‘Caveat Emptor’ is a Latin phrase which means “let the buyer beware”. The term indicates that a purchaser shall purchase a product at his / her own risk. The term warns the potential buyers to do research of the product before purchasing it and question the seller for queries, if any. The principle of Caveat Emptor lays the onus on the buyer to perform due diligence before Caveat making a real estate purchase and once the sale is done the seller will not be responsible for the problems faced by the purchaser with respect to the product purchased.

Many a times people invest into a real estate project without seeking complete information of the said real estate project. Before signing any dotted line, the buyer is expected to go through the terms of the Allotment Letter / Booking Form / Agreement for Sale / Sale Deed to be executed between them and the Developer / Promoter thoroughly and understand terms of the same. There are instances where the buyer signs a document without reading the contents of the document i.e. Allotment Letter / Booking Form / Agreement for Sale / Sale Deed, in such cases some hidden but important clauses that may put the buyer in trouble are ignored negligently, as a result of which dispute arises between buyer and the Developer / Promoter.

The buyer is expected to do background check of the Developer / Promoter before entering into transaction with him by checking his previous work done in real estate industry. Once the buyer decides to invest into a particular real estate project the buyer is expected to do research of the said real estate project as to whether the real estate project is registered, check the RERA registration certificate, visit the RERA profile of the real estate project, whether the Developer / Promoter has disclosed all the information related to the said project, make a title search of the project land with the help of legal practitioner, verify the details disclosed on RERA profile, check the approvals obtained with respect to the said real estate project and the sanctioned plans, check the quality of the materials used, etc.

The time when the buyers practice the principle of Caveat Emptor, the chances of them being exploited and arising of disputes will be reduced to a greater extent. To avoid fraudulent transactions and disputes, it is highly advisable that a buyer shall obtain legal consultation before making purchase in a real estate project to avoid any issues arising after purchasing a property.