Real Estate Glossary

Advance maintenance is a lump-sum charge collected by the builder at handover to fund common-area up…

Builder's official document confirming allocation of a specific unit to a buyer after booking. Speci…

Amenity charges are one-time or recurring fees a developer or society levies to fund clubhouses, poo…

Approved Project Financing (APF) is a pre-approval a bank or housing finance company grants to a spe…

The initial payment made by a buyer to reserve a property unit, typically 5–10% of total sale value …

Sanction from the local authority approving architectural drawings for construction. Confirms compli…

Carpet area plus wall thickness (inner and outer walls). Typically 10–15% more than carpet area.

Tax on profit from property sale. Short-term (held under 24 months): taxed at income slab rate. Long…

The net usable floor area inside apartment walls, excluding wall thickness, balconies, and common ar…

The process of physically measuring the carpet area of a unit at possession to confirm it matches th…

Permission from the local authority to begin construction after building plan approval is granted. W…

Common Area Maintenance, or CAM, is the monthly charge a flat owner pays to keep shared spaces — lob…

Certificate confirming a building's construction is complete as per the sanctioned plan. Precedes th…

A one-time, non-refundable contribution collected by a builder from every flat owner at possession t…

A DC Conversion Certificate is the Deputy Commissioner's order converting land from agricultural to …

Deemed Conveyance is a legal route under Maharashtra law that lets a housing society obtain title to…

Deemed rental income is the notional rent the Income Tax Department imputes on a residential propert…

The defect liability period is the window — five years under RERA — during which a developer must re…

Initial payment (typically 10–20% of property value) made by a buyer to secure a property, demonstra…

Equated Monthly Instalment — the fixed monthly payment comprising principal and interest for a home …

Official record from the Sub-Registrar's office listing all registered transactions on a property — …

Fire insurance is a property cover that compensates the policyholder for damage caused by fire, ligh…

Certificate from State Fire Department confirming a building meets fire safety standards — sprinkler…

Same as FSI — total permissible floor area divided by plot area. FAR is the term used in Delhi/NCR; …

The ratio of total built-up floor area to the plot area. Also called Floor Area Ratio (FAR). Determi…

Form 26AS is the consolidated annual tax statement issued by the Income Tax Department. For property…

A gift deed is a legal instrument by which an owner voluntarily transfers immovable property to anot…

5% GST applies on under-construction residential properties (1% for affordable housing under Rs 45 l…

The minimum price per square foot at which a property can be registered in a given location, fixed b…

Home insurance is a bundled non-life policy that protects a residential dwelling and its contents ag…

The maximum loan amount a bank will sanction, determined by monthly income, existing obligations, cr…

A Joint Development Agreement is a contract where a landowner gives a builder the right to develop t…

Karnataka-specific property ownership record maintained by BBMP that registers the property in the l…

The ratio by which super built-up area exceeds carpet area, expressed as a percentage. A loading fac…

A maintenance deposit is a one-time, interest-free amount that flat owners pay to the builder at han…

The original title document that traces a property's ownership back to its first lawful owner, formi…

Mutation is the process of updating municipal revenue records to reflect a new owner after a propert…

Formal clearance from various authorities confirming no objection to construction or use — fire depa…

The FEMA-regulated process by which a Non-Resident Indian, PIO, or OCI acquires immovable property i…

Certificate issued by the local authority confirming a building is safe for occupation — all approva…

The chain of previous ownership documents going back to the original land grant or earliest traceabl…

The number of dedicated car parking spaces a builder provides per residential unit in a project, exp…

A partition deed is a registered legal instrument that divides jointly-owned property — typically he…

Builder-issued document recording that physical possession of the unit has been handed over to the b…

Under Section 18 of the RERA Act 2016, a buyer is entitled to monetary compensation when a builder f…

A systematic inspection of the unit at possession to document defects, shortfalls against specificat…

Legal document authorizing a person (agent) to act on behalf of another (principal) in property tran…

Preferential Location Charges are extra fees a builder adds on top of the base price for units with …

Annual tax levied by municipal corporations on property ownership, based on guidance value, built-up…

Fee paid to the Sub-Registrar's office for registering the sale deed in government records. Typicall…

Repatriation is the process by which an NRI or PIO transfers the sale proceeds of an Indian immovabl…

A mandatory state-level licence that every real estate agent, broker or channel partner must obtain …

A formal complaint filed by a buyer against a builder on the state RERA portal for violations such a…

A dedicated bank account where builders must deposit 70% of all project collections. Funds can only …

The unique alphanumeric registration number assigned to each project by the state RERA authority. Fo…

Mandatory quarterly progress report filed by builders on the RERA portal, covering construction prog…

Mandatory registration of real estate projects above 500 sqm or 8 units with the state Real Estate R…

The structured legal, financial, and physical verification a buyer carries out on a previously-owned…

A preliminary contract between buyer and builder committing to future transfer of property on agreed…

The final registered document transferring property ownership from seller to buyer. Executed at the …

Income tax deduction of up to Rs 1.5 lakh per year on home loan principal repayment under Section 80…

A share certificate is a legal document issued by a Cooperative Housing Society (CHS) certifying tha…

A sinking fund is a long-term reserve a housing society builds up to pay for major future capital re…

Society formation is the legal process of converting a builder-controlled apartment complex into a r…

State government tax on property transactions, calculated as a percentage of the agreement value or …

A payment arrangement where the builder pays the EMI on behalf of the buyer during the construction …

Built-up area plus proportionate share of common areas such as lobby, staircase, lift shaft, and ter…

Tax Deducted at Source under Section 194IA — buyer must deduct 1% TDS on property purchases above Rs…

The legal document that establishes ownership of a property. After registration, the buyer's sale de…

Title insurance is a one-time-premium policy that indemnifies a property buyer (and their lender) ag…

Three-party agreement between buyer, builder, and bank for under-construction property home loans. D…

A Will transfers ownership of a deceased person's property to named beneficiaries under the Indian S…