Updated 21 October 2026. We read the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 and the Registration Act, 1908 on government-hosted copies, the Karnataka Stamps and Registration Department's fee schedule, and Deccan Herald's 16 October report on khata bifurcation. Most checklists that rank for this query are generic and predate e-khata. This one is written for inherited bungalows: heirs, partition, the khata freeze, heritage and the stamp cost of putting title in order.

What recorded bungalow-land deals show

These are reported deals, not an index. Plot shape, frontage, road width and what can legally be built matter more than the bungalow on it.

  • Lavelle Road, near UB City · 25,824 sq ft of land with an old bungalow · ₹165.6 crore · about ₹64,000 per sq ft · September 2025 (Trade Brains).
  • Koramangala 3rd Block · 10,000 sq ft land parcel · ₹67.5 crore · April 2024 (Trade Brains). By our arithmetic that is about ₹67,500 per sq ft; the article states a higher figure.
  • Defence Colony, Indiranagar · independent house on 8,800 sq ft of land · about ₹47.5 crore · August 2024 (Trade Brains).

Can I buy a property with multiple legal heirs?

Yes, but only if every heir with a share joins the sale or has already given up their share by a registered document. Where a Hindu man dies without a will, his property goes first to the Class I heirs in the Act's Schedule: son, daughter, widow and mother, and the children and widows of predeceased children in the lines listed (Hindu Succession Act, 1956, sections 8 and 10 and the Schedule). The widow, each son, each daughter and the mother each take a share.

Two further rules catch buyers out:

  • Daughters: since the 2005 amendment, the daughter of a coparcener in a Mitakshara joint family is a coparcener by birth with the same rights as a son (section 6). Partitions made before 20 December 2004 are protected, but only if made by a registered partition deed or a court decree. An old oral or unregistered family arrangement is not enough.
  • Other heirs' first right: where property devolves on two or more Class I heirs and one proposes to sell their share, the other heirs have a preferential right to buy it (section 22). Buying a single heir's undivided share invites exactly this dispute.
  • Wills: a Hindu may leave property by will under the Indian Succession Act, 1925 (section 30). If the seller holds under a will, your advocate should advise on whether probate or other proof is needed before you rely on it.

Which family documents must be registered?

Under section 17(1)(b) of the Registration Act, 1908, any non-testamentary instrument that creates, declares, assigns, limits or extinguishes a right in immovable property must be registered. In practice that covers the partition deed that divided the family property and every release deed by which a sibling gave up a share. Gifts of immovable property must also be registered (section 17(1)(a)). A will is testamentary and is outside this list.

So ask for registered copies, and certified copies from the sub-registrar, of every partition, release and gift in the chain. An unregistered family settlement is a reason to pause, not a formality.

What it costs to put the title in order first

Often the cleanest route is for the family to complete its own partition or releases before the sale. Karnataka's stamp schedule makes this inexpensive inside the family and expensive outside it (Karnataka Stamps and Registration Department, fee schedule):

  • Partition of converted property in BBMP or city corporation limits: ₹5,000 stamp duty and ₹1,000 registration fee per share.
  • Release between family members in BBMP limits: ₹5,000 stamp duty and ₹1,000 registration fee.
  • Release not between family members: 5% stamp duty and 2% registration fee on the market value or consideration, whichever is higher.
  • Power of attorney authorising someone other than the listed close relatives to sell property in Karnataka: 5% stamp duty and 2% registration fee on market value.
  • The sale itself (conveyance): 5% of market value plus surcharge and additional duty, and a 2% registration fee. More on costs: Bangalore stamp duty calculator

How far back should the title search go?

Further than a fixed number of years. A Karnataka High Court advocate's guidance is to start from the earliest document by which the government, a court or a statutory authority vested rights in the first owner, then follow an unbroken chain to the seller (Citizen Matters, 18 September 2020). For a bungalow on an old estate, that can mean a grant or allotment from the early twentieth century.

  • Parent deed (the mother deed): the sale, gift, partition or allotment by which the seller's family acquired the land.
  • Encumbrance certificate for the whole period your advocate advises, to see mortgages, attachments and leases.
  • Powers of attorney: valid, unrevoked and given by someone entitled to give them; a notarised GPA used for several sales is a warning sign (Citizen Matters).
  • Building plan sanction for the existing house and any extension.
  • Khata: an A-khata extract in the seller's name. B-khata records unauthorised or by-law-violating property (Citizen Matters). Our guide to B to A conversion: B Khata to A Khata Conversion Till 2027: Bengaluru Guide
  • A public notice in newspapers inviting claims is common practice before a large purchase; it is not a legal requirement, but it brings out unknown claimants before you pay.

Has khata bifurcation resumed in Bengaluru?

Not confirmed at the time of writing. The Greater Bengaluru Authority was expected to launch online khata bifurcation on Saturday, 17 October 2026, for properties up to 2,000 sq m, ending a two-year freeze, but this depended on the state notifying the rules (Deccan Herald, 16 October 2026). In those two years only four bifurcation applications were approved across Greater Bengaluru. We found no report of the launch by 21 October.

The same report says only layouts and plots approved under section 17 of the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act, 1961 are eligible for e-khata processing, and that a draft notification of 4 June 2026 proposes amending the Revised Master Plan 2015 zoning rules to ease subdivisions, family partitions and mergers. Pending applications are to be processed once the final notification is issued. If a family plans to split a large compound before selling part of it, that step is not yet in their control. Our running explainer: Khata Bifurcation Online in Bengaluru: eAasthi 2.0 Rules

Does Bengaluru have a heritage building law?

Not a dedicated one, as reported. When the Karnataka High Court on 7 October 2021 restrained the conversion of the 170-year-old Balabrooie bungalow, a government property, the coverage attributed the controversy to the lack of a proper heritage protection law (The News Minute, 8 October 2021). The same report cites a 1985 list of 823 notable buildings, of which a 2015 INTACH resurvey found only 354 still standing.

For a buyer, this cuts both ways. A private bungalow is unlikely to carry a statutory heritage bar, but ask your advocate to check any listing or pending proposal for the street, and plan the project assuming public interest if the house is old and visible.

Central homes we list without the inheritance question

A new project carries its own checks (RERA registration, approvals, the developer's title), but not a family's. For buyers who want the old city without a partition file: