Real Estate in Pakistan is considered to be a long-term investment plan or an asset in the form of residential property. Either way, the property owner has to take care of all the legal documentation involved in the verification of the acquired land. 

To manage such a robust process, we’ll be giving you step-by-step guidance on how to assemble documents, where to visit for property verification, and how to refrain from getting scammed, all in this article. 

Do You Need Property Verification?

Many people don’t have a clue that they won’t be asked for property verification documents ever in their life. Though the percentages of such people living in particular areas are small, but it’s still good to know so you can filter yourself from them.

People in Karachi living in certain areas like Askari I-IV, Falcon Housing Society, and Navy Housing Scheme don’t need to have property documents for their real estate. The reason is that the government has given them the right as an amenity to live in those areas.

Therefore, the documents are preliminarily legalized by the government before granting the property to the potential owners. In this way, the residents are at peace by avoiding the hassle of completing the complex procedures of property verification. 

Note: Not having the property documents also shows that the government is the owner of the land and not the resident themselves. And the state can take the land whenever they want. 

Property Documents For Verification

Before visiting any office, you should know what documents are required for successful verification. Otherwise, you’ll not be entertained anymore, especially in the government offices. Below are the recommended papers you should have in your document stack. 

1. Mother Deed – It’s a legal document that shows the history of the transference of the property from time to time between different owners and sellers. 
   
   
2. Sales Deed – It represents the legitimate transaction of the property between the owner and the seller. It also shows that both parties mutually consented to the property agreement. 
   
   
3. Approved Property Plan – This document shows the property is constructed on guidelines established by the legal body. It’s of greater significance because it frees the property from coming under the Recovery of Possession ordinance.
    
4. Bank Approval Certificate – If the bank loan was involved in the property creation or buying, they issued the loan certificate after the document approval, before providing the money to the owner.
    
5. Power of Attorney – It equipped the current resident with rights to buy, sell, and rent a property registered under other people’s names. 
   
   
6. Completion Certificate – This certificate is necessary and valuable for the authentication of the property papers. If it’s not created, that will create doubts for potential buyers. It also shows that the property is built on the framework provided by the legal authorities.
    
7. Property Tax Receipts – This document is often overlooked, but it’s really essential. It shows if the previous property owners have submitted the property’s relevant taxes and cleared all dues. The new owner must fill in on their behalf if they haven’t.

These all documents are equally crucial for property verification. If you lack somewhere or in some domain, you must complete it and mend it before validation comes. 

Ways to Verify Property Documents

Before finding where to go to verify your property documents, it’s necessary to understand how Karachi has been divided by the municipality into several different districts. Those districts are: 

1. Karachi East
2. Karachi West 
3. Karachi Central
4. Karachi South 
5. Malir/ Korangi

If you live in the upper four districts (from east to south) and in DHA Phase 1-8, then for property verification, you’ve to visit your local SBCA (Sindh Building Control Authority) powered institutes. For example, if you’re from Karachi West, then call your local district office, and they will guide you through the whole process of verification. 

Now there comes another problem for the people living in Malir, Korangi, and Scheme 45-55 & onwards areas. Their locations come under the banner of MDA – Malir Development Authority. Thus, for any property related issues or verification, they have to visit MDA’s local offices for assistance. 

For private properties such as Bahria Town Karachi and DHA City, their documentation processes and land verification are handled via the property’s head offices located within the gated community. They won’t let you go in any hassles of office visits or documents assembling; everything is done by the estate agents and property dealers, serving as middlemen. 

There are practices and offices you must know about in your area for any property related confirmation. In the case of dealing with SBCA and MDA, you can find their government offices in almost every area throughout Karachi city. 

Online Property Papers Verification

There are several governmental and non-governmental services available to facilitate the real estate validation process. But, to this date, those services have some bottlenecks and aren’t mature enough to be trusted in the longer term. 

We know that visiting government institutions is a cumbersome task, and not everyone has the patience and mentality to cope with the fussiness in the office’s atmosphere. But, once bought the property, you have to take this step and be relieved for life. 

To Sum Up,

Verifying real estate is one of the essential steps to take to protect yourself from the government Recovery From Possession Act, which states the illegal possession of the property. Therefore, it’s your duty to make yourself at peace by implementing certain legal obligations.