Rights of Property Buyer in India

The transfer of real estate property is a complicated matter involving various Central and State Government laws. One of the main laws the govern property transfer is the Transfer of Property Act in India, and any transfer of immovable property should be by way of a written and registered document that is drafted by an experienced Lawyer. In this article, we look at some of the major rights and responsibilities of a property buyer in India.

Rights of the Buyer

As per the Transfer of Property Act, the buyer has the following rights in a real estate property transaction.

Benefit of Increase in Value

After passing of ownership of the property from the seller to the buyer, the buyer has the benefit of any improvement or increase in the value of the property, and to the rents and profits from the property. The seller can have no claim on the benefits of the property after the sale.

Proper Delivery of the Property

On purchase of a property, the buyer has the right to the proper delivery of the title and possession of the property. Further, unless the seller improperly declined to accept delivery of the property, the buyer has a charge on the property and the seller for any money paid in anticipation of the delivery of the property. Further, in case of failure of the seller to deliver the property, the buyer also has the right to obtain reimbursement for the earnest and for the costs awarded to him in a court to compel specific performance of the contract.

Responsibilities of the Buyer

Even in the absence of a contract, the buyer has certain responsibilities as under in a property transfer transaction.

Disclose Material Interest

The buyer has a responsibility to disclose to the seller any facts as to the nature or extent of the seller's interest in the property of which the buyer is aware, but which the buyer has reason to believe that the seller is not aware, and which materially increases the value of such interest. For instance, if a buyer is entering into a transaction to purchase a property from a farmer and learns that the land has minerals of substantial value, then the buyer must disclose the fact to the seller.

Payment of Consideration

The buyer has the responsibility of paying the seller or any person designated by the seller, at the time and place of completing the transaction. In case of property with encumbrances, the buyer may retain a part of the consideration equal to the amount of any encumbrances on the property existing at the date of sale and pay the amount retained to the persons entitled.

Bear Loss not Caused by Seller

Once the ownership of a property has passed to the buyer, the buyer must bear any loss arising from the destruction, injury or decrease in value of the property, not caused by the seller.

Pay all dues

Once the ownership of a property has passed to the buyer, the buyer has the responsibility to pay all public charges and rent which may become payable in respect of the property, any encumbrances subject to which the property was sold and any other liabilities that accrue after the purchase of the property.