A First-Time Buyer’s Guide to Buying a Flat in India (2026 Update)

By ADiHomes Updated October 22, 2026 13 min read

Contents

Buying your first flat is a big financial decision, and the paperwork can feel like a maze. This guide covers buying a flat in India in order, with a focus on Delhi NCR: Delhi, Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad and Gurugram. It was last checked against current sources on 20 October 2026.

Rules and rates change, and online guides often disagree. Where sources conflict, we say so. Confirm the final figure with the registrar, your lender or a lawyer before you pay anything.

What has changed since the last version

TDS paperwork: for payments from 1 April 2026, TDS on property purchase from a resident falls under Section 393(1) of the Income-tax Act, 2025, reported in Form 141, Schedule B, with Form 132 as the certificate. Form 26QB is the old form.
UP women’s concession: the Uttar Pradesh Cabinet approved a one per cent stamp duty discount for property up to one crore rupees bought in a woman’s name. Before that it applied only up to ₹10 lakh.
GST: the GST 2.0 reform effective 22 September 2025 did not change residential real-estate rates.

Step 1: Work out your real budget

The brochure price is not what you will pay. Add taxes, government charges and moving-in costs before you decide what you can afford.

Cost	What current sources say
GST on under-construction flats	5% without input tax credit, or 1% for affordable housing. A ready flat where the builder holds the completion or occupancy certificate before the sale is outside GST.
Stamp duty, Uttar Pradesh (Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad)	7% for male buyers and 6% for sole female buyers on properties up to Rs 1 crore. A joint male-female purchase is reported at 6.5%.
Registration fee, Uttar Pradesh	1% for all buyers, with no cap.
Stamp duty, Delhi	6% for men and 4% for women. Registration is 1%, and one comparison also lists a separate MCD transfer duty. Ask the sub-registrar what applies to you.
Stamp duty, Haryana (Gurugram, Faridabad)	7% for men and 5% for women, with 6% for joint ownership in urban areas. Registration charges are reported differently: one calculator says 1% with a ₹50,000 maximum, while another lists a fixed fee between ₹100 and ₹50,000 by value slab. Confirm locally.
TDS (not an extra cost)	The buyer deducts 1% on the higher of price or stamp-duty value when the consideration is ₹50 lakh or more. It comes out of what you pay the seller or builder.

Worked example: a ₹60 lakh flat in Noida

Take a male buyer purchasing an under-construction, non-affordable flat. These are indicative figures that assume the circle rate is not above the agreed price.

Item	Amount
Agreed price	₹60,00,000
GST at 5%	₹3,00,000 (a ₹60 lakh non-affordable flat attracts ₹3 lakh GST)
Stamp duty at 7%	₹4,20,000
Registration at 1%	₹60,000
Total before furnishing and moving	₹67,80,000

On the same ₹60 lakh, government charges (stamp duty plus registration) are Rs 4,80,000 for a male buyer, Rs 4,20,000 for a sole female buyer and Rs 4,50,000 for a joint male-female deed. A ready flat with an occupancy certificate has no GST, which is where most of the difference comes from. Keep a further buffer for furnishing, society deposits and moving.

Ready, under-construction or resale?

	Under-construction	Ready (new, with certificate)	Resale
GST	5%, or 1% if affordable	Generally nil	Generally nil
Main risk	Delay in possession	Quality and title checks	Title history and seller’s dues
Payments	In stages	Mostly at once	Mostly at once

On GST, ready-to-move-in and resale flats are generally outside GST. The other rows are practical rules of thumb, not legal categories.

Step 2: Check home loan eligibility early

Banks and housing finance companies set their own criteria. Lenders also look at your repayment capacity and at the property’s condition, age and location.

The RBI caps how much of the property value a lender can finance. The limit is 90% for loans up to ₹30 lakh, 80% above ₹30 lakh and up to ₹75 lakh, and 75% above ₹75 lakh. That means a minimum down payment of 10%, 20% and 25%. Lender websites currently quote these same limits, but check with your lender, since we could not confirm them on an RBI page.

For the ₹60 lakh flat above, the 80% band applies, so the maximum loan is ₹48 lakh and the minimum down payment is ₹12 lakh. The property value used for this excludes stamp duty and registration charges, so fund those yourself. Ask the lender whether GST on an under-construction flat is covered. For under-construction properties, lenders typically release funds in stages based on verified project progress.

