• Transfer of Property Act, 1882
• Indian Easement Act, 1882
• Registration Act, 1908 and Indian Stamp Act, 1899
• The Indian Contract Act, 1872
• Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013
• Land Revenue Codes
• The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2013
• Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999

Meaning of Real Estate

Real Estate sector is defined as the property, land, building and air rights above land and underground rights below the land which would also include the free gifts of nature which are associated with that area that has been purchased.

When we talk about rights, there comes the application of the law. Real estate being vast in nature, uses different legislations and the scope of the same is divided into four main types:

Residential Property: - Residential Real estate includes new construction and resale homes. These are the properties in which a joint or a nuclear family resides.

Commercial Property: - Commercial real estate consist of shopping centers, medical shops, hotels and offices. The main operation in these areas are to produce income.

Industrial Property: - includes manufacturing buildings and property, as well as warehouses. The buildings can be used for research, production, storage, and distribution of goods. Some buildings that distribute goods are considered commercial real estate. The classification is important because the zoning, construction, and sales are handled differently.

Vacant Land includes vacant land, working farms, and ranches. The subcategories within vacant land include undeveloped, early development or reuse, subdivision and site assembly

Legal Compliance in order to buy the properties as mentions above.

When an individual aims to buy a property or venture into any property-related adventure, it is essential to ensure that the documents related to a property are finalized and legal compliances are full filled in order to ensure that you are protected from any future legal hassles. The following is the list of documents one needs to be particular about.

Title Deed

It is one of the most pertinent things to check for. It is essential to understand that no one, can transfer better title than he himself has. A seller cannot transfer his property to a prospective buyer if the title isn't perfect and free from any encumbrances or defects. A person who claims himself as the seller can't so sell his property if the property is not in his name and he doesn't hold any good title over the same. The title search of a property can take place at a Sub-Registrar's office. The buyer is entitled to receive all title documents of the property and the title document can be asked for properties that are extremely old, title documents that are prepared thirty years prior to the date of the title search need to be traced. The title should be free of any disputes over the ownership of the property. The title deed lets buyers ascertain ownership rights. The seller should be the actual owner of the property. Before buying the property, one should also ascertain whether the seller has the ownership of the property or just has its development rights.

Encumbrance Certificate

It is essential to know whether the property is free from any legal dues whatsoever. It is advisable that at the time to the title search, one even looks into the status of legal dues of the property and that to ensure that there are no debts associated with the same. Encumbrances over the property can be searched for at the Sub-Registrar's office. The office would provide all the background about the property concerned, as to whether there is any mortgage, or any third-party claim, liens it can be looked into.

Care must be taken when buying or investing in a mortgaged property. An encumbrance certificate or an EC would have a record of all the transactions done during a stipulated period of time over the property concerned, for which the EC is sought. The sale deed in duplicate needs to be submitted for obtaining an EC. A form needs to be filled for obtaining the Encumbrance Certificate and submitted to the nearest Sub-Registrar office.

Master Plan

At times you might come across sellers or builders of properties claiming certain infrastructural development at the place where the property is situated. Tall claims like a shopping mall will be built, schools would be constructed, highways and metros would be constructed often hold no ground and they are merely said to entice more and more buyers. Before buying a property, one should closely scrutinise the master plan of the area concerned and ascertain for themselves whether these claims would actually see the light of the day. These master plans of the area can be procured from the local town planning department of your city. You should also make it a point to carefully check the land use zone as per the master plan for the property.

House Plan Approval

It is essential that you ensure that the place where desired property is located has been approved and also verify whether the building plan has been approved or not. You should also check to see whether any building bye-laws are violated. The building planning and the layout should be in accordance with the guidelines of the National Building Code of India. The layout also needs to be in accordance with the norms of GRIHA (Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment).

Agriculture to Non-Agricultural Land Conversion Certificate

It is important for one to ensure that the plot you desire to buy is not classified as agricultural land. Any land which is designated as an agricultural land can't be used for residential purposes, if it is so done, then it will be rendered illegal. Therefore, if there reasons to believe that the plot you are purchasing used to be an agricultural property, ensure that you are provided with a conversion certificate issued by the appropriate revenue authorities. A conversion certificate is needed to change the purpose of land use from agricultural to non-agricultural. The town planning department of the concerned city needs to issue a No objection Certificate for use of agricultural land for non-agricultural purposes.

