Buying a plot of land: documents and checks before you pay

This is general information to help you ask better questions. It is not legal advice. Have a lawyer read the documents before you pay anything.

A plot looks simple: land, a boundary and a price. In practice, most plot problems are about paperwork you cannot see from the road. Work through these checks in order before you pay a token amount.

Ownership

• Ask the seller for the title documents and check that the seller's name is the one on them.
• Ask how the seller came to own the land: purchase, inheritance, gift or allotment. Each leaves a different paper trail.
• If there are several owners, every one of them must agree to the sale in writing.
• Ask whether the plot is free of loans, disputes and court cases, and ask for that in writing.

Approvals and use of the land

• Check that the layout is approved by the local authority and that the plot is meant for residential use.
• Ask what you are allowed to build, including height and set-back rules, before you imagine the house.
• Confirm that roads, drainage, water and power are in place, or who will provide them and by when.

The land itself

1. Visit the plot in person and walk its boundary.
2. Compare the actual size with the size in the documents.
3. Look for encroachment, a shared wall or a path that crosses the plot.
4. Visit after rain if you can, to see whether water collects there.

Payment and registration

• Agree the terms in a written agreement before paying any large amount.
• Pay by a method that leaves a record, and keep every receipt.
• Complete the registration in the correct office and keep certified copies of everything.

When you are ready to look, browse plots for sale and use the area unit converter if a listing quotes a size in a unit you do not use every day. Bhavano checks listings before they go live but does not verify land documents, so read how we check listings and what we don't verify.