Sunday Special · Practical Guides

RTI Before Buying Property: 10 Records Every Buyer Should Check

Buying land, flat or house? RTI and public-record inspection can help you verify what the government record says before token money changes hands. Check registration, mutation, land records, tax dues, plans and notices, while remembering that RTI is not a legal-title certificate.

Last reviewed: 31 May 2026 · Practical information guide · India · By the Right to Information Wiki editorial team

Home buyer checking property records before purchase using RTI and public record inspection — Before buying property, check public records, registration records, mutation status and municipal approvals.

Short answer

Before buying land, a flat, house, shop or inherited property, RTI and public-record inspection can help you check whether key government records support the seller's story. Ask for certified copies or inspection of the sale deed record, mutation order, record of rights, property tax dues, sanctioned building plan, occupancy or completion certificate, land-use status and notices. But do not treat any RTI reply as proof of marketable title. RTI is an evidence tool, not a substitute for a lawyer's title search, encumbrance search, revenue verification and site inspection.

Why this matters on a Sunday

Property decisions are often pushed over a weekend: the broker says another buyer is ready, the seller wants token money by evening, and the family is already imagining furniture. Sunday is a good day to slow the process down. Make one list of records, identify the offices, download available portal records, and draft a focused RTI for what is not available online.

This guide is written for ordinary buyers dealing with Indian terms such as registry, mutation, jamabandi, khasra, khatauni, khata, municipal tax, building plan, OC and CC. It applies to flats, plots, shops, ancestral land and resale houses, with state-specific caution.

RTI is not a title certificate

An RTI reply only tells you what a public authority's record contains or does not contain. It does not certify that the seller owns the property free from disputes. A clean municipal tax record does not cure a bad sale deed. A mutation entry does not create title by itself. A registration copy does not prove that every previous transfer was valid. Use RTI with a lawyer's title search, encumbrance certificate, physical possession check, revenue record check, survey verification, court search and bank loan due diligence.

10 records to check before buying property

Record	Why it matters	Where to look
Registered sale deed and previous chain documents	Shows how the seller claims ownership and whether earlier transfers need review.	Seller, Sub-Registrar certified copy process, registration portal.
Encumbrance search or registration office record	May show registered sale, mortgage, gift, release, lease or court attachment entries.	Sub-Registrar or registration department.
Mutation or dakhil-kharij order	Shows whether revenue or municipal records were changed after transfer or inheritance.	Tehsildar, revenue office, municipal mutation section.
Record of rights, jamabandi, khasra, khatauni or khata	Useful for agricultural land, village properties and converted land.	Patwari, Lekhpal, Talathi, revenue portal.
Property tax assessment and dues	Reveals assessed owner, arrears, wrong PID and municipal notices.	Municipality or corporation ward office.
Building plan approval	Checks whether the building or addition was sanctioned.	Municipal building department, development authority.
Occupancy certificate or completion certificate	Important for flats and constructed buildings; absence can affect possession, utilities and loans.	Municipality, development authority, housing board.
Land-use, zoning or master plan status	Checks whether the plot is residential, commercial, agricultural, green belt, road reservation or restricted.	Development authority, town planning office.
Acquisition, road widening, demolition or sealing notices	Warns about planned government action or illegal construction proceedings.	Revenue office, municipality, development authority.
Pending complaints, notices or litigation records with public authority	May reveal building violations, tax objections, land-grab complaints or file objections.	Concerned public authority; court search separately through court systems.

Which office should you approach?

Sub-Registrar: registered deeds, index, encumbrance search and certified copies. Section 57 of the Registration Act, 1908 is relevant for inspection and copies of registration records, subject to rules.
Tehsildar, Revenue Officer, Patwari or Lekhpal: mutation, khatauni, khasra, jamabandi, land classification and demarcation files.
Municipal Corporation or Municipality: property tax, building plan, notices, OC or CC, unauthorised construction files and ward records.
Development Authority: layout approval, land-use, master plan, allotment records and planned road widening.
Housing Board or DDA-type authority: allotment, conversion, leasehold/freehold, transfer permission and dues.
Gram Panchayat or Block office: village house records, local tax, building permission and rural property registers where applicable.

