Approval can take a few weeks, so apply alongside your legal checks.
Step 7: sign, or let someone sign for you
If you are in India, you sign and register the agreement yourself. If not, give a trusted family member a power of attorney limited to this property. Sign it at the Indian embassy or consulate, or before a notary with an apostille, and have it stamped in Karnataka once it arrives.
Step 8: pay in stages and take handover properly
For an under-construction home, pay each instalment against the stage reached. At handover, ask for the Occupancy Certificate, check the carpet area and do a full snag list. Then register the sale deed and move utilities and the khata into your name.
A word on taxes
Buying a home creates few tax steps for you. Renting it out or selling it later does, and those rules differ for NRIs. Keep every payment record from day one, and speak to a chartered accountant when that time comes.
Worked example: what the money looks like
Illustrative figures only. Not a Reeva price. Say you are buying an under-construction flat with an agreed cost of ₹80 lakh, from a resident builder.
- Loan. RBI rules let a bank lend up to 80% of the value for a home costing above ₹30 lakh and up to ₹75 lakh, and up to 75% above ₹75 lakh. At ₹80 lakh, the cap is 75%: ₹60 lakh. Your own contribution is at least ₹20 lakh.
- GST. For a flat that is not in the "affordable" category, GST on an under-construction home is 5%, split as 2.5% CGST and 2.5% SGST. On ₹80 lakh, that is ₹4 lakh. Check the builder's cost sheet for the exact base on which it is charged.
- TDS. Under section 194-IA of the Income-tax Act, a buyer paying ₹50 lakh or more to a resident seller deducts 1% as tax and deposits it with the government. On ₹80 lakh, that is ₹80,000.
- EMI. A ₹60 lakh loan at 8.5% a year for 20 years works out to about ₹52,069 a month. Over 240 months you would repay about ₹1.25 crore in total.
Add stamp duty and registration at the rates in force when you register, plus your lawyer's fee and a buffer for furnishing.
The NRI checklist, in one place
- Passport, and OCI card if you have one.
- Overseas address proof.
- PAN card. You will need it for the loan, for TDS and for registration.
- NRE or NRO account in India for payments.
- Employment contract, recent salary slips and bank statements, for the loan.
- A trusted person in India, and a power of attorney limited to this one property, if you will not be present.
- Your own property lawyer in India.
- A folder, digital and paper, for every receipt and bank advice.
Common mistakes NRIs make on a first home
- Paying from a foreign account straight to the builder without a clear record. Use a permitted channel and keep the bank's advice. It matters later if you ever want to send sale money back abroad.
- Giving a general power of attorney. Limit it to this property and these acts. A broad power can be misused.
- Relying on photos and videos alone. Ask a family member to visit at key stages, and read the RERA quarterly updates yourself.
- Forgetting TDS. It is the buyer's duty under section 194-IA when the seller is resident. Missing it causes notices and interest.
- Not budgeting for exchange-rate swings. If your income is in another currency, a change in the rate can change what your EMI costs you.
When you sell, years later
FEMA rules allow an NRI to send money from the sale of residential property abroad, subject to conditions, including a limit of two residential properties. Keep proof that you paid for the home through banking channels. Taxes on a sale and the TDS on payments to an NRI seller follow different rules, so talk to a chartered accountant before you sell.
Keeping your family in the loop
Buying from abroad works best when someone you trust in India knows what is going on. Share a simple monthly update with them: which payments are due, what the RERA quarterly update says about progress, and any letters from the builder. Ask them to visit the site once every few months and send photos with dates. If something looks different from the plan, you will know early, when it is easiest to raise.
When handover comes, ask them to walk through the flat with a snag list, room by room: doors, windows, taps, switches, tiles, and signs of damp. Every problem written down before you accept the keys is easier to get fixed.
A simple timeline to plan around
- Month 1: set the budget, open accounts, get an in-principle loan approval.
- Month 2: shortlist, check RERA pages, send written questions, appoint a lawyer.
- Month 3: legal checks done, power of attorney ready, agreement for sale signed and registered.
- After that: pay in stages, track progress every quarter, and plan your handover visit.
Your timeline may be faster or slower. The order matters more than the speed.
Want the bigger picture before you start? Our first home guide covers renting versus buying, budgets and the basic checks.