These are maximums, and your lender may offer less. Get a sanction letter or in-principle approval before you pay any booking amount.

Step 3: Pick a location and shortlist

Decide your priorities first: commute, schools, metro access and budget. Then compare areas, not just projects. Buyers in the east often start with the Greater Noida West guide or the new projects in Noida. West and south of Delhi, the Dwarka Expressway guide covers a popular Gurugram corridor. When you are ready to compare listings, you can search all properties on ADiHomes.

Visit more than once, at different times of day, and talk to people who already live nearby. Check water, power backup, road access and how crowded the area is on weekday evenings.

Step 4: Do the RERA checks

Under the RERA Act, registration is required where the land is more than 500 square metres or the project has more than eight apartments, counting every phase. Either condition is enough in most readings. Regulators have not always agreed on this: Delhi RERA’s chairman said a project on a 501 sq m plot needs registration even with only six flats. Ongoing projects are also covered, including legacy projects that had not received a completion certificate by 1 May 2017.

Look up the project on your state’s RERA portal (Uttar Pradesh, Haryana or Delhi, depending on location), then:

Match the project name, promoter name and RERA number with your booking documents.
Note the promised completion date and compare it with the draft agreement.
Check the carpet area and the approved plan.
Look for complaints or litigation against the project and promoter.

If a project looks like it should be registered but is not, treat that as a serious red flag. Registration must be in place before a promoter advertises, markets, books or offers units for sale.

Step 5: Read the builder-buyer agreement line by line

RERA Section 13 limits what a promoter can collect upfront. A promoter cannot take more than 10% of the cost of the apartment without a written agreement for sale, duly registered. If you are asked for a larger sum before that, pause and ask why.

Do not rely on verbal promises. Before signing, check:

Price and inclusions: carpet area, parking, club membership and other charges listed separately.
Payment schedule: tied to construction stages, not only to dates.
Possession date: a clear date, and what happens if it slips.
Delay terms: interest should work both ways, for late payments by you and late delivery by the builder.
Cancellation and refund terms.
Defect liability: Section 14(3) gives a five-year defect liability period from possession, with rectification within 30 days, and compensation if the promoter fails to fix it. Make sure the clause is not weaker.

Consider paying a property lawyer to review the draft. It costs far less than a dispute.

If possession is late

Under Section 18, if the promoter cannot give possession by the date in the agreement or as extended by the authority, the buyer can choose a refund with interest or continue and be paid interest. The rate is set by state rules. It is generally the State Bank of India’s highest MCLR plus 2%, or whatever the state RERA rules notify.

Published figures for the current rate differ, from about 10% to over 11%, so check the UP RERA, Haryana or Delhi rules for the exact number. Interest is computed on each instalment from the date it was paid.

As a simple illustration only, ₹50 lakh paid and a 12-month delay at an assumed 10% simple interest is about ₹5 lakh. Your actual figure depends on the notified rate and your payment dates.

Step 6: Understand GST and TDS

GST

For an under-construction flat, GST is 5% without input tax credit, or 1% for affordable housing. A unit qualifies as affordable only if it meets both limits: carpet area up to 60 sq m in metros or 90 sq m in non-metros, and a value cap of ₹45 lakh. If either condition fails, the 5% rate applies. Ask the builder in writing which category your flat falls in. If a builder quotes 18% on a residential flat, ask for a written clarification.

For a ready flat, GST generally does not apply once the certificate is issued. If work is still going on, check the certificate date against your payment dates and ask a tax professional how your case is treated.

TDS

If the price is ₹50 lakh or more, you deduct 1% before paying the seller. Three points matter:

Full amount: TDS applies to the entire value, not just the part above ₹50 lakh. On a ₹75 lakh flat, TDS is ₹75,000.
Higher value: Since 1 October 2024 the 1% is charged on the higher of the sale consideration or the stamp-duty value.
Deposit and form: Pay and file Form 141 within 30 days from the end of the month of deduction, then give Form 132 to the seller within 15 days.

Get the seller’s PAN before you pay. If the seller does not provide a valid PAN, the rate can go up to 20%. In a builder purchase you deduct from each instalment. Joint buyers each remit their own share of the TDS.

