Buying a Flat on Sarjapur Road: A First-Home Legal Checklist

Sarjapur Road draws many first-time buyers: it is close to IT offices, and new homes keep coming up along it. It also has a few features that make legal checks especially important. The road passes through more than one jurisdiction. A lot of land along it was farmland until recently. And projects are at every stage, from fresh launch to finished. None of this makes buying here risky. It makes checking non-negotiable.

Here is a step-by-step checklist, in plain language.

Step 1: RERA registration

Under section 3(1) of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, a project cannot be advertised or sold until it is registered with the State RERA authority.

1. Type the Karnataka RERA website address yourself.
2. Search the project's registration number.
3. Check that the registration covers your building or phase. Large sites are often registered phase by phase.
4. Match the promoter's name to the seller named in your agreement.
5. Read the latest quarterly update, which section 11(1) requires.
6. Compare the carpet area in the registered details with the agreement.

For example, The Shalott Marque on Sarjapur–Attibele Road is registered as PRM/KA/RERA/1251/308/PR/180826/008871. You can look it up yourself.

Step 2: the land title

Your flat's ownership rests on the builder's ownership of the land. Section 4 of RERA requires the promoter to file title details when registering, and you are entitled to see what was filed.

• Ask for the mother deed and every later deed, as certified copies.
• Check each transfer was registered. Section 49 of the Registration Act, 1908 says an unregistered document that needed registration cannot affect the property.
• Where land passed through a family, look for registered partition or release deeds from all heirs.
• Have your own property lawyer give a written title opinion.

Step 3: conversion from farm use

Where the land was agricultural, using it for homes needs permission under section 95 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964. Check:

• The order covers the full area the project stands on, not just part of the survey number.
• The purpose is residential.
• The land record now shows the new use.

Step 4: which authority, and which khata

Depending on the exact address, the property register may be kept by a city body or by a gram panchayat. The paper you get will differ: a khata certificate and extract in city limits, or Form 9 and Form 11 under a panchayat. None of these proves ownership; they record the property for tax. Ask which authority covers the project's address, then check the record with that office.

Step 5: the sanctioned plan

Every building must follow a plan approved by the competent authority. Section 14(1) of RERA requires the project to follow the sanctioned plans, and section 19(1) lets you get information about them.

• Ask for the sanctioned plan and compare the number of floors, the footprint and your unit's layout with what is being built.
• Look at the setbacks: the gaps around the building on the plan should match the site.
• Make sure the plan covers your phase.

Step 6: the encumbrance certificate

This lists registered dealings on the land, such as sales and mortgages. Section 57 of the Registration Act, 1908 opens the registrar's records to inspection, so you can get it yourself.

• Get it for the full period your lawyer is checking.
• If the builder has a construction loan on the land, ask how individual flats will be released from it, for example a no-objection letter from the lender.

Step 7: the agreement for sale

Section 13(1) of RERA bars a builder from taking more than ten per cent of the cost before a registered agreement for sale. Under section 13(2), the agreement must state the payment schedule, the possession date and the interest both sides pay on default. Read these lines carefully. The possession date in the agreement is what section 18 measures any delay against.

Step 8: completion and occupancy

For a finished building, ask whether the completion and occupancy certificates have been issued, and see copies. For an under-construction flat, ask how the builder's earlier projects fared on getting these certificates before handover. After possession, section 14(3) of RERA gives you five years to report structural and workmanship defects for free repair.

Warning signs

• The registration does not cover your building or phase.
• A gap in the title chain nobody can explain with a document.
• A conversion order covering less land than the project uses.
• A mortgage on the encumbrance certificate with no plan to release your flat.
• A builder unwilling to show the sanctioned plan, or discouraging you from hiring your own lawyer.
• Payment demanded beyond ten per cent before the agreement is registered.

Questions to ask the builder

1. What is the RERA number for my building, and is the registration current?
2. Can my lawyer review the title deeds and the conversion order?
3. Which authority covers this address, and what property record will I receive?
4. Can I see the sanctioned plan for this phase?
5. Is there a loan on the land, and how will my flat be released?
6. What possession date will the agreement state?

Worked example: what the 10% rule means in rupees

Illustrative figures only. Not a Reeva price. For a flat with a total cost of ₹75 lakh, section 13(1) of RERA means the builder can take at most ₹7.5 lakh before a registered agreement for sale. If you are asked for ₹10 lakh "to confirm the unit" before the agreement is registered, that is ₹2.5 lakh more than the law allows. Say no politely, and point to the section.

Your document folder, in the order you will need it

1. RERA registration page, saved as a PDF with the date.
2. Title deeds and your lawyer's written title opinion.
3. Conversion order and updated land record.
4. Property record (khata, or Form 9 and Form 11) and tax receipt for the land.
5. Sanctioned plan for your phase.
6. Encumbrance certificate, and the lender's release letter if there is a loan on the land.
7. Cost sheet with every charge, and the payment schedule.
8. Registered agreement for sale.
9. Completion and occupancy certificates, at handover.

Common mistakes on this road

• Checking one phase and buying in another. Confirm the RERA number covers your tower.
• Letting the bank's approval replace your lawyer. A lender's check protects the lender.
• Assuming one answer fits the whole road. Jurisdiction can change from village to village along the corridor.

Keep this folder in one place, on paper and as scans. Your bank, your lawyer and, one day, your buyer will all ask for parts of it.

How long the checks take

For most flats, a good lawyer can finish the title review in a couple of weeks once all papers are in hand. The slow part is usually collecting the papers. Start asking for them the day after your first site visit, and keep a list of what has arrived and what is still pending. If a builder needs weeks to produce a basic document, that delay is itself worth noting.

A builder who answers with documents is the builder you want. To understand the corridor itself, see our Sarjapur–Attibele Road page.