Haryana has put forth a proposal to make the registration of an Agreement to Sell compulsory, aiming to enhance transparency and legal security in property transactions, as announced by Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini during the budget presentation.
Currently, such agreements are frequently executed on plain paper or privately notarized, without being recorded in official documents. This situation exposes buyers to risks of fraud, double-selling of properties, delays in possession, and extended litigation, since unregistered agreements possess lesser evidentiary weight in disputes. By enforcing registration, the government intends to guarantee that every property-related commitment is formally documented, time-stamped, and recorded with the revenue authorities.
This initiative will aid in verifying ownership, preventing multiple agreements for the same property, and offering stronger legal protection to both buyers and sellers. The reform is anticipated to considerably diminish property scams, expedite dispute resolution, and bolster trust in real estate transactions, thereby rendering the market more transparent, secure, and accountable for all parties involved. In Haryana, an agreement to sell is conventionally regarded as a contractual document rather than a title-creating instrument.
Most agreements between buyers and sellers, particularly in secondary or resale property transactions, are executed on stamp paper and notarized, yet registration remains non-mandatory. Due to the absence of compulsory registration, these documents often do not enter official land records, resulting in disputes regarding ownership, double-selling, fraudulent GPA or SPA transfers, and litigation concerning possession or payments. Numerous cases escalate to courts when sellers withdraw or buyers seek specific performance based on unregistered agreements.
The Registration Act of 1908 only requires the logging of sale, conveyance, and certain lease deeds. An Agreement to Sell is excluded from this category unless specified otherwise by state regulations. Consequently, parties depend on notarized agreements, which carry limited evidentiary value compared to registered documents.
Nevertheless, the regulatory framework differs for real estate initiatives governed by Haryana RERA. The authority requires builders to enter into a registered sale agreement with a homebuyer after receiving up to 10% of the sale price. Promoters are prohibited from accepting a larger advance without completing this registration.
Additionally, Haryana RERA stipulates a standardized agreement format that developers must adhere to, which includes payment schedules, possession timelines, penalties, and the rights of both parties. This document is required to be uploaded on the RERA portal, thereby ensuring transparency and preventing arbitrary clauses or unilateral cancellations. The differing regulations—optional registration in general market transactions compared to mandatory registration in RERA-regulated projects—have resulted in two parallel systems.
While RERA provides enhanced protection and clear enforcement for homebuyers, the wider property market still depends on unregistered agreements, which continue to be a significant source of litigation and fraud.
