Lok Satta

· Whenever land and buildings(immovable property) are sold and ownership is transferred, the sale deed must be registered according to law. Only then will firm legal rights be established.

· Before registration, the purchaser should take all precautions to verify the ownership of the seller and his right to transfer the property by sale. You should always verify the property ownership as explained in pages 175 and obtain an encumbrance certificate. Once you are satisfied that the seller has a clear and absolute title, only then should you pay the sale price and get the sale deed registered.

How to Register?

· You have to get the sale deed drafted by an experienced document writer, incorporating all the details and present it to the Sub-Registrar.
· The seller has to be physically present art the Sub-Registrar's office at the time of sale deed. The buyer may be present personally or can be represented by someone else.
· The Sub-Registrar may inspect the property personally to verify if the sale price represents true value of the property or if there is undervaluation to evade stamp duty.
· For most areas government has fixed the value of the land and there are Basic Valuation Registers (BVR) available with the Sub-Registrar. Even if the property is undervalued, the Sub-Register will charge the stamp duty on the basis of the government valuation rates in the BVR. The stamp duty will have to be paid on BVR rate or actual sale price in the sale deed, whichever is higher.
· The sale consideration or the amount due to the seller must be handed over to the seller in the presence of the Sub-Registrar. Only after the seller acknowledges the receipt of the sale price will the document be registered.
· Simultaneously with the registration of the sale deed, the property will be handed over to the purchaser. Usually this handing over of property is by transfer of documents and acknowledgement of handing over and taking over in writing.
· The stamp duty is levied as follows:

o In Municipal Corporation areas and selection grade municipalities : 13% of the value
o In other municipalities : 12% of the value
o In panchayat areas : 11% of the value

· The following additional fees must be paid to the Sub-Register at the time of registration.
o Upto Rs. 50,000 valuation : Rs. 10 per Rs. 1.00
o Above Rs. 50,000 valuation :Rs. 5 per Rs. 1,000
(for the amount exceeding Rs. 50,000/-)
o Copying fee : Rs. 2 per 800 words
· The cost of registration is borne by the purchaser. The purchaser has to buy non-judicial stamp paper (available with the licensed vendors) of value equivalent to the stamp duty and get the sale deed written on this stamp paper.
· The original document will be given to the purchaser after the document is copied in the Sub-Registrar's office. This concludes the sale.
· Some times, before executing the sale deed, a sale agreement is entered into between the two parties. The sale agreement can also be registered, the stamp duty for which is Rs.50 per every Rs. 1,000 valuation. However, this amount will be exempt from the stamp duty at time of sale deed registration.
· In some cases, the property may be handed over to the purchaser at the time of sale agreement, upon receiving partial or full payment.

Unregistered or under valued documents

· If at any time a document of sale is not registered, or if a document is registered with under valuation of the property, then such a document can be impounded by the Sub-Registrar when it comes to his notice.
· The impounded document is sent to the Collector or RDO or Sub-Collector for fixing proper value and imposing a penalty. The RDO will then enquire into the case, and fix a proper value as on the day of sale, and impose a penalty as per law.
· The sale deed is then registered on collecting the prescribed stamp duty and the penalty.
· If you have any doubt about the valuation, please ask for the Basic Valuation Register and verify the values given. All the records of the Sub-Registrar's offices are being computerized. Whenever this has been completed, you can ask for, and get the details of valuation and stamp duty payable through computer printouts.
· If there is any difficulty experienced in registering a document, plesase approach the District Registrar.
If there is no proper service, please contact the local unit of Lok Satta or the District branch or apex unit.

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