Top Frequently Asked Questions From Home Buyers
What are the documents you need to check before buying?
– Check for proper conveyance of Title in favour of the builder.
– Check the license/development right/approvals of the builder.
– Check clear and marketable title of the project.
– Ensure execution of proper Allotment Letter/Sale Agreements on your payments.
– Ensure whether reputed financial companies approve the project. This will help you in getting financial loans.
– Check the tentative layout/building plan and verify the plinth area of the apartment. It is advisable to check the carpet area of the apartment and find out if the difference between plinth area and carpet area is reasonable.
– Ask for Occupation/Completion Certificate.
– Ensure the Conveyance Deed is registered after the entire payment has been made.
– For buying a property you need to check Deed of Conveyance, Mutation Certificate (for complete property), Land Registration Status, Sanction Plan, Search Report and Payment Schedule (for under construction). It is a must that you go through all the documents relating to the origin of the property, chain of Title, Occupancy Certificate, sanctions from various authorities dealing with building plans, fire safety and Completion Certificate.
– For re-sale property, check demand notice relating to renovation, tax dues and latest receipts of payments made towards various out-goings such as water, electricity and ground rent.
What is meant by Carpet Area, Built-Up Area & Super Built-Up Area?
Carpet area is defined as the precise area within the walls of your home. If you had to lay out a wall-to-wall carpet in your entire home, the area covered would be the carpet area.
Built-up area is inclusive of not just the carpet area but also the area being occupied by the walls of your home.
Super built-up area takes into account all the area under the common spaces which is the apartment’s proportionate share of the lobby, staircase, elevator and the corridor outside the apartment.
What constitutes conclusion of sale of a property?
The housing society share certificate and the sale/purchase deed of the property are the main documents required to sell a residential property. If the property has been sold and bought multiple times, a copy of the previous deeds may be required to prove the authenticity of the deal. Other than these, copies of Stamp Duty and registered house documents will also be needed. In case of property being mortgaged, these papers will be held by the bank and you can use a photocopy of the required documents to initiate a deal. Depending on the kind of property and ownership, some more documents, such as a No-Objection Certificate from the housing society and a documented consent in case of jointly owned property, may be required.
What is a Sale Deed?
A Sale Deed is a document prepared on the basis of previous ownership document for the transfer of property from seller to buyer, providing the buyer the absolute and undisputed ownership of property. Source: CreditVidya, credit advisory firm helping borrowers on credit and debt management. Done
How much is the Registration Fees on sale of immovable property?
During the transfer of property from one to another, the stamp paper and registration fee has to be paid which is equivalent to 7 to 8 per cent of the value of the property or those of circle rates. These rates are the notified rates of a particular area set by the government on which the registration charges on the value of the property are calculated. The circle rates can be seen on government registration and stamp department websites of each city. Source: MB Legal Expert (Atulay Nehra – Openhouse)
What are the things to actually look for when zeroing in on a house?
Budget, location, type of property, objective of buying and choice of property are the determining factors for purchase of property from an end user’s perspective. Real estate values are governed by demand and supply. This may vary on a project to project basis. The projects which see good demand normally do not see a price correction. Source: E-book
While buying a house the top questions to keep in mind are:
– When to Buy?
– What to Buy?
– Where to Buy?
– How to Buy?
– How much to pay for it?
– Which locality to buy in?
– What type of property to buy?
– How to extract maximum return from your property investment?
Source: E-book
Should I take a home on rent or should I buy?
There is no harm in renting a property till you are ready with enough finances to buy. If you find a place where you want to stay and can manage to get enough formal finance, look at buying as your monthly outflow will lead to creating an asset. But make sure your EMI is not more than 35-40 per cent of your monthly salary. Source: E-book
What is the difference between a builder floor apartment and a multi-storey apartment?
A single floor apartment is one where the builder buys a piece of land, often old plots which are up for redevelopment, constructs flats on each floor according to the permissible Floor Area Ratio (FAR) and building byelaws and sells them as independent units within the same building. The land belongs proportionately to all the buyers of single floors. Since there are smaller numbers of units than in a multi-story apartment, these lack economies of scale and so have fewer common facilities such as maintenance and back-ups compared to larger multi-storey apartments. But these are newer apartment units in downtown or preferred areas and come at a price lower than multi-storey units.
A multi-storey remains the most preferred housing units in metros and large cities today. It is a cluster of apartments in a high-rise building developed in a plot with all amenities available within a gated community. These units can be aggregated and constructed by developers or in the cooperative mode as Cooperative Group Housing Societies (CGHS).These need good common facilities management to take care of aggregating services and providing them to individual units for a fee. This fee is levied as monthly maintenance charges. They cover water and power supply, including back-ups, lift and common area maintenance and landscaping. Many developments also provide plumbing and electrical services for a fee. Source: E-book
How do you choose the right type of property?
Depending on the chosen budget, one can decide the type of property. If you are an end-user, the size of your family, along with the budget can be a determining factor while choosing the type of house you need. There is a wide range to choose from today as the market abounds in various housing formats from 1, 2, 3 and 4BHK apartments, to studios, villas and row houses, to builder floors and independent houses. Multi-storey projects and township with all amenities in one project clubhouse, swimming pool, meditation center, health clubs, departmental stores, schools, cinemas, sports facilities and banquet/party halls are what most end-users are looking at today. Source: E-book
What is your recourse in case of a delayed project?
Until the draft real estate regulation bill outlines the obligations of project delivery, buyers will have to rely on their rights laid out in their booking agreements. First and foremost, buyers should scrutinize the project and the background of the developer. If possible, they must hire a real estate consultancy firm who has market expertise and is known for unbiased consulting. In addition, an investor has the right to ask for the copies of approvals of the project, if not buying during a soft launch stage. You must ask for detailed construction schedules and negotiate for penalty clause in case of delay of project. Refunds can be claimed if a project is delayed beyond the period stipulated in the Builder Buyer Agreement by filing a case in the consumer court. Source: CreditVidya, credit advisory firm helping borrowers on credit and debt management. Done
What is Stamp Duty and who is liable to pay the Stamp Duty, the purchaser or the Developer?
Stamp Duty is supposed to be paid every time there is a transfer of ownership. It is calculated on the basis of the total value of your property. The amount to be paid varies from city to city. Source: E-book
Which documents must be compulsory registered? When and where should a document be registered?
The Registration Act, 1908 came in the year 1908 and made compulsory registration of the deed. You have a property of the year 1978. Therefore, it should be registered. Since the agreement is unregistered, it is not valid and does not transfer the ownership to you. Before you make a gift deed, you need to register the sale deed in your favor as you are not the legal owner yet. Source: S Jalan (Openhouse)
What is meant by valuation of property?
Valuation of property simply means arriving at the actual prevailing cost of the property. It could depend upon number of parameters, location of property being the most important one. One needs to consider other parameters such as age of property, projects available, facilities offered and the sizes available in that project. The latest transaction price of a similar property needs to be considered to arrive at the closest value of the given property. Source: Openhouse (MB Expert)
Who is the appropriate authority for knowing the market value of the property?
It is ideal to get the valuation done by a certified valuer for the house as per the ongoing rates. The property valuation reports can be obtained from the architects or a certified valuation expert. Source: MB Legal Expert (OpenHouse- Atulay).
What is a foreclosure?
Believe it or not, foreclosures can actually be a smoother transaction than a short sale. A foreclosure, sometimes referred to as a REO, is a property that is owned by a lender. If you’re considering the purchase of a foreclosure, it’s important to understand that most are sold “as-is.” Foreclosures, if not purchased by an owner occupant, are often purchased by investors, fixed up, “flipped,” and sold to a owner occupant.
How is the neighborhood/area?
When buying a home, a common question home buyers have is regarding the neighborhood/area. As a real estate professional, there are rules against steering and providing personal insight into specific areas and neighborhoods. This doesn’t mean that your Realtor cannot provide you with tips to help you choose the right neighborhood when buying a home. Many buyers wonder about the growth of the local economy, crime statistics, taxes, and local amenities. If you have a top Realtor when buying a home, you should be able to receive all of the pertinent information to allow you to make an educated decision on areas and neighborhoods.
How are the schools?
This is another question that Realtors should tread very lightly with. There is no doubt that schools impact property values. Just like tips for selecting a neighborhoods, a top Realtor should be able to provide you with names or websites where you can find information on the local schools so that you can determine whether or not the schools are acceptable to you or not.
What are the average utility bills?
When buying a home, it’s important to know what additional costs will be in addition to the monthly mortgage payment. Utility bills are just one of the additional costs to consider when buying a home. Utility bills can be obtained from the home owner and in some cases, from the local utility company, who can provide averages over the past 12 months. Keep in mind, everyone prefers to have their home temperature different, so the average bill could be different if you were to purchase the home.
