Documents to Check Before Buying Property in Bangalore
Before paying any advance, check the title chain (mother deed through to the seller’s sale deed), an Encumbrance Certificate covering 30 years, the Khata / e-Khata and tax receipts, and the approvals — a sanctioned layout or building plan, and an Occupancy Certificate for any building. Plots, BDA sites and flats each add a few documents of their own. Have a property lawyer read the full set before you sign.
The 6 documents every property needs
| Document | What it proves | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Sale deed (seller’s) | The seller owns the property today | Seller; certified copy from the Sub-Registrar |
| Mother deed / title chain | How ownership passed down to the seller, with no gaps | Seller; earlier deeds from the Sub-Registrar |
| Encumbrance Certificate (EC) | No loans, mortgages or other registered claims on the property | Kaveri Online Services; Sub-Registrar for years before 2004 |
| Khata / e-Khata | The property is in the civic register, and whether it is A or B Khata | Seller; e-Aasthi portal |
| Property-tax receipts | Tax is paid up to date — arrears pass to the buyer | Seller; civic tax portal |
| Approvals | The layout or building was sanctioned (plan, layout approval, OC for buildings) | Seller / developer; BDA or planning authority |
Ask for copies of all of them before you pay an advance or sign an agreement — not at registration.
Extra documents by type of property
BDA site
- BDA allotment letter and possession certificate — these are the root of the title for a BDA site
- Absolute sale deed from BDA (once the lease-cum-sale period is over)
- If it is a resale: every sale deed since the original allottee
Private or revenue site
- DC conversion order — the land was converted from agricultural to residential use
- Approved layout plan (BDA / BMRDA / local planning authority)
- RTC (Pahani) records for the original land, and the survey sketch
- Outside city limits: the panchayat e-Swathu (Form 9 / Form 11) extract — see our A vs B Khata guide
New flat (from a developer)
- RERA registration of the project — check it on the Karnataka RERA website
- Sanctioned building plan and the land title of the developer
- Commencement Certificate, and the Occupancy Certificate before you take possession
- The agreement for sale: possession date, penalties, carpet area and parking in writing
Resale flat
- Occupancy Certificate of the building — banks increasingly insist on it
- Previous sale deeds back to the developer’s sale
- Society / association NOC and a no-dues letter for maintenance
Independent house
- Sanctioned building plan, and the house built within it
- Occupancy / Completion Certificate
- Khata showing the built-up area, not just the land
The Encumbrance Certificate, explained
The EC lists every registered transaction on the property for the period you ask for — sales, mortgages, releases, court attachments. It is the quickest way to spot a loan the seller has not mentioned.
- Form 15 means transactions were found — read each one and make sure the chain ends with the seller.
- Form 16 (Nil EC) means no registered transactions were found for the details searched. Check those details are right before relying on it.
- Ask for 30 years. Online records on Kaveri start in 2004; for earlier years, apply at the Sub-Registrar’s office.
- There is no fixed expiry, but banks want an EC issued close to the loan sanction — so get a fresh one just before you register.
The mother deed and the title chain
The mother deed is the earliest document that establishes ownership of the property — for a BDA site, the allotment; for private land, the oldest registered sale or grant. Every later deed must link to the next one, name to name, until it reaches the seller.
A gap — a transfer made only on a General Power of Attorney (GPA), a missing deed, or a name that changes between documents without a registered reason (inheritance, gift, partition) — is the most common title defect we see. It can often be fixed, but it must be fixed before you buy, not after.
Red flags that should stop an advance
- The name on the EC or Khata does not match the seller.
- The EC shows a loan or mortgage with no registered release.
- The seller is a GPA holder, not the owner.
- The property is B Khata, or the e-Khata is only a draft.
- A flat is sold as “ready” but the building has no Occupancy Certificate.
- A site’s land was never converted from agricultural use, or the layout is unapproved.
- The seller wants a large advance before sharing documents.
GCR’s legal advisory team checks the full set — title chain, EC, Khata, approvals — before any money changes hands. If a home loan is involved, our loan consultant confirms the bank will accept the same documents.
After registration: papers to collect, then the move
- Collect the original registered sale deed from the Sub-Registrar’s office once it is scanned and returned.
- Apply to transfer the Khata into your name — see the e-Khata guide for how.
- Move the property tax, BESCOM electricity and BWSSB water accounts into your name.
- Keep the EC, tax receipts and approvals filed with the deed — you will need the full set when you sell or take a loan against the property.
Once the keys are yours, book the move early, especially around month-end when movers fill up. You can compare packers and movers charges in Bangalore on Assure Shift before you hire.