Buying a home is one of the largest financial decisions most people make, and yet the actual process, from the first site visit to finally collecting your keys, can feel unclear even to buyers who have done extensive research on the project itself. Understanding each step in advance removes much of the stress from what should be an exciting milestone. Here is a practical walkthrough of how the process typically works, from booking to possession.

Step 1: Shortlisting and Site Visits

The process usually begins with narrowing down a shortlist of localities and projects based on budget, connectivity needs, and lifestyle preferences, followed by actual site visits rather than relying solely on brochures or virtual tours. A site visit is where many of the details that matter most become obvious: the actual view from a particular floor, the walking distance to nearby amenities, the quality of finishes in a sample flat, and the general feel of the surrounding neighbourhood at different times of day.

It is worth visiting a shortlisted project more than once, at different times, since traffic, noise levels, and the general atmosphere of a locality can vary considerably between a weekday morning and a weekend afternoon. This small extra effort at the shortlisting stage tends to prevent much larger regrets later.

Step 2: Verifying the Project

• Confirm the project’s RERA registration number and cross check it against the MahaRERA website, comparing the declared possession date against what the sales team communicates
• Review the approved layout plan and specifications listed on the MahaRERA portal against what is being marketed, to confirm there is no mismatch
• Ask for the developer’s track record on previous projects, including actual possession dates compared to originally declared timelines
• Check land title and ownership documents, ideally with the help of a property lawyer, particularly for larger purchases

Step 3: Booking and the Initial Agreement

Once a specific unit is selected, the process typically moves to a booking amount, followed by an Agreement for Sale that sets out the full terms of the purchase, including the total price, payment schedule, carpet area, specifications, and the declared possession date. This agreement is a legally binding document, and it is worth reading it in full, ideally with legal guidance, rather than treating it as a formality to be signed quickly to secure the unit.

Under RERA, the Agreement for Sale must be registered within a defined period of the booking amount being paid, which offers buyers an additional layer of legal protection compared to the informal booking arrangements that were more common before RERA came into effect.

Step 4: Arranging Home Loan Financing

Most buyers finance a significant portion of their purchase through a home loan, and it is generally worth approaching this step early, ideally before finalising a specific unit, so that loan eligibility and approximate loan amount are already clear before price negotiations begin. Banks will typically evaluate income, existing liabilities, credit history, and the specific project’s approval status before sanctioning a loan, and RERA registered projects with clean documentation tend to move through this process considerably faster than projects with any ambiguity in their approvals.

Many developers, including Shree Krishna Group, maintain relationships with a panel of banks and financial institutions that are already familiar with the project’s documentation, which can meaningfully simplify and speed up loan processing for buyers compared to approaching a bank with no prior exposure to the specific project.

• Compare interest rates and processing fees across at least two or three lenders before committing
• Confirm whether the loan is disbursed in a lump sum or in construction linked tranches, and understand how this affects your own payment schedule to the developer
• Factor in stamp duty, registration charges, and GST as separate costs beyond the loan amount, since these are typically not covered by home loan financing

Step 5: Documentation and Legal Due Diligence

Beyond the Agreement for Sale, a full home purchase involves a set of supporting documents, including the developer’s title deed, commencement and occupation certificates as they become available, and NOCs from relevant authorities depending on the project. For an under construction property, several of these documents are issued progressively as construction advances, and it is reasonable to ask the developer for a clear schedule of when each will be available.

Engaging a property lawyer to review documentation, even for a well established, RERA registered developer, is a modest additional cost relative to the size of the overall purchase, and it provides an independent check that can catch issues a buyer without legal training might otherwise miss.

Step 6: Construction Updates and Site Visits During the Build

For an under construction purchase, the period between booking and possession can extend to a few years depending on the project’s stage at the time of purchase. During this period, it is reasonable to expect periodic construction updates from the developer, and buyers are generally welcome to schedule site visits at agreed intervals to see progress firsthand. Regular, transparent updates during this phase are one of the clearer signs of a developer confident in their own execution.

Step 7: Final Inspection and Possession

As the project nears completion, the developer will typically invite buyers for a final inspection of their specific unit, allowing them to check finishes, fittings, and any snags against what was originally specified in the agreement. This is the point to raise any discrepancies for correction before formally taking possession, rather than after moving in, since post possession corrections can be considerably more disruptive to arrange.

Once the occupation certificate is issued and any final dues are cleared, possession is formally handed over, typically along with a set of documents including the possession letter, updated payment records, and information on the structural warranty period that begins from this date under RERA.