What to ask in RTI

Under RTI Act Section 2(j), you can seek inspection of work, documents and records, and certified copies. Section 6(1) lets you file an application, and Section 7(1) generally requires a decision within 30 days. Keep the request record-based:

Certified copy of the mutation order for property number, survey number or khata number.
Date-wise file movement and present status of the building plan approval file.
Certified copy of the sanctioned plan and OC/CC issued for the building, if available.
Whether any demolition, sealing, acquisition or road-widening notice is recorded against the property.
Inspection of the property tax assessment file and copies of outstanding demand notices.
Rules, circulars or checklists used for mutation, plan approval or OC processing.

What not to ask in RTI

Do not ask the PIO to certify that title is clear, declare the seller genuine, interpret a sale deed, give legal opinion, answer hypothetical questions, or collect records from private persons. Do not seek unrelated personal information such as Aadhaar, PAN, phone number, bank account, family details or private disputes. Section 8(1)(j) privacy caution can apply where the information is unrelated to public activity or larger public interest.

Sample RTI format before buying property

To The Public Information Officer [Name of authority/office] Subject: RTI application under Section 6(1) regarding public records of [property details] Please provide the following information under the RTI Act, 2005 for property: [full address / survey number / khata number / municipal property ID / registration details]. 1. Certified copy of the mutation/dakhil-kharij order, if any, recorded for this property from [year] to date. 2. Certified copy of the current record of rights/jamabandi/khasra/khatauni/khata extract available with your office. 3. Certified copy of any outstanding property tax demand, arrears notice, demolition notice, sealing notice, road-widening notice or acquisition notice recorded against this property. 4. Certified copy of the sanctioned building plan and occupancy/completion certificate, if held by your office. 5. If any requested record is not held by your office, please state the office likely to hold it or transfer the application under Section 6(3), if applicable. 6. Please allow inspection under Section 2(j)(i) of the relevant file before copies are selected, if the file is voluminous. I am enclosing the prescribed RTI fee. Please provide the reply within the time under Section 7(1). Name: Address: Contact:

Inspection checklist

Carry the RTI application, PIO reply, inspection appointment letter and identity proof.
Take a notebook, phone scanner if allowed, and a list of records to mark for certified copies.
Check page numbers, signatures, seals, dates, file notings and whether any annexure is missing.
Ask for certified copies of only the useful pages to control cost.
Record the names of files inspected, date, time and pages selected.

Red flags

Seller refuses to share previous chain documents or asks you to rely only on photocopies.
Mutation is pending, disputed or still in a deceased person's name without succession clarity.
Property tax record and sale deed show different property numbers, boundaries or names.
Building has no sanctioned plan, OC or CC, or the plan differs from actual construction.
Land is shown as agricultural, government, gram sabha, forest, acquisition affected or road reservation land.
Office says important records are missing, torn, not traceable or under objection.
Broker insists on urgent token money before you can inspect records.

FAQs

Can RTI prove that a seller has good title?

No. RTI can give access to public records held by government offices, but it is not a title certificate. Use it with lawyer due diligence, title search, encumbrance search, physical inspection and revenue or registration verification.

Can I inspect sale deed records at the Sub-Registrar office?

Registration Act, 1908 Section 57 permits inspection and certified copies of certain registration records, subject to the Act and local rules. In many places certified copies are obtained through the registration department process rather than RTI.

Should I file RTI before paying token money?

If there is time, check public portals and request key records before paying. If a broker or seller demands urgent token money, treat that pressure as a risk signal and record all promises in writing.

Can I ask for another person's property tax dues?

Ask for property-specific assessment, dues and notices held by the municipal authority. Avoid unrelated personal details such as private phone numbers, identity documents or bank information because Section 8(1)(j) privacy issues may arise.

What if the office says records are old or not traceable?

Ask for a written non-availability or record-search reply, the record-retention rule, and the date-wise file movement of your application. Old or missing records are a red flag for a buyer and should be reviewed with a lawyer.

Next step

Turn your facts into a precise RTI using the RTI Assistant, or start with a copy-paste format from RTI Wiki templates. Keep the request narrow and record-based.