1. Area & Documentation
- Confirm the carpet area (not built-up or super built-up) against the RERA registration, if available. See our full guide on this.
- Ask for the RERA registration number and verify the project on your state's RERA portal.
- Check the sanctioned building plan matches what's actually built (unauthorized extensions or conversions are a real risk).
- Verify Occupation Certificate (OC) or Completion Certificate (CC) exists, especially for newer buildings.
- For resale flats, ask for the last 2-3 years of society maintenance receipts and any pending dues.
2. Physical Condition
- Look closely at ceilings and walls — especially bathroom-adjacent walls and top-floor units — for water stains, discoloration, or bubbling paint.
- Ask directly: "Has this been repainted recently?" Fresh, patchy paint just before a viewing is a common way sellers mask seepage.
- Check water pressure and drainage in bathrooms and kitchen.
- Test all switches, sockets, and the main electrical panel if accessible.
- Note natural light and cross-ventilation at different times of day if you can visit more than once.
3. Location & Surroundings
- Visit at different times — a locality can feel completely different at 8pm versus 11am.
- Check proximity to schools, hospitals, markets, and your workplace realistically (not just "10 minutes" as quoted).
- Ask about waterlogging history during monsoon — a genuinely important Mumbai-specific question many buyers forget.
- Check upcoming infrastructure or construction projects nearby that could affect noise, traffic, or views.
4. Vastu (if it matters to your family)
- Note the main entrance direction and kitchen/bedroom placement if Vastu compliance matters to you.
- Remember: Vastu assessment is subjective and informational — different practitioners may interpret the same property differently.
- Don't treat a single Vastu "flaw" as a dealbreaker without understanding available remedies — many issues have practical fixes.
5. Financial & Legal
- Get a clear title search done — verify there's no litigation, disputed ownership, or unpaid loans against the property.
- Understand the full cost breakup: stamp duty, registration, GST (for under-construction), society transfer charges, brokerage.
- If financing, get an in-principle loan approval before you get emotionally attached to a specific flat.
- Have a lawyer review the sale agreement before signing — don't rely solely on the builder's or broker's version.
Buyers often do 80% of this checklist mentally, but skip writing anything down — which means when comparing 2-3 shortlisted flats a week later, memory blurs and the "gut feeling" takes over. Write down what you actually observed for each property, not just how it made you feel.
Why buyers still get this wrong even when they're careful
None of the above is exotic information — most of it is common sense once it's written down. The real problem is bandwidth: you're juggling site visits, loan paperwork, family opinions, and often a ticking negotiation clock, all at once. It's easy to remember to check the kitchen fittings and completely forget to ask for the RERA number.
This is exactly the gap an independent, structured evaluation fills — not because the checks are complicated, but because having someone else run through them systematically, without the emotional pull of "but I really like this flat," catches things a first-time (or even third-time) buyer reasonably misses.
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