Step 7: Stamp duty and registration

In Uttar Pradesh, duty is computed on the higher of the agreed price or the circle rate, so check the circle rate for your sector before you finalise the price. The same principle is reported for Haryana, where duty is on the higher of the agreement value or the collector rate.

Uttar Pradesh registrations run through the IGRS UP portal and the Sub-Registrar Office.

The women’s concession needs care

News reports and the Cabinet decision describe a 1% concession on the standard 7% stamp duty, provided the property value does not exceed Rs 1 crore. Some guides describe it differently, so confirm this with the Sub-Registrar Office:

Some lender guides say there is a 6% baseline and an additional rebate of up to 1% on properties up to ₹1 crore. The news reports describe a single 1% concession, not a second one.
The 6.5% joint male-female rate comes from guides, not from a department notice we could open. Confirm how a joint deed is assessed before you decide on names.
We found no report saying what applies to a woman buyer above ₹1 crore. Ask before you assume the concession applies.

Delhi and Haryana have their own, larger concessions for women (see the Step 1 table). The rules differ by state, so do not carry UP assumptions across the border.

Step 8: Possession and handover checks

Do not accept keys on the day of the handover event. Visit the flat, ideally with someone who knows construction.

Documents: ask for the occupancy or completion certificate, the approved plan and the final account statement.
Area: check the carpet area against your agreement and ask about any difference in the final demand.
Final charges: compare every demand with the agreement and question anything that was not agreed.
Inspection: test taps, switches, doors and windows, and look for leaks, cracks, damp and balcony slopes.
Snag list: list every defect in writing and ask for a date by which it will be fixed.
Title: the registered sale deed is what transfers ownership. Ask when it will be executed and who bears the costs.

If the builder will not fix defects or hand over documents, you can complain to the state RERA authority. Keep every payment receipt, email and message.

If you are a tenant or an investor

If you are renting now, compare your total monthly cost of owning (EMI plus maintenance) with your rent, and add the one-time costs in Step 1. Do not assume prices will rise. Treat any appreciation figure in marketing material as an opinion, not a promise.

If you are an investor, remember that a delayed under-construction project can leave your money locked up while you also pay EMIs. Section 18 remedies exist, but they take time.

A word on changing rules

GST, TDS, stamp duty and lending limits are revised from time to time. Before you pay, confirm current figures with the Stamp and Registration Department, your lender or your lawyer. This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice.

Frequently asked questions

How much GST do I pay when buying a flat in India?

Under-construction flats attract 5% GST without input tax credit, or 1% for qualifying affordable housing (up to ₹45 lakh, with carpet area up to 60 sq m in metros or 90 sq m elsewhere). A ready flat with a completion or occupancy certificate generally has no GST.

What is the minimum down payment for a home loan?

RBI limits are a 90% loan-to-value ratio up to ₹30 lakh, 80% from ₹30 lakh to ₹75 lakh and 75% above ₹75 lakh. That means a minimum down payment of 10%, 20% or 25%, and lenders may offer less than the maximum.

What is the stamp duty for a flat in Noida or Greater Noida?

Uttar Pradesh charges 7% stamp duty for male buyers and 6% for sole female buyers on properties up to ₹1 crore, plus a 1% registration fee. Joint male-female deeds are reported at 6.5%, but confirm this with the Sub-Registrar Office.

Is TDS applicable when I buy a flat?

Yes, if the consideration is ₹50 lakh or more and the seller is a resident. You deduct 1% on the higher of the price or stamp-duty value and, for payments from 1 April 2026, file Form 141 within 30 days from the end of the month of deduction.

Which projects must be RERA-registered?

Any project on more than 500 sq m of land or with more than eight apartments, counting all phases, must be registered before it is advertised or sold. Check the registration number and completion date on your state's RERA portal.

Can a builder take a large booking amount before signing the agreement?

No. RERA Section 13 stops a promoter from taking more than 10% of the apartment's cost before a written agreement for sale is registered. Ask for a clear explanation if you are asked for more.

What can I do if the builder delays possession?

Under RERA Section 18, you can withdraw and claim a refund with interest, or stay in the project and claim interest for each month of delay. The interest rate is set by state rules and is typically SBI's highest MCLR plus 2%.

Sources

Updated 20 October 2026. This article is general information, not legal or financial advice; check current rules and project details before you decide.

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