Property due diligence checklist: what to check before buying land in India

Why it matters: It shows how the seller became the owner: sale, gift, partition, will or inheritance. A sale that was never registered doesn’t transfer ownership, so check the registration stamp and the property description.

Where to get it: See the original, then get a certified copy from the sub-registrar office yourself to confirm it is genuine.

Why it matters: Every earlier transfer must lead cleanly to the seller, with no gaps, no missing heir and no deed signed by someone who didn’t own the land. Lawyers commonly trace 13 to 30 years, depending on the state and the bank.

Where to get it: Certified copies of each earlier deed from the sub-registrar office, and old mutation entries from the tehsil.

Why it matters: If the seller inherited it as ancestral (joint family) property, children and other family members may hold a share and can challenge a sale they didn’t agree to.

Where to get it: The title chain shows how it came to the seller. If in doubt, your lawyer can ask for family members’ signatures or a registered NOC.

Why it matters: A local property lawyer reads the deeds, the record and the EC together and tells you in writing whether the title is clear. Banks insist on one before a loan; you need it even without a loan.

Where to get it: An independent lawyer in the district you choose and pay, not the seller’s or the broker’s.

Why it matters: The record of rights lists who holds the land, their share and its area. The seller’s name, share and area should match the title deed exactly.

Where to get it: record of rights (jamabandi, khatauni, 7/12, RTC, patta or khatian, depending on the state): download it from your state’s land records portal, or get a certified copy from the patwari or tehsil.

Why it matters: Mutation updates the revenue record after a sale or inheritance. It isn’t proof of title by itself, but a seller whose name was never mutated is a warning sign, and you’ll need their entry to get your own mutation done.

Where to get it: The mutation order or register entry at the tehsil, usually also visible on your state’s land records portal.

Why it matters: Fraud and honest mistakes both hide here: a deed for one number and land on the ground under another, or a sub-division that was never recorded.

Where to get it: Compare the survey or khasra number on the deed, the record of rights and the village map.

Why it matters: The official map shows the plot’s shape, neighbours and access. Compare it with what the seller shows you on the ground.

Where to get it: The tehsil or land records office. Many states put village maps online as Bhu Naksha.

Why it matters: It lists the registered sales, gifts, mortgages and leases on the property. A second sale or a mortgage the seller didn’t mention shows up here.

Where to get it: The sub-registrar office where the property is registered. Many states also offer an online search on their registration department’s portal.

Why it matters: A loan secured by handing the title deeds to a bank may not appear in the EC. If the seller has a loan, it must be cleared from your price before or at registration.

Where to get it: Ask the seller in writing. Banks record mortgages with CERSAI, the central registry, which can be searched for a small fee. Get the bank’s closure letter and the original deeds back.

Why it matters: A pending case can freeze the property, and if you buy while a case is pending you are bound by its result (lis pendens, section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act).

Where to get it: Search the seller’s and earlier owners’ names on eCourts services (ecourts.gov.in) for the district court and high court, and ask at the tehsil about revenue cases.

Why it matters: A notice in a local and an English paper, inviting objections, often brings out heirs, lenders or earlier buyers with a claim before you pay the balance.

Where to get it: Your lawyer drafts and publishes it, a week or two before registration.

Why it matters: Land notified for a highway, road widening or other public project can be acquired, and compensation goes to whoever owns it at the time.

Where to get it: The development authority’s master plan and the collector’s or tehsil office, for any acquisition notification.

Why it matters: Land granted by the government to landless families, ceiling-surplus land, forest land and village common land often can’t be sold, or only with permission, and deeds for it can be cancelled.

Where to get it: The remarks and land-class columns of the record of rights; confirm with the tehsildar.

Why it matters: A plot carved out of farmland needs official conversion before homes can be approved on it.

Where to get it: The conversion (NA) order or change-of-land-use (CLU) certificate from the collector or town planning department. The record of rights should show the new use.

Why it matters: Plots in an unauthorised colony may never get roads, water or sewer connections, can struggle for a home loan and may face demolition or regularisation charges.

Where to get it: The approved layout plan from the development authority, town and country planning department or municipality. Check your plot number and size on it.

Why it matters: The city’s master or zonal plan decides what can be built. A plot in a green belt, industrial zone or road reservation is a poor buy even with clear title.

Where to get it: The development authority’s master plan map; many are online.

Why it matters: Walk the boundaries, meet the neighbours and check that shape, size, road and landmarks match the map and deed.

Where to get it: You, or someone you trust who isn’t the broker. Take dated photos and drop a GPS pin.

Why it matters: It settles where the boundaries really are before you pay, not after. Marked pillars stop a neighbour’s fence from creeping in later.

Where to get it: Apply at the tehsil for demarcation by the revenue surveyor, or hire a licensed surveyor. Record the boundaries in the sale deed.

Why it matters: Anyone already on the property, even a caretaker or relative, can make getting possession slow and costly. Find out who uses it and on what terms.

Where to get it: The site visit and the neighbours. The sale deed should say vacant possession is handed over.

Why it matters: Land reached only across someone else’s field can be blocked overnight. The way in should be a public road or a recorded right of way.

Where to get it: The village map or layout plan. The sale deed should mention the road.

Why it matters: Old images show whether the land was farmed, built on, flooded, dug up or fenced by someone else, and whether the boundaries you’re shown have moved.

Where to get it: Free: our historical satellite imagery viewer. In depth: a Land History Report from PlotPehra.

Why it matters: High-tension lines, canals, lakes, railway and highway buffers and flood plains limit what you can build and what the land is worth.

Where to get it: The site visit, the master plan and satellite images taken in the monsoon.

Why it matters: Stamp duty is charged on the higher of the price and the circle rate. If the price is more than 10% below the circle rate, the seller is taxed as if they sold at the circle rate (section 78 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, old 50C), and you can be taxed on the gap (section 92(2)(m), old 56(2)(x)).

Where to get it: The circle rate (guidance value, ready reckoner or DLC rate) list from the state registration department.

Why it matters: If the price or the stamp-duty value is ₹50 lakh or more, you deduct 1% TDS from a resident seller and deposit it (section 393(1) of the Income-tax Act, 2025, old 194-IA). If the seller lives abroad, the rules are very different: TDS on the whole price at much higher rates, with no ₹50 lakh threshold.

Where to get it: The income-tax e-filing portal, with your PAN and the seller’s PAN.

Why it matters: Taking ₹20,000 or more in cash for a property deal is barred (section 185 of the Income-tax Act, 2025, old 269SS), and bank transfers are your proof of payment. Paying a broker or agent instead of the owner is how many frauds work.

Where to get it: Your bank. List each payment, with its reference, in the agreement and the sale deed.

Why it matters: Unpaid property tax, land revenue, electricity, water or maintenance can follow the property to the new owner.

Where to get it: Latest receipts from the municipality or panchayat, and from the electricity and water boards.

Why it matters: Land changes hands only through a stamped, registered sale deed. Duty and registration fees are usually the buyer’s cost, and some states charge less when a woman is the buyer.

Where to get it: The sub-registrar office; your state’s registration portal shows the rates.

Why it matters: Names, shares, parcel numbers, area, boundaries, price, payment references and vacant possession must match everything you checked above.

Where to get it: Your lawyer drafts or vets it before you book the registration slot.