Land Use Certificate

It is essential to know that constructing a property for residential purposes in a commercial zone is illegal. One need to apply to the development authorities of respective city to verify if the residential property that you are planning to buy is in the residential zone and not in the commercial, agricultural or industrial zones. Residential properties shouldn't be bought for commercial purposes without the approval of the urban development authorities. If you buy that a plot for residential purposes in a commercial zone and that too without the approval of the authorities concerned and your plot is being demolished by them.

No Objection Certificate

No objection certificates should be obtained wherever necessary. The seller should provide you a copy of the urban non ceiling no-objection certificate and NOCs for water, electricity etc. as well.

Commencement Certificate

This certificate is essential for any construction of a property to commence. This is issued by the town planning department after scrutinizing the building layout, plan, superstructure etc. The builder should have all the necessary sanctions before he sets out to construct.

Property Tax Receipts

Tax receipts should be checked to ensure whether the seller of the property has paid all tax accruing on the property for the past 3 years to the authorities. One as a potential buyer should ask for previous receipts of property tax if you are buying a property that is being resold.

Sale Deed

Before executing a sale deed, the buyer should ensure that the property has a free title. Sale Deed is one of the most important legal documents. It is a proof that states that the property has been sold and the ownership of property has been transferred from the seller to the purchaser. Before executing a sale deed all charges like property tax, electricity and water charges, maintenance and housing society charges Importance should be given to the fact that a sale deed needs to be compulsorily registered.

Khata Certificate/ Extract

Khata when translated to English means account, it is essentially the account of a seller or the owner of the property. A Khata extract is essential for buying property. This is of prime importance for not only transferring a property but also for the registration of the new property. Completion Certificate (CC), Power of Attorney, Probated Will, Occupancy Certificate (OC) etc. are few the other legal documents that are essential at the time of buying property.

Key enactments which govern the land laws in India:

• 1. Transfer of Property Act, 1882: It is a Central Act and it provides general standards of the movable and immovable property, for example, ale, exchange, mortgage, lease and gift of property, part performance, and lis pendens.
• 2. Indian Easement Act, 1882: This Act governs the law identifying with easement rights to the immovable property.
• 3. Registration Act, 1908, and Indian Stamp Act, 1899: These Acts govern laws relating to the payment of stamp duty and a necessity for enrollment of numerous deeds, reports, and instruments identifying belonging to the transfer of an interest in immovable property.
• 4. The Indian Contract Act, 1872: It governs law related to contracts in India including the inclination to enter into a contract, execution, and implementation thereof and breach and remedies available to the parties. The part of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 which relates to contracts shall be taken as part of the Indian Contract Act, 1872.
• 5. Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013: This Act administers the obtaining of private terrains by the Government for certain open purposes or for an organization and the pay and rehabilitative measures to be embraced thereto by the Government.
• 6. Land Revenue Codes: The various States in India have figured their territory income codes, which administer laws identifying with agrarian land-holding, land income, kinds of tenure, and matters associated thereto. The said codes embody division and classes of steady property in a State, limitations on move thereto, forces and obligations of income officials, rules, guidelines, and punishments for contradicting such codes.
• 7. The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 (RERA): This Act administers the growth, selling, and marketing of real estate to secure the interests of customers in the land part. The Act built up a mediating component for quick question redressal vide the Real Estate Regulatory Authority and the Appellate Tribunal and orders the necessary enlistment of ventures and key players in the land segment. The States have adopted corresponding RERA Rules and regulations to ensure effective implementation of the Central Act at the local level.
• 8. Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA) and Foreign Direct Investment Policy (FDI Policy): FEMA and regulations pursuant thereto govern the purchase/sale of immovable property in India by foreign entities. The consolidated FDI Policy administers the permissibility of foreign investment in the real estate sector along with agreement parameters and departure of such investors. Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB), and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) regulate such foreign investment.

Additionally, numerous State/local/municipal laws, policies and customs administer the real estate sector in India including differences in respect of urban development, slum rehabilitation/development, rent restriction, apartment ownership, building codes/bye-laws, estate tax, Special Economic Zones (SEZs), Benami transactions, environmental assurance, land pooling policies, land ceiling, land use and zoning norms, Real Estate Investment Trusts regulations, dispute resolution legislation such as the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, The Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996, etc.