An agreement to sell does not make you an owner. A general power of attorney does not make you an owner. The Transfer of Property Act says a sale of immovable property worth a hundred rupees or more "can be made only by a registered instrument", and the same section says a contract for sale "does not, of itself, create any interest in or charge on such property". This page sets out what the deed must contain, what to check before you sign, and the one tax obligation that falls on the buyer and that most buyers have never heard of.
A sale deed is the instrument by which ownership of immovable property passes from one person to another. Not a promise that it will pass. Not evidence that money changed hands. The transfer itself.
"Sale" is a transfer of ownership in exchange for a price paid or promised or part-paid and part-promised. Section 54 — sale defined
Such transfer, in the case of tangible immovable property of the value of one hundred rupees and upwards, or in the case of a reversion or other intangible thing, "can be made only by a registered instrument". Section 54 — how sale is made
Source: The Transfer of Property Act, 1882 — linked at the foot of this page.
Note the phrase "one hundred rupees and upwards". It was written in 1882 and it has not been revised, which means that in practice every property transaction in modern India falls inside it. There is no property in the country worth less than a hundred rupees, so there is no residential sale that can lawfully happen any other way.
The Act does provide one alternative, for completeness: for tangible immovable property below a hundred rupees, the transfer "may be made either by a registered instrument or by delivery of the property", delivery being made when "the seller places the buyer, or such person as he directs, in possession of the property". It is of no practical use today, and it is worth mentioning only because people occasionally cite "delivery of possession" as though it were an alternative to registration. It is not, at any value that matters.
This is the most expensive misunderstanding in Indian property, and Section 54 disposes of it in a single sentence.
A contract for sale of immovable property is a contract that a sale of such property shall take place on terms settled between the parties. It "does not, of itself, create any interest in or charge on such property." Section 54, final paragraph
Source: The Transfer of Property Act, 1882.
People sign an agreement to sell, pay a substantial advance, take possession, move in, spend on the place, and describe themselves as owners. They are not. They hold a contract that a sale shall take place. Until the sale deed is executed and registered, the seller is still the owner on the record, and the buyer's rights are contractual rather than proprietary.
Put this alongside what the Supreme Court said about the other half of the same problem — that "a SA/GPA/WILL transaction does not convey any title nor create any interest in an immovable property", and that immovable property "can be legally and lawfully transferred/conveyed only by a registered deed of conveyance" — and the picture is complete. There is exactly one route, and everything else is either a step towards it or a substitute for it that does not work.
Agreement only, GPA, builder's allotment, possession letter — send us what you have been shown and we will tell you exactly what it gives you and what it does not, before any money moves. No charge for that answer.
Property title verification +91 98913 43962Registration is not a formality that follows the sale. For property of any real value it is the sale.
The Registration Act makes registration compulsory for "other non-testamentary instruments which purport or operate to create, declare, assign, limit or extinguish … any right, title or interest … of the value of one hundred rupees and upwards, to or in immovable property". A sale deed is precisely such an instrument.
And the consequence of not registering is set out in Section 49: a document required to be registered and not registered "shall not affect any immovable property comprised therein", and is not received as evidence of the transaction — save, under the proviso, as evidence in a suit for specific performance or of a collateral transaction not required to be effected by a registered instrument.
There is also a clock. Section 23 provides that no document other than a will shall be accepted for registration unless presented within four months from the date of its execution. Sign the deed and register it promptly; a signed but unregistered sale deed sitting in a drawer is not a transfer, and after four months it is a problem as well.
Almost every property disaster we are asked to unwind was avoidable at this stage, for a fraction of what it later cost to attempt a repair.
Chain of title, encumbrance search, seller's competence, approvals and dues — done before the advance moves, not after. It is the cheapest insurance in the whole transaction.
Title verification Encumbrance certificate Full due diligenceFull names as they appear on identity documents, parentage, age, address, PAN and identity particulars of every seller and every buyer. Where a co-owner exists, every one of them is a party. Where a party acts through an attorney, the power is recited and annexed.
The chain by which the seller acquired the property, each link identified by its deed, date and registration particulars. A deed with thin recitals makes the next sale harder, because the next buyer's lawyer has to reconstruct what this one could simply have stated.
The complete description — survey or plot number, municipal number, floor, built-up and carpet area, boundaries on all four sides, and the undivided share in the land where it is a flat. A loose schedule is the commonest defect we see, and it matters most years later when somebody has to identify exactly what was sold.
