Resources · Glossary

Property law terms, in plain language.

The words that come up in a title check, defined so a credit committee or a new lawyer can follow a report without a second dictionary.

Adverse possession: A claim to land by long, open and continuous occupation without the owner’s permission. It surfaces in title checks because it can defeat a recorded owner.
Agreement to sell: A promise to sell, not a transfer. It does not convey title, which is why a bank will not rely on it as proof of ownership.
Benami: A transaction where property is held in one name but actually belongs to someone else. Benami holdings are void under the Benami Act and a known source of title risk.
CERSAI: The Central Registry that records security interests (mortgages) over property. Checking it is how a lender finds charges that are not on the title deed.
Chain of title: The unbroken line of transfers from the original owner to the current one. A gap anywhere in it is a problem.
Completion certificate (CC): The authority’s confirmation that a building was built as approved. Its absence is a compliance flag.
DRT / DRAT: Debt Recovery Tribunal and Debt Recovery Appellate Tribunal, where lenders enforce against defaulters. A case here can affect a property’s marketability.
Encumbrance certificate (EC): A record of registered transactions on a property, used to spot mortgages, liens and charges. The title report leans on it heavily.
FMB sketch: The village map that fixes the physical extent and boundaries of a plot, used to reconcile what the deed says with what is on the ground.
GPA (general power of attorney): A document authorising someone to act on your behalf. Unregistered GPAs have been a recurring source of fraudulent transfers.
HUF (Hindu undivided family): A family unit under Hindu law that can own property collectively. Partition and coparcener rights complicate the title.
Khata / RTC: The Karnataka record of land tenancy and crops. It shows who cultivates and pays the revenue, and is used to verify the owner.
Lis pendens: A pending suit recorded against the property. It warns any buyer or lender that the title is in dispute.
Mother deed: The root document from which a property’s title descends. Title checks trace back to it.
Patta / chitta: The Tamil Nadu record of landholding and the related extract. It identifies who the land stands in the name of.
RERA: The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, which regulates residential projects and requires registration. Its absence flags a project risk.
SARFAESI: The Act that lets a lender enforce a security interest without going to court first, but only if the title is clean enough for the property to be sold.
7/12 extract: The Maharashtra record of land rights and cultivation, also called the Satbara. The counterpart in other states is the khata, patta or pahani.