The
general perception amongst the people at large is that registration of the sale deed in the concerned Sub-Registrar’s office would conclude the formalities for transfer of ownership of the property
from the vendor to the Purchaser or his nominee, but it is not so. The
formalities in purchase of immovable property could be broadly classified into
pre-registration formalities and post-registration formalities, compliance of
both is a must for getting the ownership rights over the property transferred
in totality in favour of the purchaser
or his nominee.
The term “Post registration formalities”
refers to those activities which are required to be performed subsequent to the
registration of the Sale Deed. They are:
Once registration of sale deed is
completed, the Purchaser has to obtain all the original documents of title from
the seller and compare them with the copies which his advocate had scrutinized
for rendering his opinion to make sure that the documents scrutinized and documents referred to in the Sale Deed are
the same and have been correctly spelt.
If his advocate had called for production of certain other relevant
original documents or certified copies, the purchaser has to ensure that such
documents are also made available to him for his custody.
Generally, at the time of entering into
agreement of sale only certain basic original documents are made available to
the purchaser along with copies of few
other documents and therefore, at the time of sale agreement, the
purchaser has only skeletal original
documents with him and the remaining original documents will be with the
vendor himself. Thus, the purchaser has
to keep in mind to collect all the remaining original documents from the vendor at the time of registration of theproperty.
Upon registration of the property, the
purchaser has to collect the original registered sale deed. In addition to
this, it is better if he applies and gets a few certified copies of the Sale
Deed for his custody and use.
Normally,
encumbrance certificate for the period prior to the date of transaction will be
made available for scrutiny by the vendor. In order to have Encumbrance Certificate with the reflection of the latest sale transaction between the
present vendor and the purchaser, it is
suggested that the purchaser may apply
for up-to-date encumbrance certificate on the date of registration of sale deed
itself so that he can avoid making another
trip to the office at a later date for the purpose.
Taking physical possession of the property
is a very important step in a property transaction. Therefore, it is necessary
for the purchaser to inspect the property at least a day prior to the date of
registration to make sure that the property is free from occupation of any
stranger and there is no hurdle to get possession of the property upon
purchase.
In some cases, the property could have been
under occupation of persons other than the owner/vendor like tenant or leaseholder, trespasser, etc. Irrespective of such occupancy by strangers, the
vendor should be insisted upon to deliver vacant physical possession of the
property at the time of registration so
that the purchaser could exercise his right over the property and take possession of the same immediately upon
purchase and put his lock for the building.
In case of vacant sites, it is always safe to fence such sites immediately upon purchase, though it is
a little expensive. In the alternative, the purchaser may display a board on a
prominent place of the site clearly indicating that “This property belongs
to XYZ. Trespassers will be prosecuted”.
Periodical
visits to the site are necessary to detect and prevent encroachment.
Once a property is purchased, the purchaser is duty bound to make all the statutory payments due on the property to Government and other agencies. Therefore, the purchaser is to get confirmed whether property tax and other levies payable to Municipal authorities,
BWSSB, BESCOM, etc., are paid up-to-date
and upon finding that any payment is outstanding, either he has to make such
payment himself or insist upon the vendor to effect such payments. For this
purpose, the purchaser has to collect and verify the latest property tax paid
receipt and all the relevant statutory payment receipts from the seller and
upon visiting the concerned tax/revenue offices.
Once the registration of the sale deed is
concluded, the purchaser has to ensure that the Khatha of the property standing
in the name of the vendor in the records of the concerned local authority is
transferred to his name. For such a transfer, both the seller and purchaser
have to sign the application for transfer of Khatha and it is better that such
an application is prepared and signed at
the time of executing the sale
deed itself to avoid complications at a later date. The application for
Transfer of Khatha along with a copy of the sale deed, duly filled is to be
submitted before concerned authority within whose jurisdiction the subject
property falls.
The Local bodies transfer the Khatha in the
name of the purchaser upon collecting transfer fee which is, generally 2%, of
the stamp duty paid on the Sale Deed and issue written confirmation of transfer
in the name of the purchaser. Usually, the Local bodies reassess the property and issue assessment
notice in the name of the purchaser. The tax paid receipt should be in the name
of the owner.
Once Khatha is transferred, steps for
getting the water and power connections
registered in the name of the purchaser are to be initiated. For this purpose, careful verification of the receipts issued by the concerned authorities for the deposit and charges in favour of the vendor is necessary to make sure that
such receipts stand in the name of the seller. A letter of No Objection
addressed to the concerned authorities by the seller for such transfer of water
and power connections and the deposits made there under in the name of the purchaser is also necessary. The purchaser, along with the letter of No
Objection from the seller and the latest Khatha Certificate has to apply to the
appropriate authorities for effecting such a
transfer in his name at the earliest. Upon consideration of such a
request, the authorities will issue a written communication intimating the
transfer of water and power connections and the deposits in the name of the purchaser.
Though
the above mentioned actions are simple in nature, to have peaceful possession
and enjoyment of the property purchased compliance with these is necessary.
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