The full price, how it was paid, the mode and dates of each payment with cheque or transfer references, and an acknowledgement of receipt. The consideration stated should be the consideration actually paid — for the reasons set out in the circle rate and TDS sections below.
The seller's assurances that the property is free from encumbrance, that the seller has full right and authority to sell, that there is no subsisting agreement with anyone else, and that no litigation or attachment affects it — with an indemnity if any of that proves untrue.
Whether possession is delivered on execution or on a stated date, and in what condition. Where a tenant is in occupation, say so and say what happens about it.
Who bears property tax, electricity, water and society dues up to the date of transfer, and from when the buyer takes over. Apportion them to the date rather than to the month.
A list of the original title documents, approvals, tax receipts and the society share certificate being handed over, acknowledged in the deed itself. The next sale will need them.
Stamp duty and registration charges are customarily the buyer's, but custom is not a clause. Write it down, along with who pays for the drafting and any society transfer fee.
Section 55 of the Transfer of Property Act sets out what each side owes the other, in the absence of a contract to the contrary. It is worth knowing, because a buyer who does not ask has fewer remedies than a buyer who did.
Among the seller's obligations are to disclose to the buyer any material defect in the property or in the title of which the seller is aware and the buyer is not and could not ordinarily discover; to produce the title documents for examination on request; to answer the buyer's questions as to the title to the best of the seller's information; to execute a proper conveyance on payment; to take reasonable care of the property and the documents between contract and delivery; and to pay the outgoings up to the date of sale.
The buyer's obligations include disclosing to the seller any fact materially increasing the value of the property which the buyer is aware of and the seller is not, paying the price, and bearing loss and outgoings from the date ownership passes.
Every state publishes a minimum valuation for property by area — the circle rate, ready reckoner rate or guidance value, depending on where you are. Two things follow.
Stamp duty is charged on the higher of the consideration stated and that valuation. So writing a lower figure in the deed does not reduce the duty; the registering authority simply values it at the notified rate.
And it has income tax consequences on both sides. Where the consideration is materially below the stamp duty value, the difference is treated as income — for the seller in computing capital gains, and for the buyer as income from other sources. A modest tolerance band exists, but a deed written well below the notified valuation creates a tax event for two people at once.
This surprises almost every first-time buyer: on a property purchase, the buyer is required to deduct tax at source and deposit it. Not the seller. Not the bank. Not the lawyer. The buyer.
Source: Income Tax Department — linked at the foot of this page.
Two practical points. First, where there are multiple buyers or multiple sellers, the filing is done for each combination, and the thresholds are applied to the property rather than to each person's share — this is where a great many people get it wrong on a jointly purchased flat. Second, the seller will want the Form 16B, because that is how the deducted amount is credited against their tax. A buyer who deducts but never files leaves the seller unable to claim the credit, and that becomes the buyer's problem soon enough.
Drafting, stamp duty computation on the correct valuation, registration, and a plain checklist of what you as buyer must file and by when. Drafting from ₹5,500.
Order Now — ₹5,500 WhatsApp usBoth are state charges, so the only honest answer to "how much" is "tell us where the property is". What is common across states is the structure:
We quote these as separate lines rather than folding them into one figure, because they are government charges and not ours. Any quote you receive that cannot be split into duty, registration fee and professional charge is a quote worth questioning.
What actually happens, so nobody is surprised:
Registration transfers ownership. Mutation is what makes the rest of the system recognise it. They are different things and the second is routinely forgotten.
Registration is not the last step. We handle the mutation application in the municipal and revenue records and tell you which utility transfers you need to make yourself.
Property mutation Mutation assistance| What | How long | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Sale deed drafted to the transaction | 3 – 7 days | From ₹5,500 for the drafting |
| Title verification and encumbrance search | Typically a few days | Quoted separately, before the advance moves |
| Stamp duty | Same day | State rate on the higher of consideration and government valuation, at actuals |
| Registration fee | On the appointment | State rate, at actuals |
| Registered deed released | Usually a few days after registration | — |
| Mutation in municipal and revenue records | Weeks, depending on the office | Quoted separately |
Drafting from ₹5,500, usually 3 – 7 days, with the title checked before anything is signed. Free to order, free to ask — and if you are being rushed, that is the best reason to make the call.
Order Now — ₹5,500 +91 98913 43962 WhatsAppSend us what the seller has given you. We will tell you what it proves, what is missing, and what the deed needs to say. Nothing payable in advance, and you pay only after the work is done.
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