In short
- A title search is a lawyer's check of the chain of papers behind the seller's ownership.
- Do it before you pay a token, or at the latest before you sign the agreement.
- Ask for the result in writing, and ask what is still open.
A land record tells you who is the owner now. A title search asks how that person became the owner and whether anyone else could claim the property. It is done by a property lawyer, who reads the papers and checks the records. Nagari Guntha does not do it for you, and a lawyer's fee goes to the lawyer; agree the fee before you start.
What a lawyer usually checks
The chain of papers. Each earlier sale deed, gift deed, partition or will that moved the property to the seller, for as long a period as your lawyer thinks right.
The land record. The 7/12, 8A or property card, and the mutation entries that match each step in the chain.
Registered documents. A search of the registration records (the sub-registrar's office, and the online search on IGR Maharashtra where it is available) for sales or mortgages of the same property that the seller has not told you about.
Other claims. Co-owners or legal heirs who have not signed, court cases, a bank charge, or an earlier agreement to sell.
Approvals. For a plot, the NA order or regularisation proof and the layout sanction. For a new project, the MahaRERA registration.
A public notice. Lawyers often publish a notice in a newspaper inviting anyone with a claim to come forward. Ask whether yours recommends one for this purchase.
What to hand your lawyer
Copies of the 7/12, 8A or property card, every earlier deed the seller has, the NA or approval papers, the seller's identity papers, and the draft agreement. Ask the seller early; missing papers are the first finding of a search.
What you should get back
A written report or opinion that says what was checked, what was found, and what is still open. If it says "subject to" something, ask what has to happen before you can safely pay.
Red flags
A seller who will not let a lawyer see the papers. Papers that stop at an old deed with no link to the present owner. A co-owner or heir who is not part of the sale. A seller who says there is no time for a search. Pressure to pay a token first and check later.
Next step: before you pay any token, ask the seller for the papers listed above and send them to a property lawyer.
Sources
General information for Maharashtra, written for buyers in Ahilyanagar. Not legal or financial advice; rules change, so check with the source or a professional before you act.