Property Documents Guide — What to Check Before You Buy
Seven documents matter most when buying property in Tamil Nadu: patta, chitta, encumbrance certificate, FMB sketch, the parent document, layout approval, and — for eligible projects — RERA registration. Each proves a different thing, and skipping one is how disputes happen later.
Patta
The government record naming the current legal owner of a piece of land, issued by the Tahsildar's office. It's the primary proof of ownership for land not registered as a flat/apartment.
What to check: The name on the patta must match the seller's name exactly, and the survey number must match the property being sold.
Chitta
A revenue record classifying the land — whether it's registered as 'natham' (residential/village land) or 'punjai/nanjai' (agricultural). Only certain classifications can be legally used for residential construction.
What to check: Confirm the land is classified for residential use, not agricultural — building on agricultural-classified land without conversion is a common source of legal trouble.
Encumbrance Certificate (EC)
A record of every registered transaction — sale, mortgage, gift, lease — against a property over a chosen period, issued by the Sub-Registrar's office. A 'nil encumbrance' EC means no registered claims or loans against it.
What to check: Ask for an EC covering at least the last 13–30 years, and check for any unresolved mortgage or loan entries that haven't been formally released.
FMB Sketch
Field Measurement Book sketch — the official survey diagram showing the property's exact boundaries and dimensions as measured by the Survey Department.
What to check: The dimensions and survey number on the FMB should match both the patta and what's physically on the ground — a site visit with the FMB in hand catches boundary disputes early.
Parent Document
The original sale deed or ownership document from which the current owner's title is traced — sometimes going back multiple past sales.
What to check: Ask for the full chain of parent documents, not just the most recent one, especially for land that has changed hands several times.
Approval / Layout Approval
For plotted developments, the planning permission from DTCP (outside city limits) or CMDA (within the Chennai Metropolitan Area) confirming the layout meets road, drainage and plot-size rules.
What to check: Ask for the approval number and cross-check it with the issuing authority — an unapproved layout can't be legally registered as individual plots in some cases.
RERA Registration
For projects that meet the area/unit thresholds under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, builders must register with TNRERA before advertising or selling.
What to check: Verify the RERA ID directly at rera.tn.gov.in — don't rely on a number printed in a brochure alone.
Guideline Value
The government-notified minimum value per square foot used to calculate stamp duty and registration charges — separate from, and often lower than, the actual market price.
What to check: Stamp duty is charged on whichever is higher: what you paid, or the guideline value. Confirm the current guideline value for the exact survey number at the Sub-Registrar's office.
How to Verify These, in Order
The eight documents above matter individually, but checking them in a sensible order saves time — there's no point tracing a full parent-document chain on a plot that turns out to be agriculturally classified with no conversion on record.
Start with the patta and chitta together
These two answer the two most basic questions — who owns it, and what is it legally classified as. Get both before you spend time or money on anything else, since a classification problem (agricultural land, for instance) can rule out a plot entirely regardless of how clean the ownership trail is.
Pull the encumbrance certificate yourself
Don't rely solely on a copy the seller hands you — an EC can be requested directly from the Sub-Registrar's office (or online via the Tamil Nadu Registration Department portal) for a small fee, and getting your own copy removes any question about whether it's current.
Physically compare the FMB sketch to the site
Numbers on paper and the actual boundaries on the ground don't always agree, especially on older plots or land that's been informally subdivided over the years. A short site visit with the FMB sketch in hand, ideally with a surveyor, catches this before registration rather than after.
Trace the parent document chain
If the property has changed hands multiple times, ask for the full chain back to the earliest traceable document, not just the most recent sale deed. Gaps in this chain are one of the more common sources of later title disputes.
Verify approvals with the issuing authority directly
A layout approval number or RERA ID printed in a brochure is a claim, not proof. DTCP, CMDA and TNRERA all allow direct verification — cross-check before you commit rather than after.
Confirm the current guideline value
Stamp duty and registration charges are calculated on whichever is higher — your transaction value or the government guideline value — so knowing the current guideline value for the exact survey number tells you your real registration cost upfront, not as a surprise at the Sub-Registrar's office.
Red Flags Worth Pausing Over
None of these automatically mean a deal is bad — but each one is a reason to slow down and get a clear, documented answer before you proceed.
- ! Seller is reluctant to share original documents, or only offers photocopies for an extended period
- ! Patta name doesn't match the seller's identity documents, or hasn't been transferred from a previous owner
- ! Chitta shows agricultural classification with no record of conversion to residential use
- ! Encumbrance certificate has an unresolved mortgage entry with no release document
- ! Layout has no traceable DTCP/CMDA approval number, or the number doesn't match records at the issuing office
- ! Asking price is significantly below the government guideline value with no clear explanation
Stamp Duty and Registration Charges
Stamp duty in Tamil Nadu is charged on whichever is higher between your declared transaction value and the government-notified guideline value for that survey number — so a purchase price below the guideline value doesn't reduce your stamp duty liability. Registration charges are a separate, smaller fee for recording the sale deed at the Sub-Registrar's office. Both are due at registration, and rates are revised periodically, so confirm the current figures with the Sub-Registrar's office or a property lawyer rather than relying on an old reference.
If You're Buying From Abroad
NRI buyers face the same document set, with the added step of a power of attorney if you can't be present for registration — see our NRI buying guide for how that process works and what to prepare from your country of residence.
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Get Construction Estimate →Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between patta and chitta?+
Patta proves who owns the land; chitta shows how the land is classified (residential/natham vs agricultural). You typically need both — one to confirm ownership, the other to confirm it's usable for construction.
How many years of encumbrance certificate should I ask for?+
13 years is the common minimum in practice, but 30 years gives a fuller picture, especially for older or agricultural-converted land. Longer is safer, not excessive, and the incremental cost of requesting a longer period is small.
Can I build on agricultural (punjai/nanjai) land?+
Not directly — it generally needs to be converted to residential use (patta conversion / land use change) through the appropriate government process before construction is legal. Building without this conversion is one of the more common and avoidable sources of legal trouble we see.
Is a RERA ID mandatory for every project?+
Only for projects that cross RERA's area or unit-count thresholds. Smaller developments may be exempt — but it's always worth asking why a project isn't registered if you'd expect it to be, and verifying any RERA ID that is quoted directly on rera.tn.gov.in.
Who should verify these documents — can I do it myself?+
You can pull most of these records yourself (EC, guideline value, RERA status are all directly checkable), but a property lawyer's title verification is worth the cost for anything beyond a straightforward, recently-registered plot, especially where the parent document chain goes back several owners.
What's the difference between stamp duty and registration charges?+
Stamp duty is the tax on the transaction itself, calculated on whichever is higher between your purchase price and the government guideline value. Registration charges are a separate fee for recording the transaction at the Sub-Registrar's office. Both are due at the time of registration, so budget for them alongside the property price.
Do these documents matter differently for a plot vs a ready villa vs an apartment?+
The core set (patta/chitta, EC, parent document) applies to land underlying any of the three. Apartments add the UDS (undivided share) documentation and, where applicable, the RERA registration; plots put more weight on the FMB sketch and layout approval since there's no existing structure to inspect.