After Booking a Flat in Bangalore: Steps From Booking Amount to Keys
Booking an under-construction flat in Bangalore starts a second phase of work that lasts until the building is complete. This guide follows that phase in order, from the booking amount to the day the keys change hands. It covers the paperwork, the loan, the site, the remaining costs and the handover.
The Road From Booking to Keys
The period after booking has a fixed sequence, and each stage has its own document and its own payment. Knowing the order makes it easier to see what is due next and what is missing. The main stages are listed below:
- Booking amount and allotment letter
- Registered agreement for sale
- Home loan sanction and stage-wise payments
- Construction, tracked against the declared schedule
- Occupancy certificate and inspection of the flat
- Registered sale deed and possession
- Khata, electricity and association records in the owner's name
Stage 1: Booking Amount and Allotment Letter
The booking amount buys an allotment, and the allotment letter is the first paper that records it. Read it against the cost sheet on the day it arrives. The flat number, floor, tower, carpet area, car park and total price should match what was agreed at the sales office.
The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 (RERA) caps what a builder may collect at this stage. Under Section 13, a promoter may take up to 10% of the cost of the apartment as an advance or application fee. Anything beyond that needs a written agreement for sale that has been registered first.
The same Act gives the buyer a right to information at booking. The builder must make the sanctioned plans, the layout plan and the specifications available, along with a stage-wise schedule for completing the project. Ask for copies and keep them with the allotment letter.
Stage 2: The Agreement for Sale
The agreement for sale turns the booking into an enforceable contract. It records the payment dates, the possession date and the interest each side pays the other on default. Section 13 of RERA requires these particulars to be written into it.
Three checks are worth the time before signing. The first is that every figure matches the allotment letter and the cost sheet. The second is the possession date, which should agree with the completion date declared on the Karnataka RERA portal. The third is the payment schedule, which should follow construction milestones and carry no large early instalments.
The agreement is signed and registered at the sub-registrar's office, and the buyer pays stamp duty and a registration fee on it. A lender will ask for this registered agreement before it releases any money. Keep the original safely, because it governs every later dispute over price, area or delay.
Stage 3: Loan and Payment Schedule
A home loan for an under-construction flat is released in parts, as the building rises. The builder raises a demand letter at each milestone, and the bank pays its share after checking the stage. The buyer's own contribution usually goes in first.
The two schedules need to be matched early. Give the lender the payment schedule from the agreement at sanction, and ask how many working days it needs to act on each demand. RERA makes the buyer responsible for paying on the agreed dates, with interest on delayed instalments, so a slow disbursement becomes the buyer's cost.
Interest on the released amount starts from the first disbursement. Most lenders offer a choice between paying interest alone until possession and starting the full EMI at once. The EMI calculator shows the monthly figure for the full loan, which helps in planning for rent and loan payments falling in the same months.
A simple payment file
One folder, on paper and as scanned copies, saves trouble at registration and at resale. It should hold each demand letter, the receipt for each payment, the bank's disbursement advice and the loan statements. Add the tax deduction challans where the price of the flat calls for tax to be deducted from payments to the builder.
Stage 4: Watching Construction
Every registered project has a page on the Karnataka RERA portal, and the builder must update it each quarter. The update shows the status of the project, the number of flats booked and the approvals received or pending. Reading it every three months takes a few minutes and shows whether work is keeping to the declared schedule.
Site visits add what the portal leaves out. A visit every few months shows the pace of work, the size of the labour force and the quality of what has been built so far. Photographs taken from the same spot on each visit make a useful record.
Each demand letter should also be checked against the site. A demand for the tenth-floor slab is payable when that slab is cast, and the lender's engineer will usually verify the same thing. Where a milestone has been billed early, a written query to the builder is the right first step.
If the possession date slips
RERA gives a buyer two routes when the builder misses the date in the agreement. Section 18 allows withdrawal from the project with a refund and interest. A buyer who stays is entitled to interest for every month of delay until possession, at the rate set in the Karnataka rules.
Costs Still to Come
The price in the agreement covers the flat, and several other payments fall due near the end. Planning for them at booking avoids a cash squeeze at possession, since most of them are paid from savings and outside the loan. The usual heads are listed below:
- Stamp duty of 5% on a flat priced above Rs. 45 Lakhs, which comes to 5.6% with the cess and surcharge
- Registration fee of 2%
- GST on instalments paid during construction
- Electricity and water connection deposits and charges
- Advance maintenance and the corpus or sinking fund
- Legal and documentation charges
- Interiors, appliances and the cost of moving
On a flat of Rs. 1 Crore, stamp duty and registration alone come to about Rs. 7.6 Lakhs. Duty already paid on the agreement for sale is normally adjusted when the sale deed is registered, so keep that receipt. Ask the builder for one consolidated statement of every remaining charge at least six months before the planned handover.
Stage 5: Occupancy Certificate and Inspection
The occupancy certificate (OC) is the approving authority's confirmation that the building is complete and fit to live in. Obtaining it is the builder's duty under RERA, and the builder must make it available to the buyers. Ask for a copy that names the tower in which the flat is located.
The OC starts two clocks. A buyer is expected to take physical possession within two months of the certificate being issued for the flat. The builder, in turn, has to execute the registered conveyance deed, and the Act sets a default period of three months from the OC for it.
Inspect the flat before accepting it. Check the walls, flooring, doors, windows, electrical points, plumbing and bathrooms, and measure the rooms against the agreed carpet area. Hand the list of defects to the builder in writing and keep a signed copy.
Stage 6: Sale Deed and Handover
The registered sale deed is the document that transfers ownership. It should carry the correct names, the flat and its carpet area, the undivided share of land and the car park. The lender takes the original deed as security when a loan is running, so keep certified copies.
Settle the account before signing the possession letter. The closing statement should list every payment received, each charge and any interest owed in either direction. Sign for possession once the OC, the sale deed and the keys are all in hand.
The builder's responsibility continues after handover. Under Section 14 of RERA, a structural or workmanship defect reported within five years of possession must be repaired within 30 days, free of charge. Report such defects in writing, with dated photographs.
After the Keys
A few records need the new owner's name once the flat is handed over. Apply for the khata, pay the first property tax, transfer the electricity connection and join the owners' association. Scan the full set of papers and store the copies in two places.
Buyers still comparing projects may browse homes in Bangalore by locality and stage on our site. For questions on a specific project, write to us through the contact page.