Property documents are mandatory to get any form of home loan. If you have lost your property documents but want to get a home loan, here’s what you can do.
Step 1 – File an FIR with the Police
File a First Information Report (FIR) at your nearest police station once you get to know that you have lost your property documents. Mention if the documents were stolen, lost or misplaced. Be sure to get a copy of your FIR as you will need it in the future.
Step 2 – Publish notice in the newspaper
Publish notice in the local and national newspapers about your lost property papers and its details. Wait for 15 days to see if anyone returns your papers.
Step 3 – Get a duplicate share certificate
Approach Resident Welfare Association (RWA) to get a duplicate copy of the share certificate if your property is a part of a housing society. Submit a copy of your FIR and a copy of your newspaper notice to the RWA. They will issue you a duplicate certificate.
Step 4 – Take the legal route
The next step in taking the legal route is to prepare a legal copy. Mention the details of your lost property, FIR and newspaper notice on a stamp paper. Get it registered, attested, notarised from the concerned authority and submit it to the registrar’s office.
Step 5 – Get duplicate property documents
Apply for a duplicate sale deed of your property at the same registrar office. The documents to be submitted for this are copies of – FIR, newspaper ads, duplicate share certificate from RWA and the attested undertaking on the stamp paper. Pay a fee to receive a duplicate sale deed from the registrar office.
What you need to know?
- Explore the option to file FIR online. It will save you some time. This option is made available in certain cities.
- If your property documents were lost by the bank officials when you had kept it with them, they are bound to pay you compensation for the loss.
- FIR can be filed only by the owner of the property.
Once you receive a duplicate copy of your property documents, you can use them to apply for a home loan at a bank or any financial institution. The bank will first verify the authenticity of your documents before they do the background verification to approve your loan application. It is solely at the bank’s discretion to approve your loan application with the duplicate copy of property. Though it takes some time, money and effort to get duplicate property documents, it is worth it, since you will have the papers in hand.
Even with the procedure to get a copy of your property documents by legal means being available, it is advisable to take care and keep your original documents safely. Have you had any experience trying to get back lot property documents? Let us know your story in the comments below.