Advance First, Originals Later? How to Judge a Seller Who Says Wait

Quick verdict for 2026: handing over an advance against photocopies, then inspecting originals when the deed is registered, is standard Indian practice and no warning sign on its own. Your advance is the exposed part, since money given on a verbal promise can hardly be recovered through law. The better questions are where the originals are now and whether a registered agreement backs your money. Should the seller be unable to say which bank holds the papers, or press for cash before anything is signed and registered, treat that as pressure.

This question comes up every week, and online replies mostly come from brokers and builders who stop at "yes, it is normal." Correct, though partial, and the missing part is where money gets lost. Below are the procedure, the two things that can sit behind "you will see them at registration," and the checks that make an advance safe.

Why Copies Now and Originals at Registration Is Correct

Indian property sales run in two stages. The buyer and seller first sign an agreement to sell, with an advance from the buyer. At a later date the sale deed is executed and registered and the balance is paid. Only that second stage moves ownership. Section 54 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 allows a sale of immovable property worth Rs. 100 or more only through a registered instrument. The agreement, and the advance paid under it, give you no ownership.

Ownership has not changed hands yet, so a prudent seller retains the original title papers until the balance is paid and the deed registered. Giving them up for a part payment would be unusual. Copies now and originals at registration is simply the normal order. The offer is neutral, and the circumstances around it are what matter.

The Real Question: Where Are the Originals Now?

Originals are physical papers, so they are always somewhere. There are three honest answers, and each tells you what to check.

With the seller. The simple case. Check the copies against the public record (see the checks below) and proceed on a registered agreement.

With a bank. Where the seller owes a loan on the property, the bank has the original title deed as security. Buyers overlook this, since loans give no outward sign. Handing title deeds to a lender creates an equitable mortgage (Section 58(f), Transfer of Property Act). An older encumbrance certificate may omit it, but CERSAI, the central security-interest registry, nearly always lists it, and a property search costs about Rs. 10. A live bank mortgage does not stop a sale. The loan must be closed, and the bank must supply a No Objection Certificate and a deed of reconveyance or release by registration at the latest. Ask which bank, which loan account, and when the NOC and original deed will be released. A seller whose papers are with a bank can answer in a sentence.

Nowhere the seller can explain. This is the answer to worry about, and the next section deals with it.

"The Originals Are Lost": What a Genuine Answer Looks Like

The originals may truly be lost. But the story can also cover an equitable mortgage or an earlier sale. If an original is missing with no bank and no explanation, suspect the worst, since a "lost" deed is usually with a lender the seller left unmentioned.

Real loss leaves evidence, and you can ask for it: an FIR or police complaint about the loss, a newspaper notice inviting objections, and frequently a registered indemnity or affidavit. Whatever the seller says, you can obtain a certified copy of the registered sale deed on your own from the Sub-Registrar's office, using Section 57 of the Registration Act, 1908. Such a copy is generally as good as the original as evidence, so certified copies do not ruin a title. A seller with neither originals nor a clean record of the loss, however, has not shown that his title is marketable. We have a separate guide on reconstructing lost property documents.

Guard the Advance, Not Just the Documents

Even with a clean title, an advance paid on a handshake is exposed. Two things protect it.

Registered agreement to sell. Write the advance into an agreement to sell stating the sum, the balance, the date of registration and the consequences if either party withdraws, then register it. Ownership still does not move. You do gain a public record and the right to sue for specific performance if the seller later declines to complete. Cash given against an unregistered slip, or against nothing, is extremely hard to get back.

Understand the limit of the 10 percent statutory cap. When you buy an under-construction unit from a builder, Section 13 of the RERA Act, 2016 prevents the promoter from collecting more than 10 percent of the cost before a registered agreement for sale. Only promoters of registered projects are bound. In a resale between private individuals RERA is absent, so you must supply the discipline: a modest advance, a registered agreement, and balance paid only when the deed is registered.

Three Checks on the Photocopies Before Any Money Moves

You do not need originals to verify a title. The copies and the public record are enough to catch the serious problems.

• Thirty-year EC for the right survey number. The encumbrance certificate records registered transactions and mortgages on a property. Beware two traps. A 13-year certificate is cheaper but may read clean when a defect is older, so ask for 30 years. And use the survey number written in the deed, because a wrong number gives a false "nil." Even a clean EC leaves out unregistered court cases and often an equitable mortgage, which is why CERSAI and court-case checks are also needed.
• Chain of title back to the mother deed. Follow the deed to its parent, the mother deed, to confirm that the seller owns what he sells. A registered deed in his name does not end the matter. The Supreme Court's August 2026 decision in M/s Circar Paper Mills Ltd. v. District Collector, Nellore points the same way. Registered sale deeds and mutation entries backed by long possession could not be brushed off, and the Court also said that a buyer's failure to pay the balance does not by itself void a registered deed. For you this means a previous sale may still stand even if it seems half-done, and a neat recital proves little. Follow the chain yourself.
• Seller's identity against the deed. Match the seller's ID to the owner named in the deed, and if a power of attorney is used, see that it is registered and in force. Since Suraj Lamp & Industries v. State of Haryana, a sale via general power of attorney, agreement and will conveys no title, so a "GPA sale" warns you and is no shortcut.

When Being Rushed Is the Real Red Flag

Look at the pressure and not at the photocopies. A seller with nothing to hide can wait a week while you collect an EC and a certified copy. Slow down if he rejects a registered agreement, insists on cash, cannot name the bank holding the papers, shows a deed whose survey number differs from the khata or the EC, or invents a deadline ("another buyer is ready today"). Each is reason enough. A wish to show originals only at registration is not.

What a Title Search Is For

An independent title search treats all of these as routine. It pulls a 30-year EC under the right survey number, follows the chain from the mother deed, looks on CERSAI for hidden mortgages, searches courts for cases an EC cannot show, and checks who the seller is and what any POA says. LegiScore runs them over government databases and returns a single title report ahead of your advance. The decision shifts from trusting a promise to asking whether the record supports the sale. Order a title search before paying.

Sources

• Transfer of Property Act, 1882, ss. 54 and 58(f)
• Registration Act, 1908, ss. 17 and 57
• RERA Act, 2016, s. 13
• Circar Paper Mills Ltd. v. District Collector, Nellore (Supreme Court, August 2026): registered deeds, mutation, bona fide title disputes
• Supreme Court, August 2026 (as reported): unpaid balance consideration does not void a registered sale deed
• Suraj Lamp & Industries Pvt. Ltd. v. State of Haryana (2011/2012): general-power-of-attorney sales