The first check is elementary and often skipped: is the person offering the property the person entitled to transfer it, and is every owner who must join in the sale actually joining? A spouse, a co-owner, or a legal heir left off the draft is not a small clerical point.
The second check is the chain. How did the present owner acquire the property, and can the earlier documents be followed for a sensible period? A single recent deed, however neatly registered, is a chapter, not the book.
Local records may show a mortgage, a court attachment, a revenue due, or a restriction on how the land can be used. Which office keeps that record depends on the state and on whether the property is agricultural, urban, or part of a building. A search is only as good as the offices that were actually approached.
For an apartment, the builder’s title and the permissions that the local law requires sit underneath the flat buyer’s own agreement. Society or association papers matter after possession, especially where a share certificate, a nomination, or an unpaid due will travel with the flat.
Payment should be traceable and should match the document. A private cash adjustment that never appears in the deed is a frequent source of later trouble, including tax trouble. This article is not a checklist that makes a purchase safe. It is a reason to have the file read before money moves.